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Changing front grill question

11K views 25 replies 12 participants last post by  16diesel 
#1 ·
Hey all,

After reading an older thread about the diesel engine getting hot (I too have this problem) while towing steep grades. I have decided to change out the Laramie grill for either the wire mesh or the honeycomb inserts or better air flow. After watching a couple youtube video's on changing the grill inserts... I have a question.

In one of the videos I watched, the person did NOT reinstall the plastic side shroud air deflectors on the L & R sides of the grill. Q. Is this a good idea? Does it or would it help air flow? I will not be doing the mod on the active grill shutters as some have done. Just doing the different grill for now and see how much difference it makes. I'd like to hear some opinions before I do the swap.

Thanks
 
#2 ·
I switched from Big Horn grille inserts to SLT honeycomb inserts to help with engine cooling and I believe the inserts do help by 5 to 10 degrees when towing up a grade. The engineers who designed this truck added the deflectors for a reason, that being to divert air to where it's needed, I didn't think twice about not re-installing them.
 
#3 ·
Keep the funnels, they'll push more air into the cooling stack and help with temps.

Good idea on holding off on removing the AGS, then you'll have an idea how much each mod helped cooling.

I swapped my Laramie grille out with one from a Laramie Longhorn, much better flow. I also ditched the AGS to make room for the oil cooler.
 
#4 ·
Better yet would be to find a way to move the inter-cooler to a better location. I have zero clue where but that thing pumps fresh hot air straight into the lower half of the radiator.

Keep the "funnels". The will help.
 
#5 ·
Thanks, I guess I'll leave them on.

As a side note, I really like the way Bountyhunter did the oil cooler mod, but stealership said it would void my warranty? I'll have to look more into that, but I got the 8 year plan and would hate to screw that up. lol.
 
#6 ·
BountyHunter has mentioned going to his dealership for miscellaneous work and I don't recall him ever saying anything about the oil cooler voiding the warranty - and can't imagine why it would. I haven't pulled the trigger yet on the oil cooler but it's certainly on the mod list - and since I'm only 7 thousand miles away from the end of my warranty I'm not very worried about a cooler voiding it anyway. But even if I had 50K left before the end of the warranty I wouldn't hesitate to install a cooler if I wanted to. My main reason for thinking of installing an aftermarket cooler is my lack of trust in the construction of the OEM cooler rather than overheating oil - my TT isn't large enough to cause issues but the thought of the factory cooler failing and mixing oil and coolant gives me shivers.

Next time you're at the dealer have the service manager give you the specific reason an aftermarket oil cooler would void the warranty. My money says he doesn't have a logical, coherent answer.


Bob
 
#11 ·
Hmm, looks nice but as I understand it, only the frame is stainless, the rest is zinc plated (not galvanized) and then powder coated. How long that lasts on gravel roads, no guestimate. Once the paint is chipped, the rust starts and it's not covered under the "conditional" warranty. Have you checked Cloud Rider stainless inserts.
 
#13 ·
Never heard of them but I'll check them out. Thanks. I was just going to find Tradesmen or Laramie inserts but I'm having trouble locating actual inserts and not just the whole front grille. Most of ones I've found so far are overlays over the existing inserts which is useless.
 
#17 ·
Well, based on this thread and others, I ordered a set of OEM Longhorn grille inserts for my Laramie, and had my custom shop pop them in. So the "cheese grater" has been replaced by the "diamond wire fence!"

I think it's a better look, and I already see a few degrees cooler on running 70 MPH on the local expressway.

This will be a lighter towing season than most, but I will be watching those digital gauges closely.

Land vehicle Vehicle Car Motor vehicle Grille
 
#18 ·
Well, based on this thread and others, I ordered a set of OEM Longhorn grille inserts for my Laramie, and had my custom shop pop them in. So the "cheese grater" has been replaced by the "diamond wire fence!"

I think it's a better look, and I already see a few degrees cooler on running 70 MPH on the local expressway.

This will be a lighter towing season than most, but I will be watching those digital gauges closely.

View attachment 80550
I also like the Longhorn inserts over the Laramie inserts, and it makes my Laramie just a little more unique lol.
 
#19 ·
I looked into the Cloud Rider stainless inserts, however, unless I'm reading them wrong they are technically grille overlays which means they go over the existing inserts.

Back to the drawing board.
 
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