Leaves in the radiator? Why is it designed like this?

[umbrop]

Just bought this.

I asked these folks a couple of months ago when they were going to produce something for the Lightning....they listened.

This is the company I went with. In fact, that is my Avalanche Lariat in the pictures. Very happy with the product.

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[Mike G]

My grill arrived yesterday afternoon.

This morning I got to work and took a pic of what was in the HVAC condenser intake area in the center of the front bumper. Not a great angle really, and the pic doesn't do justice with what was actually waaay back up in there. That condenser is pretty big.

Shopvac with a long crevasse tool and a worklight was needed to get all the way back up in there to pull the stuff out.

This is most of what didn't go into the shopvac itself. The stuff you see here blocked the tip of the crevasse tool and had to be removed when it clogged. Big leaves, bits of paper, and plastic bags and yes...that is a bird in the picture.

Instructions were provided for the installation but the blurb on the back side of the page caught my attention. Basically saying that if you thought you could find a better way to install it, then go for it. So I did. Instead of sliding the new grill insert up behind the truck's grille assembly I decided to remove the grille assembly completely so I had more space to work in.

I have removed the bumper grille assembly before. So it took about ten seconds to get that back off.

I then positioned the new grill insert in the opening and ensured the lower lip was in the recess at the lower edge of the opening.

Using the provided zip ties I secured the top edge against the trim clip holes by routing the tie into one hole and out the next one and back to form the loop.

Clipped the ends off, and checked to make sure it wouldn't rattle and was secure.

Clipped the lower grille assembly back into place and job done.

One thing though. I do wish that instead of expanded sheet metal that the grill had been made from black woven wire mesh instead. I think I would have looked better. Maybe they'll make one like that in the future.

But until that happens, at least this will keep the leaves and critters out of my condenser area.

 

[21st Century Truck]

Yeah that Lightning radiator seems to me to be more horizontal than vertical... maybe 40 degrees from horizontal? So stuff that blows in there, stays on top of the radiator like on a shelf, especially with the fan below the radiator sucking it down. Leaves and also twigs and larger sticks in my experience, and (way worse) plastic sheets of varied thicknesses... really, whatever is tumbling on the road or before the truck's maw.

Ford gave us a huge valuable frunk with a very low cargo lip and a reinforced frunk floor (see Sandy Munro's related discussion) but that smart innovative design necessitated the radiator to be tilted backwards at a big angle. IMHO Ford should have really added a grille in that low and wide opening.

 

[Nomoregas]

I just get the weed whacker in there to shred up them old leaves!

 

[bmm3k]

Nice write up @Mike G !

 

[21st Century Truck]

stuff has been getting stuck in radiators since day 1 of radiators in vehicles. but 2.5 years and 25000 miles of owning i have yet to pull anything out of there

How about plastic bags on the top of this significantly inclined radiator? Ever seen plastic bags blow about the road surface?

 

[BuzzLightning2023]

I just discovered the radiator when I was attaching a rope to one of the tow hooks to yank a shrub stump out of the ground. I wish I filmed it. The root snapped and the ball (size of a toddler) slingshot across my front lawn and landed a few feet in front of the truck.

 

[NCevGuyF150]

Fall has barely begun in Georgia and already have leaves back sitting on my radiator. Two obvious questions:

1. Every vehicle I have ever owned has a screen in front of the radiator. Why is this a massive hole in the bumper acting like a vacuum? Is it safe to cover it with a screen? I would think Ford would have done this if there wasn’t a reason.

2. Once you get junk in there (see pic) what’s the easiest way to get it out? It would be like a game of Operation to pull it out without breaking a louvre or damaging the radiator.

I have had three birds try to build nests in this compartment area

 

[Ekiehn]

How about plastic bags on the top of this significantly inclined radiator? Ever seen plastic bags blow about the road surface?

Ha... this almost happened to me... I got my grill the night before a trip up to Georgia... somewhere on I75 between Atlanta and the mountains a plastic bag was trapped by my new grill... had i not had it it would have been stuck in there in the middle of summer and I guarantee I would have had cooling issues... besides, as my wife said, that makes it look so good! Why didn't Ford just do it themselves... A quick shrug and off i went... there is no explanation on this one...

 

[zinkscott]

I bought one of these because I saw another post here where someone bought the same thing: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08PBM1C2F?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

Measured and cut it down, slid it into a gap underneath the bumper in front of the radiator but behind the flaps, and it’s worked great.

 

[davehu]

Just ordered one. a no brainer but I sure can't see why Ford engineers didn't think of this.

installed mine today. took all of 5 minutes

 

[chl]

Our 2015 Prius is even worse - leaves/leafs get in all door, hatch and hood crevices - the one that get in the hood below the wipers block the cabin air intake. Open the hatch and watch them fall into the cargo area.

I think some plastic mesh material form a big box hard ware store and some cutting tools would work to keep them out of the radiator area of the Lightning for less than $12.

However, what I found with the gutter guard material I put on my house is the leaf stems like to wedge themselves into the holes and stay there until the crumble into crumbs (naturally) and then they find there way into the gutter to some degree. So that could happen with a radiator grille as well, eh?

I think a leaf blower on a low setting would do the trick to get them out - or maybe a leaf vac on a high setting?

You know, if they had slanted the radiator the other way, facing down, well gravity would/could/might have solved most of the problem, eh?

 

[chl]

Radiator Grill Store links to this installation video ...

Just use longer zip ties and it'll be easier to position?

But after you put the grille on, it'd be nice to be able to remove it easily now and then to get out the smaller stuff that will inevitably make its way through the grille mesh. Not sure the zip ties as shown will be easy to remove.

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