Coolant Routing - Another possibility?

Okay, I admit,, I'm not a huge fan of how the coolant lines are ran with the current design. I've racked my head around a couple of ways to make the lines not run underneath the suspension. I didn't want to run the lines inside the car, as this would introduce you to the same issue as the GTM, where the inside of the cabin gets hot, because the coolant lines run through the tunnel.

What about using 1 1/16" x 2" round oval tubing and run it under the car? Might sound crazy, but hear me out. The lowest part of the car is actually the recessed floor pans under the seats. They sit about 1 1/4" below the rest of the car. There is also about 5" of space between the two floor pans. You could easily run a send and return line of the 1 1/6" x 2". To address the heat issue, you can get a bit high tech and use aerogel. It's not cheap, but not that expensive for the small amount that you will be insulating. Here is what I see. The area of this tubing is almost the same as the 1.5" round tubing that comes with the kit.

PROS:

- Shorter pipe routing which means less weight in water and piping

- Less bends so probably better flow


view
 
You could put a "skid plate" under it. If you broke it then, means you really whomped the underside of your car. I think there would be enough clearance for a 1/8" steel plating under the tubes.
 
waste of time. you'll notice the heat radiating from the engine/blasting you from the radiator fans before heat from the pipes will be an issue.
 

Fran Hall RCR

GT40s Sponsor
The risk of damage is very high running them under the car, hence the reason we run them along the sides of the footbox and inside the sidepods...much better than a GT40 through the tunnel for heat build up.
 
Not to mention the transitions you'll have to make from oval to round.
Stay with the well proven system.
 
Why not route them through the roll cage ;)

Plenty of production cars have brake pipes and fuel lines under the car, but they do have more ride height and a shaped floor-pan. If coolant lines get damaged, it's not as bad, but still a pain. The space does sound too tight for both the lines and reasonable insulation IMO.
 

Howard Jones

Supporter
Roll cage, You don't want to pump the water uphill for any reason. Of course you will need to do so to get it into the engine but keep the plumbing as low as possible otherwise. And do you really want to rust out the roll cage. Not to mention the 200F+ water inside it spraying all over you should a weld crack in a shunt. There's too many reasons not to. Just don't do it.

I LIKE the OEM routing and frankly I can't see doing it any other way. The only pieces that could get damaged are the parts in the wheel wells. I think it is VERY unlikely that they would be, but just in case I made mine so that the two pieces that connect the run in the sidepod with the run in the nose box are separate pieces from the rest. This way they can replaced if necessary without opening the sidepods or replacing the entire nose section.

A better idea is to use a electric pump. So many reasons to do so that I can't go into them here. If I have ANY problems at all with cooling I am throwing out my mechanical pump and installing a Davies Craig electrical pump.
 
There would make no difference in heat build up if you put the under the car, they are still tight to the chassis. Way to much of a chance to chunk them up too. Just insulate them well.
 

Michael Fling

Supporter
I am having an aluminum shield made that covers all the lines that go through the front wheel well. It will cover and protect the lines.
 
You won't notice any heat if you:
  • Insulate the coolant lines in the side pods
  • Keep at least 1/2" of clearance between the coolant lines and the chassis
  • Use the side pod covers.

Remember, there is a 2x6" hollow structure between you and the coolant lines that is natural insulation.

There is a high air pressure zone in the engine compartment that forces warm air to flow forward thru the side pods and into the cabin. You will want to block that warm engine compartment air flow to keep the cabin cool.
 
Roll cage, You don't want to pump the water uphill for any reason. Of course you will need to do so to get it into the engine but keep the plumbing as low as possible otherwise. And do you really want to rust out the roll cage. Not to mention the 200F+ water inside it spraying all over you should a weld crack in a shunt. There's too many reasons not to. Just don't do it.
There was a smiley!
 
Just curious, but is anyone venting the under side of the side pods? Mine are mostly closed off.

Vipers have a huge problem with exhaust heat running through the sides and that is the most effective way of handling it on those.
 
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