MAX, THE RADIATORS FOR KARTS WHICH COOL 10% MORE AND WEIGH 20% LESS

Max Bernardi

14 November 2020

New-Line Racing launches into the market a series of models called “MAX” which, thanks to an innovative core for karting, it promises much better performance than in the past. In this article, we are going to show you how they do it

When choosing a radiator, in the collective imagination the model capable of cooling the most is the largest one, departing from the principle that the greater the surface area is of the radiator, the greater its ability to cool. Sound reasoning if we assume that the characteristics of the core are the same for all radiators. New-Line Racing, though, has taken a different path to improve the cooling capacity of its product range without changing the size of the radiators. The Modena-based company has designed and developed a new radiator core called “MAX”, capable of increasing the cooling capacity of the radiator without changing its size. To achieve this revolutionary objective, New-Line Racing technicians have worked on the various elements which compose the radiator core (reed valves and pipes), devising new technical solutions. We have thoroughly analyzed the new MAX core and compared it with a classic radiator core from the New-Line Racing product range which you can get to know and discover in this article dedicated to the Italian factory .

The fundamental elements of the radiator core are the pipes and the reed valves. Their size, their “wheelbase” and their quantity determine the cooling capacity of the core itself.

CONTINUOUS RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

The radiator must keep the engine at the right operating temperature, a key aspect for obtaining maximum performance from the engine itself and ensuring its reliability. For this reason, any improvement related to this accessory and to the entire cooling system can bring additional benefits to the kart’s performance. Hence, the development of radiators is continuous and New-Line Racing, a leading company in the production of karts’ radiators know this very well. Amongst the latest innovations offered by the Italian company and analyzed in the TKART article “RS NEW: the new kart radiator from New Line Racing for 2020” stands out is the water inlet conveyor with a curved design, designed to distribute the water with a homogeneous jet along the entire width of the radiator’s core, allowing for optimal use of all the cooling capacity which the core itself offers. In addition to this new innovation, New-Line Racing has introduced a double water passage. First, the water goes through 50% of the core, then it is pushed back towards the apex of the radiator and returns downwards going through the second 50% of the core, so that the water remains inside the radiator for a longer period of time, therefore cooling it down even more. The research has even gone further. In fact, if previously the use of radiator’s cores was done for other automotive sectors, on this occasion New-Line Racing has designed a radiator’s core with technical characteristics aimed at satisfying the specific needs of karting.

The curved design water inlet conveyor was manufactured to distribute the water with a homogeneous jet along the entire width of the core.

The water outlet conveyor has the task of “collecting” and “expelling” all the cold water to carry it as quickly as possible with the least amount of obstructions as possible towards the engine.

The radiator in the photo has an internal structure that seeks to make the most of the entire surface of the core by dividing it in two, thus allowing the water to stay longer inside the radiator.

MAX CORE, THE IDEA

The idea of the MAX core was devised by Marco Malverti, the owner together with Alberto Frigeri and Massimo Benedetti of New-Line Racing, analyzing a radiator intended for Formula 1 cars. In particular, the analysis focused on the distance between the fins that are arranged vertically which compose the core itself. The radiator core of an F1 has fins which are closer together when compared to that of a standard radiator of a car that is driven on roads every day. Hence, the technicians of New-Line Racing have identified this “rule” that relates the average speed of the vehicle with the number of fins of the radiator’s core. The lower the average speed of the vehicle, the more spaced apart the fins are. The standard core used so far in karting, derived from that used for production cars, is designed for a vehicle which impacts the air at an average speed higher than that of a kart on a track. It can be deduced, therefore, that an everyday car, given its average speed, will be hit – and with it, its core, – by a jet of air with higher pressure than a kart traveling at lower average speeds. For this reason, the quantity of fins of a car radiator will necessarily be excessive compared to the quantity of fins actually useful and necessary for a core intended for karting use. In the light of this analysis, at New-Line posed themselves this question: is there a vehicle which travels at an average speed similar to those of a kart from which to “borrow” the core? Well, it sounds strange, but the answer is, “Yes, a truck”. Therefore, by analyzing the cores of industrial vehicles, it was understood that for karting it was necessary to adopt a different FIN PITCH compared to that of cars, thus moving towards the FIN PITCH values more in line with those of truck radiators.

The objective of New-Line Racing with the MAX core was to move towards a radiator with characteristics suitable for low speeds, in particular by analyzing a truck’s radiator, a vehicle that has average speeds close to those of a kart in a racing circuit, thus defining a new FIN PITCH.

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