found a hariline crack about 1 inch wide about 5 inches to the right of the cap. never had a radiator problem before. what are my best options,(fixing, sealing, repalcement?) and how much am i looking at in worse case scanario, (change radiator)

anyone ever change a radiator before, how long does it take and is it a pita process?

thanks

 

yours must the kind with plastic on the sides you jb-weld it and let it sit overnight if that dont work a radiator is so simple all you need is a 10mm socket on the top mounts move them over disconnect hoses lift it out of cource you have to drain the coolant though

 

yeah..mines some type of hard plastics casing. JB weld?? whats that.

i dont thave to remove the radiaor fans for the removal of the radiator? sweet thanks.

 

They sell radiator patch at Autozone. It's basically a strip of fiberglass and epoxy. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. If you're planning any trips I would just replace the radiator, otherwise, give that stuff a try. sand up and clean the area around the crack. Lay down some of the epoxy, lay the fiberglass down over that, and brush some more epoxy over the fiberglass and let it set.

 

Replace your radiator.... I tried to patch mine. It worked for a few days but then it the patching job failed. I ended up with a larger crack and radiator fluid all over my engine not to mention the fact that I almost killed my car because I failed to notice the temp gauge in the red. Patching will work but I seriously doubt it would be a permanent fix. I know lake shore radiators is pretty cheap.

 

if you are going the new radiator route I hear radiator barn is a good site and cheap. never dealt with them personally though

 

Use 3M Scotch Tape, that should do the trick.

 

I had a similar thing on my wife's eclipse last month. You're lucky - her's split open and if she werent' just 3 miles from home it might have been Very Bad.

I called radiators.com and ordered a new OEM type. It turned out to be made by Koyo and it worked really well. For any daily driver type car that's exactly what I'll do again.

Dave

 

If you decide to try and patch it, one way of increasing your odds of success is to find the ends of the crack and drill a small hole at the ends before you apply the patch. This helps stop the spread of the crack. (this is how they repair windhsield glass too by the way). But it is true the patching only works sometimes (often opens back up after a few days very often)

 

Go ahead and replace the radiator. i learned the hard way my radiator had a crack on the top plastic ,so I jb welded it.Drove my car from mcallen,TX to atlanta. I blew my engine but it never indicated that my the tempature was high.On the good side I got bought an engine with 60k for $450 and 450 for the instalation.

 

Like others said, just replace the radiator. It costs around $150 in group deal and it doesn't take much longer than 1.5 hour to flush the coolant and replace the radiator. I know this because I had the same problem. I used autozone "radiator repair kit" and it worked for two days and then radiator started spraying antifreeze all over the engine. The car smelled like crap too.

 

ive had j-b weld on my other car on the radiator for about a year now no problems most people neverlet the stuff cure right after it dries i swept a blow torch quickly over it many times heating it up but not warping the plastic to this day no leaks no worries no problems

 

I have a leak across the top of the radiator. It spits out a little. I have no overheating issues yet. My fluid level doesn't seem to change either.
I'm planning on a 10 hour drive this weekend in the Max. Should I be concerned about it out on my trip? If not I'm getting the $123.00 radiator from the Barn when I get back.

 

Dude you would be takin a big gamble doing that and I don't think the odds would be in your favor. Your gonna spend the 123.00 either way so why not be safe and just do it before you go. If it breaks on the road you'll probley end up spending more money than you would have. Think about it like this if it fails and your 5 hours from your house you'll never make it back driving it. So you would have to pay for towing either to your house or to a shop either way thats more money than it was initially. I could go on and on and tell you how bad of an idea I think that is but in the end it's your decision.

 

very true like i said earlier i didnt have any problems but thats just me replacing a radiator is a 30 min process for these cars like i said all you need is a 10mm socket drain coolant rmove clamps unplug fan connector loosen rad holding clamps pull radiatorout remove fan assembly install on new radiator put radiator back in car tighten clamps and brackets fill with coolan ride out

 

ill order a new radiator.. thanks guys. barn has a 2 column all aluminum for the max for like 125.. will that fit in the factory housing. the stock is probably 1 row.

 

I'll get a rental and do the repairs when i get back then.

 

I am replacing my radiator on my '97 Maxima and would LOVE it if someone would let me know what tools I need to reach the cylinder block drain plugs. I seem to only be able to access them from the bottom and there is no way my hands can do that. I'm needing to do a full flush because I used stop leak in my old radiator and I want to prestone super flush that crap out before dropping in my new all metal tank. Thanks in advance!!!! Open to any suggestions...like: should I just pay and go to valvoline and have them flush it then just drop in the new one...?

 

Just FYI on aftermarket radiator - do not get from O'Reilly's - their Ready-Rad brand is bad. I installed one which leaked as well. Took it back to the store, and the guys all said that this brand does not pressure test its radiators. Interestingly, they said NAPA's radiators are from the same source, just different boxes.

 

The engine drain plugs are super hard to reach. The easiest one to reach is on the passenger side by the rear headers. It'll probably shoot coolant everywhere though. When I changed my coolant i just drained the radiator and the reservoir, then I filled it back up with distilled water, drained, repeated. This won't completely flush your engine, but it was easier than trying to pull the plugs on the engine. The radiator doesn't look too hard to replace though, it's definitely a diy job. Just make sure to use the right coolant ratio, and if you're not going to drain the block, be sure to account for the stuff in the block when you're calculating how much coolant/water to use.

Good luck.

 

pmohr had a very nice vid on how to replace a radiator. with some research and his vid as a resource, I found this to be a very easy repair, around 125 for the radiator, plus fluid and distilled water. no reason to try to repair or patch, given the price and ease...

about the only easier repair / replace is the starter

 

This is the exact issue i had a few yrs. back. Go with a koyo radiator from the group deal forum. Good deal, nice radiator and a perfect fit. You will however have to bolt the fan shroud onto the new one but it's a 30min. job.

 

I would make sure that's its a aluminum radiator. A 1-row alum. will cool just as good or better than a 2-row copper & brass