Any radiator shop that really knows their stuff should have the experience to tell you that rodding a land rover core is fruitless, if not a total waste, as the core passageways are too small to effectively clean them by a mechanical means such as rodding. The only method which really works, and will only work if the radiator has not long been fouled, is a mild acidic flushing. A standard core, in new condition should be able to flow check in the range of 24-26 gallons per minute. When the flow becomes constricted to a rate of less than 18 GPM, you will see heat rise (lack of heat dissipation). Oxides and mudding will eventually become too solidified to be removed by flushing, as all the flushing fluid goes through the more open cores, continuing to clean them and virtually bypassing the cores most solidly plugged.
A while back I took my radiator out, ran a flow check and found it was about 16-18 gpm, had is flushed will acid (about 15% muriatic acid) and got back to 22-24 gpm. The shop charged me $65. (that included pickup and delivery)
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