early 1997 Merc Mountaineer radiator removal

[allmyEXes]

I've pulled the '97 MM out of the penalty box and I am going to go through everything front to back. Today I removed parts and bolts hoping to lift the radiator out of its pocket. I hung the disconnected fan shroud on the fan and attempted to remove the radiator and it is connected to the AC condenser. What is the trick to removing the radiator? It almost looks as if the grill would have to come out to get to some fasteners. Any helpful hints?

 

[allmyEXes]

I think that I found the 6 minute answer.
1997 Explorer V-8 radiator removal

 

[nameskreen]

The radiator can come out without pulling the condenser. But the fan clutch has to come out to get the shroud out of the way. The rad and condenser are clipped together

 

[allmyEXes]

@nameskreen About 2 hours before you posted I was able to break the fan a loose with my really long fan wrench. I had to hold a big screwdriver down in there to keep the pulley from spinning. If the belt had been on it, it may have held the pulley. The new alternator got removed last summer when the one went out on my '97 blue 4.0 SOHC beater. After that the radiator and condenser came out together. I need all the room that I can get to service the timing chain and replace the water pump. All of the pump and timing cover bolts came a loose even the dreaded 7 o'clock one.
Thanks for your input. I watched the video of how to do it Friday evening at 5:45 p.m.

 

[nameskreen]

That's good to hear. My Mountaineer has a coolant leak. It's either the timing cover or the water pump. I'm dreading doing it