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In the present work, the effect of various nanofluids on convective heat transfer performance in an automotive radiator was analyzed based on measured nanofluid properties. Al2O3, TiC, SiC, MWNT (multi-walled nanotube) and SiO2 nanoparticles ranging between 1 and 100 nm in size were dispersed in distilled water to form nanofluids. An ultrasonic generator was used to provide uniform particle dispersion in the fluid and keep the mixture stable for a long period of time. The impact of various particle types and their volume concentration on fluid properties such as density, thermal conductivity and viscosity were experimentally analyzed. It is observed that the nanofluid properties increased with the increase in particle volume concentration. TiO2 nanofluids were observed to show the highest increase in density (2.6% higher than the base fluid at a 1% vol. concentration) and also the largest enhancement in thermal conductivity (7.5% augmentation at 1% concentration).