during the summer when cruising on the hwy, My LS swap tends to run a little hot.. i'm still running the dinky civic radiator, and haven't even got ac either.. BUt this summer I've gotten a nother hatch w/ ac and I intend to use it...

my question is, will buying an aftermarket aluminum radiator (PWR etc.) help my overheating isssues when hwy cruising?? what are your experiences on it?? also I"m considering buying an oil cooler kit to help out as well...

 

Your overheating on the HWY was most likely not the radiator, A bad thermostat is what usually causes that. If your radiator was bad it would run cool on the hwy and hot in stop and go traffic where air is not passing over the radiator. If you are not running a/c and have a good stock radiator you should not have any problems with overheating with a b-series motor. I ran without a fan in 90 degree florida drive thru's with a stock 130k mile VX radiator and a b16 with no problems.

 

good point, but

if i notice the temps rising while cruising in the summer, i have to turn up the heat, ARRGHHH. the temp needle will drop down to almost normal conditions.. my assumption is that the dinky civic radiator doesn't have enough cooling capacity for my setup.. Keep in mind, this only happens when the outside temp is around 75+ degrees..

So I highly doubt its the thermosat either.. Not only that, i even tested the thermosat to see if it opens at its rated temp..

 

I have a 92 VX with a 99 B18C1 swap without A/C. I also have a 91 CRX DX with a 96 B18B1 swap with A/C. I have ran the stock VX radiator for nearly 3 years and it has never heated up over the normal operating temp level. The same applies to the CRX altough I've only had the swap for a little over a year.
I drag race occasionally in the spring/summer and drive both cars hard from time to time as well. If you want to upgrade, I would suggest the Del Sol VTEC dual core radiator simply because you can get one for half the price of a Koyo or Fluidyne aluminum radiator.

 

95 b18c1, stock civ radiator....

i take her up the rpm range daily

2.5 years now, and has never heated up either....

 

Might want to see if a full width integra radiator will fit. You may have to bend some metal to make a bracket, but you can get those for like $150 from radiator shops and it will be plenty for the motor. Also maybe consider a hood with vents to let some of the heat out.