Aluminium sport radiator

Having recently fitted the above to my manual td5 the temperature gauge only reads 1/4.prior to this it always sat in the middle.i know it has a bigger core and is all aluminium but is it normal to run that much cooler.original got to half after 3 miles this sits low all the time.

in a 3 mile journey the rad shouldnt have an effect, as i would of thought the thermostat wouldnt of opened by then,
if you have a nanocom you can check the actual temp on live data, as the td5 temp gauge aren't brilliantly accurate

Fitting an alloy rad for additional cooling is why I fitted one many years ago to a classic car that I own, but with your coolant temp now you may find the engine is over cooled in the winter so your interior heater temp may not be as hot as it use to be, not a problem for me as I only use this car in the summer.

Modern cars have alloy rads as standard, not a problem if the size is matched to the engine I would have thought, so do u have any other issues other the the lower reading on your temp gauge ? If no don't worry

Will plug the nanocom in on next long journey.no other issues runs sweet.if too cool in winter will try a grill cover.but its a car thats only rarely in winter.

I remember attending a training course a couple of years back that was something on lines of "overcooling engines just as detrimental as overheating" Don't remember all the facts from then but I remember it all made sense to me at the time.
Diesels function better running relatively hotter.
If you don't mind me asking, why did you have to increase your motor's cooling capacity in the first place.
I have my disco in Africa where average ambient temperatures are quite high but I've never had it overheat.

put a new thermostat before you get stressed... IMO it's stuck opened that's the problem, the type of the rad it's irrelevant for the gauge cos the gauge must reach the middle around 80*C when the thermostat must be closed(it's opened around 90*C) so the radiator is bypassed, when the stat opens and allows the coolant through the radiator the coolant's temp goes down then the stat closes again to keep the running temp of the engine...so yo must understand that the temperature of the engine is managed by the thermostat(as long as it works as it should...always use genuine)... dont be dissapointed that rad is a good investment cos will protect your engine from overheating ...
in a nuthsell: by conception there is no such thing on a Td5 as overcooling as long as the thermostat works OK as it will bypass the radiator when the coolant is below 80*C and the gauge will stay steady at the middle cos there it stays between 80 -120*C

a test is to touch the radiator when the gauge is at 1/4...it must be completely cold if the stat works well, if it's lukewarm it means that the stat allows the collant to circulate through it all the time and the engine will never reach normal temp then

off course that it could be a sensor/gauge issue too but quite unlikely...you didnt fit the stat wrong with the bypass valve to radiator i hope...cos it's possible

I bought the bigger rad and sport intercooler.the rad because we occasionally tow a caravan.will check bypass valve to rad cos thats possible,will try find a diagram.

i watched the diagram and i must admit i made a small mistake, you can mix the pump feed only with the bypass not with radiator outlet, the rest i said it's accurate, that's how it works, the bypass valve is rev dependent, opens at 1500rpm, as you see at below 82*C the coolant has no access to the radiator and then the gauge must be at the middle already, the flow diagram is attached, maybe i couldnt explain too well in english but the gist is that the radiator is a good investment anyway and it can't affect the gauge to not rise as long as the system works as it should... tighten well the tank's cap too cos there must be 1.4 bar in the system to work properly