Thoughts on Dewitts radiator fit.

[Rick T.]

1972 Corvette small block
Manual transmission
No AC
Dewitts Radiator part #242000

I received my radiator from Dewitts and I can't seem to get it to fit correctly. The hose outlet on the bottom touches a piece of what looks like a body panel support and prevents the pins on the bottom of the radiator from sitting into the cups that are supposed to hold it in place. Also, even if the pins sat down into their brackets, the radiator is a little too short to reach the top mounting bracket. The core support really looks original but this car had a replacement copper radiator that my dad put in a long time ago so maybe they had to swap out the core support also. Does anyone see something I'm missing or should I just order a new radiator support and see if that makes the difference?

Rick

[Jeffrey S.]

Re: Thoughts on Dewitts radiator fit.

Radiator fit. I have put 2 Dewitts radiators in in 2 different corvettes and both fit perfectly. I suspect someone altered car to accept the copper unit. Take a good look at what you have and make sure the radiator support is installed correctly, check for extra holes etc. No ,matter what, you should be able to make it work w/o a lot of drama. Hope this helps . Jeff

[Jim D.]

Re: Thoughts on Dewitts radiator fit.

I recently purchased my 5th DeWitt's radiator and every single one of them has not only exceeded my quality expectations, they all fit perfectly. I'm willing to bet that the problem is on your end.

[Rick T.]

Re: Thoughts on Dewitts radiator fit.

Ha, just had a conversation with another Northwest Chapter member and he is thinking the same thing. Thank you both for your input and hopefully the next pictures I post will be of a perfectly installed radiator.

Rick

[Stewart L.]

Re: Thoughts on Dewitts radiator fit.

I concur with everyone about the excellent fit of DeWitts radiators. Is there any chance they sent you the wrong one by mistake?

[Rick T.]

Re: Thoughts on Dewitts radiator fit.

I concur with everyone about the excellent fit of DeWitts radiators. Is there any chance they sent you the wrong one by mistake?

Hey Stewart, I thought that might have been possible but after talking to them I have ruled that out. They were very helpful when I called them. They had me check the measurement of the core and verified that I have the correct one. Interestingly though, I purchased this product via Corvette Central and they also had me measure the overall hight and width of the radiator and they seemed to think it was off. But after they emailed me the pdf on the specs for all the different Dewitts radiators I realized that the overall width of the radiator is different than what is on the pdf because they just measure the core itself and don't include the tanks on the side.

Thanks and I will keep you posted on how it works out. I just received the confirmation that you sent me saying I am all registered for the regional in Redmond Oregon so hopefully I will have this figured out by then.

Rick

[Mark E.]

Re: Thoughts on Dewitts radiator fit.

Can Dewitts offer any feedback/help other than confirming their radiator is the correct size? Maybe they can suggest what to look for regarding the core support, brackets, alignment, etc.

[Rick T.]

Re: Thoughts on Dewitts radiator fit.

Hey Mark, I did ask the tech that I was talking to about the core support. He was honest and said that they don't really deal with the core supports or brackets or anything so he couldn't give me any advice other than it's not the radiator.

Thanks anyways.

Rick

[Joe L.]

Re: Thoughts on Dewitts radiator fit.

...I realized that the overall width of the radiator is different than what is on the pdf because they just measure the core itself and don't include the tanks on the side.


Rick

Rick------


If you're talking about the reproduction of the GM #3155316 radiator, that radiator does not have tanks on the side or anywhere else.

[Mark E.]

Re: Thoughts on Dewitts radiator fit.

Hey Mark, I did ask the tech that I was talking to about the core support. He was honest and said that they don't really deal with the core supports or brackets or anything so he couldn't give me any advice other than it's not the radiator.

Thanks anyways.

Rick

So Dewitts can only say they delivered the proper part number, but can't say if it's the proper size? How does it compare to your original radiator? Plan B may be to have yours recored. This may also look more original.

[Jim D.]

Re: Thoughts on Dewitts radiator fit.

How does it compare to your original radiator?

The OP posted "this car had a replacement copper radiator that my dad put in a long time ago so maybe they had to swap out the core support also".

[Mark E.]

Re: Thoughts on Dewitts radiator fit.

Got it. The old radiator still can be used as a size/dimension check against the new one.

[Joe L.]

Re: Thoughts on Dewitts radiator fit.

So Dewitts can only say they delivered the proper part number, but can't say if it's the proper size? How does it compare to your original radiator? Plan B may be to have yours recored. This may also look more original.

Mark-------


All 1963-72 Corvette aluminum radiators cannot be "re-cored". They are, essentially, only a "core" with no tanks. Thus, "re-coring" a 1963-72 Corvette aluminum radiator means replacing the radiator.

[Joe L.]

Re: Thoughts on Dewitts radiator fit.

Got it. The old radiator still can be used as a size/dimension check against the new one.

Mark------


No, it can't. In this case, the old radiator is a copper/brass replacement radiator. There's nothing to say that such a radiator is dimensionally identical to the original 3155316 aluminum radiator. It may or may not be. This is especially true of early copper/brass replacements (which this radiator almost certainly is). Some of those I've seen were really crude.

[Frank D.]

Re: Thoughts on Dewitts radiator fit.

I've put two DeWitt's radiators in cars recently; the latest one in my '63 coupe - they are perfect...