98 Outback 5MT Radiator?

[LegacyGT412]

Looking to see if anyone has a link to a good aftermarket performance radiator, it does not need to have a transmission cooler, but definitely want a bolt in. Mishimoto makes one for first gen turbo legacy's and 3rd gen but not for second gen from what I can find.

 

The desert has been getting very hot lately (114+) and running the AC is a killer for the stock style, as mine has been replaced by a cheap auto parts store before I owned it.

[LegacyGT412]

Oh, also looked through the aftermarket parts stickys on the main page and did not see it there either. So if anyone has one, can we get it into one of those stickys?

[Leggyobw97]

OEM radiator works just fine for 90% of applications, can't say the same for cheapo replacement products. Even under heavy stress, high heat for extended periods, the Subaru radiator holds up.

 

I know there's an all- aluminum 2-core radiator/fan shroud kit for the 2nd gen that you can find on eBay sometimes but they're expensive and I'm pretty sure they're out of stock right now. I think there are people on this forum who have that set-up though.

 

As for the Mishimoto ones, I think the 1st gen legacy had pretty much the same size radiator with the same general layout as the 2nd gen, but there are a few differences between the two and you'd probably have to make some alterations to get everything to fit.

 

I recently picked up the Mishimoto fan shroud for the 1st gen and I'm currently working out a way to fit it in my 2nd gen. Pretty much everything lines up but I'll have to make a custom bracket for the overflow reservoir and rewire the fan circuit -- the stock fans are 2-speed and the Mishimoto ones are single speed so I'm going to wire the low speed signal to one fan and the high speed signal to the other fan. I did A/C delete and models without A/C only had one radiator fan so I think I'll be fine with just one fan running most of the time. Side note - also running a low temp thermostat to help keep things cool.

 

Edit: 1st gen turbo legacy radiator was different, they're such unicorns at this point I wasn't thinking about it. The radiator for the turbo model has an extra outlet to cool the turbo, so it wouldn't work for the 2nd gen. The radiator for the average non-turbo 1st gen is pretty much the same as the 2nd gen though.

Edited June 15, 2021 by Leggyobw97
different radiator for turbo models

[Brighton96]

The 1st gen rad is a little different sized, I forget exactly, I want to say it's like an inch or so wider so it won't fit our chassis'. I have a generic Chinese dual core rad currently with unbranded fans (neither installed yet.) I think down the line I will install reputable brand fans but other than that the quality seems fine.The ones on eBay are all absurdly expensive right now, so hold off on getting one. I paid like $230 for mine and the same listing is currently sitting at $800. Here's the link if you want to keep an eye on it.

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/132618187252

[Leggyobw97]

The 1st gen rad is a little different sized, I forget exactly, I want to say it's like an inch or so wider so it won't fit our chassis

 

You're right, I just did some measurements and compared them to the specs listed on the Mishimoto page for their 1st gen radiator and it looks like it would be too tall and too thick for our chassis. That checks out because the fan shroud I got from them looks like it will be a little tall for my radiator. I'm betting I'll find a way to make it fit though.

 

I've seen a thread where someone with a non-turbo 1st gen used the radiator from a 2nd gen (http://main.experiencetherave.com/subaru/images/radiatorcomparison/) but it doesn't seem like you can do the opposite swap from 1st into 2nd gen.

 

I have a generic Chinese dual core rad currently with unbranded fans (neither installed yet.) I think down the line I will install reputable brand fans but other than that the quality seems fine.The ones on eBay are all absurdly expensive right now, so hold off on getting one. I paid like $230 for mine and the same listing is currently sitting at $800. Here's the link if you want to keep an eye on it.

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/132618187252

 

I messaged one of those sellers pretty recently about the price and got this in return

 

This is the customer service from coolingmaster-US

Thanks for pay attention for our item ,but very sorry this item was out of stock now,so we increased its price,and we will notice when this item retocked if you collect this item.

Please feel free to contact us if you have any other problems.

 

Your sincerely

 

coolingmaster-US

 

Seems like a good product if you can get it at the right price though. Let me know what you think of it once you get it on there. I'll do the same once I figure out how to make that Mishimoto fan shroud fit.

[LegacyGT412]

The 1st gen rad is a little different sized, I forget exactly, I want to say it's like an inch or so wider so it won't fit our chassis'. I have a generic Chinese dual core rad currently with unbranded fans (neither installed yet.) I think down the line I will install reputable brand fans but other than that the quality seems fine.The ones on eBay are all absurdly expensive right now, so hold off on getting one. I paid like $230 for mine and the same listing is currently sitting at $800. Here's the link if you want to keep an eye on it.

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/132618187252

 

I was looking at that exact one a month ago and saved it, should have bought it then.... Do you know if those are oil cooler ports on the driver side? I'm hoping not as I would not need them but I guess if they are I would loop it just in case of any internal leaks being a ebay radiator lol

[Brighton96]

Yeah the ports are on the drivers side. They are just threaded bungs that come plugged when you get it. That way they can say the rad is for both manual and auto cars. I was going to wait to install my rad until I do the manual swap and then just use the cooling channel for engine oil or just not use it at all.

[Leggyobw97]

Figured out how to get the Mishimoto radiator fan kit for the 1st gen to work on a 2nd gen.

 

Wiring was easier than I thought: just color match blue to blue, black to black, then ground the green wires.

 

Upper mounting points on the shroud match right up to where the old fans were, points at the bottom need to get mounted to the chassis under the radiator (instead of to the bottom of the radiator like the old fans).

 

Coolant overflow tank gets mounted to the shroud, there are a number of ways you can do this. You could cut off the bracket from the old fan and use that, or you could find the overflow tank from a 1st gen because the bracket for that one comes right off and isn't welded in place like the one for the 2nd gen.

 

If anyone is interested but this write-up doesn't answer all your questions I could start a new thread and include some photos. Right now everything is sort of in proof-of-concept mode and isn't ready to be shown off yet. But the Mishimoto fans sound great, feel more powerful, the aluminum shroud looks 100x better than the rusty old stock one, and is probably half the weight.