CSF 2314 Radiator Review
 

This is for my 1988 Toyota Pickup 4WD DLX 22RE (Krusty)

So recently after 20+ years, the all metal DENSO radiator finally developed a leak near the neck. I attempted to JB Weld it but it still leaked so I went ahead and bought a new, 3 core brass radiator from LCE since the old radiator was manufactured in 1998. Part arrived packaged well, found out that it is made in Indonesia and the manufacturer is CSF. Installed the radiator with included SANKEI cap, added distilled water and TOYOTA Long Life. After burping the system and driving 30 miles, the new radiator developed three pin hole leaks. Leak rate was a couple drops a minute. I was disappointed and proceeded to call LCE. They sent me a new CSF 2314
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.yot...c63afc6f1a.jpg
HD radiator from CSF
radiator and so far after 300 miles going to the high desert and back; no leaks and the temperature gauge never got past half going uphill.

over all, I rate this product 6 out of 10

PROS:
-All Metal 3 core

CONS:
-Made in Indonesia (I prefer Japan)
-No tabs to hang the radiator like the DENSO OEM. Made it harder to install by myself.
-an inch or two shorter than the DENSO
-only 3 of 4 holes for the fan shroud lined up. I would have to trim the fan shroud to fit all four bolts/nuts.
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.yot...673c5e827c.jpg
Unboxed, no tabs(ears) to hang the radiator. Had to hold it in place with screw driver on one hole and use the bolt to secure it in place.
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.yot...c782032e0a.jpg
Brand new radiator leaking. Made in Indonesia.
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.yot...0451525afd.jpg
Fan shroud, 3 of 4 bolts without cutting the plastic shroud


Overall: If DENSO still manufactured radiators for 1988 Pickup 4WD DLX 22re, I would buy it in a heartbeat. This product is not better than OEM but is probably the next best thing. LCE should advertise their 3 row HD radiators as CSF 2314.

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.yot...9e480be125.jpg
Second radiator installed and testing in progress.

Interesting. For my '87 SR5 with A/C and MT5, I installed the CSF 2306 and it fit perfectly -- all holes lined up. No leaks. No issues.

The mounting holes lined up, it’s the plastic fan shroud that was misaligned by one bolt. Is the 2306 the 2 core?

Nope. CSF 2306 is also a 3-core. The 2306 and 2314 are both listed for some years of trucks.
2306: TOYOTA 4RUNNER 1985-1988
2314: TOYOTA 4RUNNER 1984-1995

This site is helpful: https://www.roundforge.com/articles/...ator_CSF_2314_

The 2306 is taller than the 2314 -- a larger core. And larger price FWIW. Again, in my '87 22RE + MT5 + A/C SR5 the larger 2306 fit perfectly -- mounting holes and shroud connections.

Yes, CSF has very good quality.
CSF 2306 would have fit better. Ken at CSF headquarters helped me over the phone. Its website has confusing info. I mentioned on one of my "Running Hot" thread.
Both 2314 and 2306 shroud holes fit on mine. I returned the 2314 for reason above.
You could tie cord to shroud holes and suspend by hood latch catch :)
CSF started in India. That or Indonesia is better than the communist bully of Asia.

Well, this is the reason I posted. To document so it may help others in the future. Anyone looking for a beefy 3 core radiator, buy 2306.

Also CSF 2314 but need to measure stock or existing radiator and fan shroud and decide which of the 2 to get.

What's wrong with an aluminum core and plastic tanks? My '08 Corolla has one of those. It was 106* here in Fresno yesterday and the temp gauge stayed right where it always does with the AC on. Twelve years and 160,000 miles...I guess its durable. Spectra Premium from Rockauto in my '89 pickup, It fit fine ,no issues. Plastic tanks and aluminum core like modern vehicles use. Cools fine.

There is nothing wrong with factory aluminum core, plastic tank radiators (in general).

However, the "budget" radiators available for our Trucks and 4Runners are of the aluminum core, plastic tank variety, and tend to be relatively low quality compared to the factory soldered brass and copper radiators that came with these trucks originally.

:safari:

The plastic tank/aluminum core radiators will leak where the core is clamped to the tanks. I believe it is from the flexing and vibrations that occur offroad, that and the rubber gasket eventually just goes bad. This is what I have seen anyway.
I'm happy with the CSF 2314.

Most likely the reason for plastic upper radiators is to minimize manufacturing cost.
However, the original construction is not broken so I do not want it fixed. :)

Inherently​​​​​ nothing persay, however..

The amount of energy that nylon absorbs before it cracks/shatters is lower than the amount of energy a metal like copper or aluminum takes to tear. IE metal bends, and nylon explodes under similar forces. (Imagine you hit an object, be it a animal, debris, or a parking block. You can hit a larger object harder with a metal tank and the tank will dent before it ruptures. Where if you hit a similar object with the same force the nylon/plastic tank will rupture or pull away from the core. On the flip side you can tap a nylon tank with a smaller force and barely get a scuff mark where if it was a metal tank there would be scratches or dents.)

There are also thermodynamics at play, a metal tank is going to expel heat where the nylon tank caps are insulative.

There is also the reparability difference. While plastics are weldable the loose strength when repaired, where a brazed or soldered tank rupture is as strong or stronger than original (they loose a bit of ductile strength dependent on the materials used, but no where near the amount a plastic weld will..)

I don't know about thermodynamics or exploding nylon, but I got a new radiator for my '89 for less than a hundred bucks, fit perfectly, didn't have any manufacturing defects and cools fine in 108* ambient while idling and while cruising at 70mph. Performance effective and cost effective.

i've purchased two CSF 850 all-metal radiators (one for each of my '87 4runners). the holes for mounting both the radiator and the shroud all lined up, but i had to trim a bit of the shroud to fit for one of the 4runners as i recall - i believe for the outlet fitting.

bought one in 2017, and one in 2019, paid $141.xx for each, delivered. i'm happy with the all-metal (copper/brass) vs. plastic and aluminum. it is a 2-row instead of a 3-row.

CSF is pretty much the best radiator replacement for our trucks. I believe the 2306 is for 22r/22re motors and the 2314 is for the v6. I need to get one of these because the filler neck on my 4Runner leaks a little bit.

Both the 2314 and 2306 fit the 22R-E. The difference is on the height of the core that matches stock radiator and/or shroud. Apparently there are 2 kinds of radiator setup for 22R-E. One that uses lower core (2314) and one that uses taller core (2306) like on mine. How I found out:
https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f116...l#post52449090

Okay, so the key question is how to determine if your Gen1 4Runner 1986-1988 takes the 2306 or the 2314, other than measuring what's installed now which may or may not be the right one if it's ever been changed. In mine ('87 22RE, SR5, MT5, cold-climate version) uses the 2306 as a direct fit. So far I've not seen anyone say the 2314 is a direct fit (no mods) for a 86-88 22RE truck.

So we have:
1986 22RE, MT5, DLX --> 2306
1987 22RE, MT5, SR5 (cold climate) --> 2306
1988 22RE, DLX --> 2306 (2314 shroud holes didn't line up, and shorter than original)

My 4Runner had a CSF 3 row in it when I bought it (2006). The fan shroud came off pretty soon after I bought it, but I think it fit alright.

More importantly, it had no trouble cooling the Chevy 4.3 V6 that I had in it for many years, and I'm not worried about the Lexus 4.0 V8 that's going in there now.

CSF is probably the next best thing compared to my old one that broke. I had two different 2314 (first one leaked) and both the fan shroud only fit 3 of 4 bolts unless I trimmed some plastic from the shroud.

I boxed up my old one(Not CSF) but it looked like it was better quality and fit. Had the two tabs to hang it on the radiator support and had the manufacture date code (1/98) stamped on it. Lasted for more than 20 years.

2314 fit. Need two 10mm bolts to secure fan shroud. (Installed)

2306 is taller, so in theory holds more volume.
(Not installed but an option if the 2314 craps out)