Experiments were conducted for water flowing through a varying-curvature curved-pipe inside a larger diameter straight pipe to form a double-pipe heat exchanger with water as the working medium. The heat transfer coefficients were obtained using the Wilson plot method. The effects of the Dean, Prandt], Reynolds number and the curvature ratio on the average heat transfer coefficients and the friction factors are presented. A higher Dean number results in a higher heat transfer rate. It is found that the heat transfer rate may be increased by up to 100%, as compared with a straight pipe, while the friction coefficient increased by less than 40%. Therefore, it is promising to use S-shaped pipes instead of straight pipes for the performance enhancement for a heat exchanger such as a solar collector.