I'm in a position where it's necessary for me to either fix my currently installed OEM radiator (very small leak) or, worse case, replace it. I'm also getting closer to the point where I will want to replace it anyway with a Be Cool aluminum radiator when I upgrade to a "street performance" 455 (from the current 350) in my Skylark. So, I figure... What the heck! I might as well upgrade to the Be-Cool radiator now. That'll be one less thing to do while the car is down for the engine swap. The problem is, the diameter of the lower OEM radiator hose fitting is 1 & 1/2", as opposed to a 1 & 3/4" fitting on the Be-Cool radiator. So, I need some sort of a radiator hose adapter or reducer to hook up my stock lower hose to the aluminum radiator. One option might be a combination rubber and metal reduced (1&3/4" rubber female end to 1&1/2" metal male end) that will slip over and clamp to the lower radiator fitting and receive the end of the stock lower hose. Another might be a metal tubing reducer that can be used to splice part of a 455 lower hose to my stock 350 hose. The trouble is, a search of the Summit website and my local independent auto parts store offerings failed to turn up anything useful. Any "off the shelf" options you're aware of? As always, thanks in advance for your help.
Either get a radiator with the right size outlets, or get a hose like this one, https://www.summitracing.com/parts/dac-81251/overview/ https://www.summitracing.com/parts/dac-81261/overview/ https://www.summitracing.com/parts/dac-81271/overview/
Thanks Larry, but.... Assuming my information is correct (the inlet fitting on OEM radiators for Skylark 350's are 1 & 1/2" diameter and for Skylark 455's are 1 & 3/4" diameter) buying a OE-style radiator with the correct fitting sizes for my 350 now and then buying a Be Cool OE-Series aluminum radiator for the 455 a few months later will be a little hard on my budget. The corrugated hoses may work, though. They aren't very efficient, but keeping my 350 cool for a few months until I perform the engine swap shouldn't be much of a challenge. I forgot those darn corrugated hoses even existed. So, good call Larry.
OE outlet and inlet sizes for the radiator are 1 1/2" for both the 350 and 455. That 1 3/4" lower outlet is a Chevy thing. Buick radiators are all 1 1/2" for all engines.
Same problem here solved by forcing (and not much force if hose is warm, prestretched, and lubed) the 1.5 inch hose over the nipple while the radiator is face down on the floor. I inspect that hose every few months just to confirm it's holding up.
Well, the Be Cool folks are not willing to build a one-off Buick radiator by installing a 1 & 1/2" fitting in place of the 1 & 3/4" Chevy fitting. So, the way I figure it (if I'm locked in on a replica OE-style radiator), I have a few choices: 1 - Have my currently installed OE-type brass 3-row core brass radiator re-cored and upgraded (4-row?), 2 - Purchase an OE-style brass radiator with upgraded cooling abilities (4-row core, probably), 3 - Purchase the "correct" (for a Chevy A-body) Be Cool #17008 OE-appearing aluminum radiator and: A - Always use a corrugated universal 1 & 1/2"/1 & 3/4" lower radiator, B - Have a 1 & 3/4"" to 1 & 1/2" stainless steel or aluminum tubing custom nipple made to splice the two different sizes of radiator hose together, C - Get super lucky and find an OE-style lower hose that would fit the 1 & 3/4" lower fitting and the 1 & 1/2" water pump fitting, D - Find/buy a short section of the correct alloy 1 & 1/2" tubing and replace the as-delivered 1 & 3/4" lower hose fitting with it. Did I miss anything?
I suspect that it does work, but I'm sure that puts a lot of stress on the hose end, which means reduced service life. My concern was with the hose end bursting or tearing, as opposed to warning me of eminent failure by just developing surface cracks, etc. I find that having AAA load my wounded Buick on a flat-bed tow-truck is way too embarrassing. Plus, it's a hassle washing antifreeze out of the engine compartment. I appreciate the input, and I did consider it, but it sounds a little too risky to me.
I don't know all of the hose dimensions for the different Buicks,but I came across this similar problem with one of my 70 442's,when I installed an aluminum radiator in it. The 70 and older have the 1 1/2" outlet,and the radiator have the 1 3/4" outlet. However,the 71-72 442's have the 1 3/4" outlet,so I just bought one of those hoses,and all was well. Another option is to take the radiator to a radiator shop,and have them install the smaller outlet. I have also done that too,with a different radiator. It came with the lower outlet welded on at a 45,and I wanted it straight,so they sliced that one off and welded a straight one on.
https://www.pegasusautoracing.com/productdetails.asp?RecID=11161 They also sell a nice 1 1/2 in hose joiner. not sure what this does with dimensional stack-ups though.
