SpeedFactory Universal Aluminum Race Radiator - Compact Drag Racing Radiator
Building a turbo Honda with a front-mount intercooler that's eating up all your radiator space? The SpeedFactory universal aluminum race radiator's a compact 14.5" x 10" radiator designed for tight engine bays where a full-size radiator won't fit. I've seen these radiators on drag cars, tube-chassis builds, and engine-swapped cars where the factory radiator location's been deleted for a massive intercooler or turbo setup. The radiator's only 3 inches thick (5.5 inches with the fan and shroud), so it fits in spaces where you can't run a normal radiator. It comes with a SPAL 9" fan and integrated shroud, so you've got everything you need for a complete cooling setup. Here's the catch: this is a drag racing radiator, not a street radiator. It's designed for short bursts of cooling (like drag passes or dyno pulls), not sustained highway driving or track sessions. If you're building a street car, you need a bigger radiator.
Here's What This Radiator's Actually For
This radiator's designed for drag racing and show cars where you need cooling for short periods. A drag pass is 10-15 seconds of full-throttle abuse, then you're cooling down for 5-10 minutes before your next pass. The radiator can handle that duty cycle. It's also popular for show cars where you need a radiator to keep the engine cool while it's sitting at a show, but you're not actually driving the car hard. The radiator's NOT designed for street use or road racing. The core's too small to handle sustained cooling load from highway driving or 20-minute track sessions. You'll overheat. SpeedFactory says right in the product description: this radiator's for drag racing and show applications, use a larger radiator for street use. Don't ignore that warning or you'll be on the side of the highway overheating.
14.5" x 10" x 3" Core - Way Smaller Than Stock
The radiator core's 14.5 inches tall, 10 inches wide, and 3 inches thick. For comparison, a stock Civic radiator's around 20-24 inches wide and 16-18 inches tall. The SpeedFactory radiator's got way less surface area and coolant capacity. That's the trade-off for the compact size. Less surface area means less heat rejection capability. The radiator can cool your engine during short bursts, but it can't handle continuous heat load like a full-size radiator can. The included SPAL 9" fan and shroud add 2.5 inches to the thickness, so the total depth with the fan is 5.5 inches. That's still way thinner than a radiator and fan combo on a stock car.
Available in -16 AN or 32mm Hose Fittings
SpeedFactory makes this radiator in two versions: -16 AN fittings or 32mm radiator hose fittings. The -16 AN version has male AN fittings welded to the tanks. You're running -16 AN hoses from your engine to the radiator. -16 AN is overkill for most applications, but it's what a lot of drag cars and custom builds use. The 32mm hose version has 32mm tube bungs welded to the tanks for standard radiator hoses. 32mm is close to 1.25 inches, which is a common radiator hose size. Pick whichever version matches your cooling system plumbing. The radiator also has a -6 AN ORB (O-Ring Boss) drain fitting on the bottom, so you can drain the radiator without pulling hoses off.
TIG Welded 5052 Aluminum Tanks
The radiator tanks are CAD-designed and formed from 5052 aluminum. 5052's a common aluminum alloy for sheet metal work because it's easy to form and weld. The tanks are TIG welded to the core, and the whole radiator's pressure-tested after welding. The top tank's got the SpeedFactory logo CNC engraved into it, which looks clean for a show car. The radiator comes with two M8 x 1.25mm billet aluminum mounting bungs welded to the tanks. You're fabricating your own mounting brackets that bolt to those bungs. There are no universal mounting brackets included because every custom application's different.
SPAL 9" Fan and Shroud Included
The radiator comes with a SPAL 9" low-profile fan and an integrated aluminum shroud. The fan's a puller fan that mounts on the back of the radiator. SPAL fans are good quality and they move enough air for this size radiator. The shroud's designed to fit tight to the radiator core so the fan's pulling air through the entire core instead of just the center section. You're wiring the fan to a manual switch, a temp switch, or your ECU's fan output. The fan doesn't come pre-wired, you're doing your own wiring.
What You Get
- SpeedFactory universal aluminum race radiator
- Core dimensions: 14.5" H x 10" W x 3" D (5.5" with fan and shroud)
- 5052 aluminum tanks (TIG welded, pressure tested)
- CNC engraved SpeedFactory logo on top tank
- Available in two versions:
- -16 AN male fittings (for AN hose plumbing)
- 32mm radiator hose fittings (for standard hoses)
- -6 AN ORB drain fitting
- SPAL 9" low-profile puller fan included
- Integrated aluminum fan shroud included
- 2x M8 x 1.25mm billet aluminum mounting bungs
- Designed for drag racing and show applications
- NOT recommended for street use or sustained cooling loads
Common Applications
- Drag racing cars (short cooling bursts between passes)
- Show cars (static cooling for display)
- Tube-chassis builds with no factory radiator location
- Engine swaps with FMIC that deletes factory radiator space
- Custom builds where space is extremely limited
Note: This radiator is NOT recommended for street use, road racing, or sustained cooling loads. It's designed for drag racing (short bursts of cooling) and show applications (static display). If you're building a street car or a road race car, you need a full-size radiator with way more cooling capacity. Don't use this radiator on the street and expect it to work, you'll overheat. The radiator doesn't include mounting brackets. You're fabricating your own brackets that bolt to the M8 mounting bungs on the tanks. Every custom application's different, so SpeedFactory doesn't include universal brackets. The SPAL fan needs to be wired to a power source. You can wire it to a manual switch, a temperature switch, or your ECU's cooling fan output. The fan draws around 7-10 amps depending on model, so make sure your wiring and switch can handle the load.
