Nissens (?) Radiator
 

93 300 CE Cabriolet - 155K - "new" to me - replaced my 303K 92 300TE. Replaced stat with 83C one. Temps staying just above the "80" index mark on the highway, to maybe "center of the 8" number. When stopped, temps move quickly toward 100C mark, then back down, not enough to bring on electric fans. From cold start in 40F temps, would have 80C temp on gauge in one mile.

While changing hoses, reverse flushed rad. Also ran a gallon of white vinegar in cooling system for 500 miles. Still saw crud on fins when you peer down the lower hose opening. When drained and flushed with distilled water, refilled with 50/50 coolant and could not get an entire single gallon into the vehicle.

Checked on line for rad prices. Some are in the $130's, but not big name brands. Some web site have plenty of bad experiences posted about them. Some say the Behr is no longer made in Germany, but somewhere else (had a Behr, so it had been changed by PO possibly). Decided to go with "authentic" Nissens from trusted supplier, who I WILL continue to buy from.

Free shipping from Arizona. About $153. Double boxed shipment arrived, rad had these stickers on the box, but one inside on the rad that said "International Radiators". Unit was complete, had a minor assembly line dent in upper mounting edge, box undamaged. Finish work was "lesser" than the Behr. Unit was pounds lighter than the Behr, but I put this to the calcium buildup inside the old one. Did not have metal liners inside larger hose openings, but plastic was thicker.

Installed smoothly, lined up well. Note to any rad users, make sure plastic side tanks don't rub on anything when mounted. Took a good while at idle to warm up, made a 20 mile loop at 60 mph and temps fine, when stopped they would rise maybe twice the width of the gauge needle. Turning on the heater no longer made a five degree drop in coolant temp.

So, I figure I had a sludged up rad (chemical reactions take place over time 24 hours a day, just faster under heat), a lot less cooling than I should have, and I'm glad I have a new rad. As for International Radiators and "real" Nissens, I imagine like a lot of things it may be made in a very populous country not known for respect of intellectual property rights.

Pix of labels, insides of old Behr unit. If you can see crud on the end of the fin tubes, then there is a lot more inside. If previous owner used stop leak super sealer, a lot of those passages could be closed off.

Nissens is a good aftermarket quality radiator.

If you have an oldschool radiator cleaning shop near you - they can flush and test your old one.

I put a Nissans in one of my E300 and a Behr in the other. The only issue I had was that I had to trim a piece of plastic from the Nissans to get it to fit properly.

Guyton, the original radiator in that vintage MB vehicle was likely a Behr ... which you can buy aftermarket or from a MB dealer. As you probably realize, any part bought from a MB dealer will have the MB Star on it, and typically is more expensive than a comparable aftermarket part.

I've used Nissens 3x now...on my old 260E, my current 300TE and on my girlfriends CLK320 and not a single issue with any of them, especially out here in 120F summers. If I were to do it again, unless Behr was $50 cheaper, Nissens hands down. I enjoy knowing for SURE that its not made in China and the box made in Germany since Behr is now not 100% trusted anymore with manufacturing location...

Sounds good to me. I was worried about "knock off" Nissens from "fake" suppliers that I have heard about. I don't believe any problems exist at ********, I have used them many times. But who knows what evil lurks in the supply chain? Is International Radiators a good brand, and how are they related to Nissens? Nissens web site for auto parts says they produce at three plants in Denmark, one in Slovakia. Elsewhere on their web site they do state thay have production in China. The box mine came in was plain cardboard, no printed logo. In their web site, boxes are show as printed with the company trademark , etc.

I found the web site for "International Radiators", which matches the logo on the radiator. Their web site places them as part of another factory group, and does not mention a relationship with Nissens. Their website is Untitled Document . I have sent an inquiry to Nissens corporate, and will send one to the online vendor I purchased it from. At this point, I think I got a knock off. Will post back if I hear anything. Nissens must be good, if competitors copy them....

I emailed Nissens, and received the following reply, which indicates the unit is made under contract for them by another vendor, they stand behind the warranty, etc. So sometimes you get made by Nissens, sometimes you get made for Nissens.

From: "Jack U. Brown" <JUB@nissens.com>
Subject: RE: Authentic Nissens ?
Date: Thu, 15 Nov 2012 13:58:09 +0000

> Dear Mr.
>
> What ********AZ supplied you was supplied by Nissens. Due
> to a production capacity issue with this part number we
> did utilize an outsource. This is not very common but can
> occur in the event of production or tooling issues. When
> we do outsource we go to great lengths to test the product
> for fit, function and durability. At the same time we
> stand behind the product with our standard warranty. We
> apologize for any misunderstanding or inconvenience.
>
>
> Med venlig hilsen / Best regards / Mit freundlichen Grüßen
> Jay Brown

Outsourcing is now a part of manufacturing so this should not come as a surprise. A lot of Behr stuff is made in China. Provided that the quality control is there, and that Nissens stands by it's product, I don't see an issue.

I guess with trying to keep these previously posh piles of pre-owned sheetmetal on the road I should be glad anyone still makes parts for them.