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Mishimoto Radiator OR Mountune Radiator

Mishimoto Radiator or Mountune Radiator?

  • Mishomoto

    Votes: 14 26.4%
  • Mountune

    Votes: 39 73.6%

  • Total voters
    53

TDavis

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#1
Considering making my FiST a decent track day competitor but also I know the stock rad isn't really that good in terms of keeping the car ideally cool. My car stayed cool on my first track day but it was also a nice 60 degree day and not the 90 degree days that track days are usually at.

I've heard good things about both brands but I want to get other peoples opinions on it.
 


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#4
From all the nightmare stories I've heard (not just for our cars) with Mishimoto...I would get one from someone else. Just look around on here and the link above for the BBB. Their radiators aren't know for being very quality pieces. I'm sure you might have a chance of getting a good one but you also might end up with a bad one with terrible consequences.
 


OP
TDavis

TDavis

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Thread Starter #5
I am leaning more towards Mountune but I just wanted to get everyones opinions. I know every company has its negatives/positives but wanted to hear it from the community.
 


OP
TDavis

TDavis

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Thread Starter #8
Just installed the Mountune and it has done wonders for my coolant temps. It fits great and can be installed without removing the bumper/crash beam.
How annoying was it to install without taking off the crash beam?
 


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#10
I have the Mishi radiator & oil cooler on my FiST for my track events. I got this pair as it was the only one on the market at the time. I had heard about Mishi's issues, but never tried any of their products. I had the rad and oil cooler professionally installed and have had 0 issues with both.

I run in the solo intermediate or advanced groups and push the car quite hard while on track. At my event this past weekend, I saw peak coolant temps of 210 and peak oil temps of 238 after a 30 minute session in 70 degree weather.

While some people do talk trash on Mishi and rightfuly so, my personal anecdotal evidence has only been positve since I installed the pair.
 


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#11
Considering making my FiST a decent track day competitor but also I know the stock rad isn't really that good in terms of keeping the car ideally cool. My car stayed cool on my first track day but it was also a nice 60 degree day and not the 90 degree days that track days are usually at.

I've heard good things about both brands but I want to get other peoples opinions on it.
They are both good radiators. The Mountune radiator is thinner, but flows less since it is a more restrictive internal design with a dense fin layout. The Mishimoto radiator is thicker with a thinner fin layout. It also flows more water due to being a different design.

The Mishimoto radiator has a better thermal rejection due to their design, but is heavier due to its larger thickness and larger coolant capacity. The Mountune one is a slimmer design that weights less, but it flows less coolant and has less ultimate cooling capacity. Both will serve your needs.

I have a lot of mishimoto products (J-Line FMIC, Radiator) on my car and they are pretty good. I have had them send me a schematic (ACTUAL SCHEMATICS) to their product when I lost an important part in storage. Since it would have cost a lot for them to ship me it, it was way cheaper to have it made by a local machine ship. Awfully nice of them.

Likewise, have had good experience with Mountune (MRX Turbo, BOV, Accessport). I had one of their v-band clamps shatter at the bolt. They had lost/forgotten the replacement I made over the phone. In response they sent me two replacements, over night shipping, for free. That was pretty swell of them considering it cost them about $70.

I wouldn't look at the BBB for anything. Their memberships are costly; companies basically pay BBB to get better ratings. That is how it works.
 


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TDavis

TDavis

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Thread Starter #13
These are the type of posts I'm wanting since I know people see each company in a different light. So far it seems even if there are not alot of cases of Mishi being bad there are still more odd cases for them then there are for Mountune from what I've been researching so far.

I know the Mountune will probably be a TINY bit less efficient but from a post I found of someone who had the Mountune rad on their FiST and their friend had the Mishi rad, there was only a couple degrees difference between the two in comparable conditions.
 


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#14
Also remember that autocross, track day/HPDE, wheel-to-wheel and drag racing are all track events but put totally different loads on the car its systems. So as you look at how successful something is for track you also need to take into account the type of even and how hard it is driven.

For example, I took my fist out in March and was fine in HPDE at 44 degrees and rain on day one and couldn’t do more than two laps on day 2 in 50 degrees and dry before I hit limp mode due to coolant temps... but I tend to push hard when I’m on track and I’ve driven a bit in the past. The new radiator is delivered and being installed prior to the next event.

Anything will be better than stock for a road course, what you prioritize is an individual decision. I wanted the extra capacity and a lower load on the water pump and chose accordingly.

But no matter what, the fist is a blast on track, enjoy!!!
 


OP
TDavis

TDavis

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Thread Starter #15
Also remember that autocross, track day/HPDE, wheel-to-wheel and drag racing are all track events but put totally different loads on the car its systems. So as you look at how successful something is for track you also need to take into account the type of even and how hard it is driven.

For example, I took my fist out in March and was fine in HPDE at 44 degrees and rain on day one and couldn’t do more than two laps on day 2 in 50 degrees and dry before I hit limp mode due to coolant temps... but I tend to push hard when I’m on track and I’ve driven a bit in the past. The new radiator is delivered and being installed prior to the next event.

Anything will be better than stock for a road course, what you prioritize is an individual decision. I wanted the extra capacity and a lower load on the water pump and chose accordingly.

But no matter what, the fist is a blast on track, enjoy!!!
This is something I don't understand.

It was 60 degrees sunny at Heartland motorsports park and on the roadcoarse my coolant never went above 190, oil never went above 220, and brakes never faded and I wasn't exactly going easy on the car either. It was consistent through EVERY session(4 20min sessions) Everything cooling wise is stock on the car besides my intercooler. Yet my car remained fine. While you claim at 50 degrees you couldn't do more then 2 laps. I like tracks with more turns then straights so maybe the lack of many long straights at Heartland was the culprit but its still puzzling.
 


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#16
It was at NCMP in Bowling green. So, 3.2 mile lap with 3 longer straights, all w.o.t. for 2 full gears if memory serves .

On the warmer day, the heat would noticeably climb in the straights, more so with traffic in front.

I absolutely agree, heat dissipation capacity may be adequate for different tracks and drivers, in fact that was basically my point. I tried it stock first and found it wasn’t enough for what I needed. So I changed some parts to try and improve it for how I drive and want to use it. The car is a riot on the track, but limp mode halfway down the straight when you are pulling the guy in front of you is a bit frustrating...
 


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TDavis

TDavis

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Thread Starter #17
It was at NCMP in Bowling green. So, 3.2 mile lap with 3 longer straights, all w.o.t. for 2 full gears if memory serves .

On the warmer day, the heat would noticeably climb in the straights, more so with traffic in front.

I absolutely agree, heat dissipation capacity may be adequate for different tracks and drivers, in fact that was basically my point. I tried it stock first and found it wasn’t enough for what I needed. So I changed some parts to try and improve it for how I drive and want to use it. The car is a riot on the track, but limp mode halfway down the straight when you are pulling the guy in front of you is a bit frustrating...
Completely agree. Personally I look for tracks that have alot more turns then straights just because thats what I prefer and its more technical. The NCM would be pretty cool to go to though. Hows your car now with the upgraded rad?
 


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#18
I will let you know at the end on the month. Mid-Ohio is next on May 26-27. :)

And to be clear, I have had zero cooling issues outside the track. I do swap in carbotec pads (and stock rotors bedded to the pads) for the track and have changed brake fluid. It only took losing brakes once on a track to decide race level fluid and pads are cheap insurance! I swear my eyes got HUGE as the pedal went to the floor!!! (Different car, but...)
 


haste

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#19
I have the Mishimoto, but it was all that was available at the time. It's been on the car for over 35k miles now without issue. I would probably buy the Mountune at this point because of difference in size/weight.
 


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#20
I'm having the Mountune one put in my car this week, I have heard mixed things on the Mishimoto and I've liked Mountune's offerings so far.
 


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