Radiator Question

[bmax87]

I have an 87 C10 that I'm swapping the original 350 for a 461 and need to know what radiator I should go back with. Friends are telling me a 4 row but I need to know which one will fit, also I want to go with electric fans and one website stated they didn't recommend fans on a 4 row, so I'm confused and need some help. Thanks.

[LTZ C20]

I could be wrong, other members will chime in on this anyway. You could probably use a radiator from a 454 truck. It should already fit. As for the electric fans, my truck came stock with a 3 row stock and I'm running electric fans and air conditions and external trans cooler. My truck has never gotten past half on the temp gauge and normally runs about 3/8's on the gauge. Nice and cool for my aluminum heads that would warp if it ever overheated or something.

[bmax87]

Thanks, that's what I have been looking at but didn't know if someone has done this before that could tell me what year model to get that will fit, I would assume I will have to modify brackets or something. I think the 2 electric fans will be fine for what I'm doing, I'm building it for a driver not something that will be going to the track much.

[Dirka]

Are the bodies the same on all these trucks 73-87? so if I were to upgrade a radiator in a 77 K10 truck now that i'm working on, I would be able to transplanted that radiator into my future project C10 project of the same year?

[LTZ C20]

Bmax. You should be ok but always make sure everything is hooked up properly and electrical is set up right so your fans run properly.

Brackets are a personal preference,  mine actually came with plastic mounts, I screwed those into the top and bottom of the radiator where there's no important stuff, then bolted the fan assembly to the plastic mounts. Looks real nice.

Dirka, there are alot a parts that are the same, and there are alot of parts that are not. For example and related to this, the radiator core support for 73 - 80 round fender I believe are the same, but 81-87 square fender core supports are different. How ever, 73-80 saw 3 different hood latch release designs I believe.

So the radiator from a 77 k 10 should fit into a 76 c10 and the radiator from a 79 big block 454 should fit into a 74 small block 350. The radiators will fit, it's the mounting pads and trans cooler lines and radiator hoses and such that you will have to double check to see they route properly.