Brownmonster Posted June 4 Share Posted June 4 I see OK, I read that the older hoses/rad need cutting and the right angle adding. The hose I received seemed to fit perfectly and didn't have the step down so perhaps I was lucky, it also fits nicely on the top chassis rails and doesn't go near the steering rack. I got the kit end of April and really don't expect to finish until end of July at the earliest (esp with holidays in the way!) I'm ready to book the test though and have competed and paid for the application. Blogging is demanding, I have a routine for it now but it can suck up time, I've really done it as a record for me more than anything but if anyone else can benefit from it then that is also a bonus! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR400D Posted June 5 Share Posted June 5 It doesn’t get better does it? What a lash up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SM25T Posted June 5 Share Posted June 5 On 05/05/2024 at 15:41, cobar said: Here are a couple of photos taken during my build that show the mounts in place. As seen in the second photo, the factory didn't sufficiently bend the bracket to create a parallel mounting surface for the radiator, so that had to be done to fit. It's a thick piece that took some persuasion to get right. I have to say I don't like the angle of the bracket holding the bobbin. See attached Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StevehS3 Posted June 5 Share Posted June 5 The bolt head looks close or touching the rad too bypassing the cushioning of the rubber. The bobbins seem half the length they used to be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR400D Posted June 5 Share Posted June 5 I can’t help but think it would be better to just buy the ‘old’ style radiator and bits necessary to build a car with the original design. At least the hoses fitted properly back then. Of course they're out of stock …… 🥴 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brownmonster Posted June 5 Share Posted June 5 Given mine all fit together without any modifications, I think they just send what stock they have. I was looking at the photos of my lower rad hose vs some other blogs and mine looks like a much longer hose for the job. Perhaps there is a difference between an S3 and SV hose, and some people with the SV kit just get S3 hoses? Who knows, each build is certainly different though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR400D Posted June 5 Share Posted June 5 The hose is the same but it’s the one that fitted the original design with the old radiator/cooler set up. I believe CC changed things for stock reasons as the race cars benefit from the bigger rad/cooler. Quite unnecessary for most but saves them a few quid. They could just have put some thought into the design for road cars instead of just throwing ill fitting bits at it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonesy365 Posted June 5 Author Share Posted June 5 (edited) Right this has been bugging me all last night the nose cone pressing in the top of the radiator! So instead of sitting eating rubbish at lunch (I work from home) I’ve adjusted the brackets where the radiator fits through down by 10mm. This now gives me just enough clearance so that the 620 nose cone doesn’t contact the radiator on the top… happy days! Need to keep an eye on the bottom left oil hose as that’s a little tight but will see once there is oil in and some pressure. Edited June 5 by Jonesy365 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brownmonster Posted June 5 Share Posted June 5 I still have a sneaky feeling that they have finally updated the hose. Given I have the new radiator to fit a 420R SV and the hose fits I'd say it can't just be luck!! I read about the issues first here https://www.tiggercaterham.co.uk/post/36-radiator and was expecting to have to do what you did! That lower oil hose is going to be super tight with a slightly lowered rad, 10mm shouldnt make much difference though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cobar Posted June 5 Share Posted June 5 4 hours ago, SM25T said: I have to say I don't like the angle of the bracket holding the bobbin. See attached That was the before photo with the brackets as supplied by Caterham. As I mentioned in that post, I bent the brackets to form a parallel surface to the radiator. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aerobod - near CYYC Posted June 5 Share Posted June 5 Both the clearance to the nosecone and hose length may be solved by bending the brackets more at the existing fold lines to make the mounting surface parallel to the radiator mount. It looks as though the radiator would be about 15mm further back if that was done, increasing the nosecone clearance due to the taper. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brownmonster Posted June 5 Share Posted June 5 1 hour ago, Brownmonster said: I still have a sneaky feeling that they have finally updated the hose. Given I have the new radiator to fit a 420R SV and the hose fits I'd say it can't just be luck!! I read about the issues first here https://www.tiggercaterham.co.uk/post/36-radiator and was expecting to have to do what you did! That lower oil hose is going to be super tight with a slightly lowered rad, 10mm shouldnt make much difference though. I have an answer to this from CC: Quote Apologies for not getting this information to you in time but I’m glad you got everything in place. The bottom hose will fit in standard form, but it will be sat at a sub optimal angle which can in some cases lead to an air lock in the system, hence needing to add the right angle section in place of the stepped down section. I'll get hoses updated tonight to fit, I did think that the additional step up may cause a problem to the flow! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cobar Posted June 5 Share Posted June 5 28 minutes ago, aerobod - near CYYC said: Both the clearance to the nosecone and hose length may be solved by bending the brackets more at the existing fold lines to make the mounting surface parallel to the radiator mount. It looks as though the radiator would be about 15mm further back if that was done, increasing the nosecone clearance due to the taper. In my case it didn't solve the clearance issue, but given production tolerances, it could for @Jonesy365. My remaining interference is very slight; I don't notice it when fitting the nosecone, but the wear marks from the grill are clear and sufficiently deep on the right side to indicate it should be addressed. The wear marks on the left are noticeably shallower but still present. My guess is the two parts just touch; however, vibration and flexing while driving is enough to tighten that gap and wear away the softer aluminum radiator. I'll double check all clearances and then either drill new holes like Jonsey or simply oval the existing holes by ~5mm. Either way, I want to do this before I blat on Saturday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aerobod - near CYYC Posted June 5 Share Posted June 5 There are a number of other rub points I have found on the nosecone and bonnet of my older R400D, I have added foam tape at these points between the rub surfaces (on top of the coil cover, coolant overflow tank cap and oil fill cap). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter_V Posted June 5 Share Posted June 5 I saw what I was told was a factory built 2024 420sv with just an extension to the bottom radiator hose. So I copied that and cut one side of the right angle pipe to give me the extension piece. Removing some of the bend in the original supplied bottom hose gave me a reasonable fit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter_V Posted June 5 Share Posted June 5 On the brackets. My Feb 2024 SV was supplied with two holes in the brackets at the bottom. The lower holes were the ones that fitted the chassis. Looks like everyone gets different parts and a different story. LHS Bracket picture Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter_V Posted June 5 Share Posted June 5 Oops my mistake. I can now see you are lowering holes on the other side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now