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Leaking some radiator fluid from somewhere up top I believe. There is some fluid/wetness on top of the relay box just in front of battery and based upon on the car park the fluid seems to leak/run-down the top of the radiator area towards the passenger side. It's not a huge leak (yet) as it took about 1 pint of water to fill up the overflow tank to just under the max line with car warm.
With the car parked when I got home and a slight tilt where I park in my driveway that makes the drivers side a bit higher then the passenger side, there was a slight drip coming from the passenger side top of the radiator.
Obviously, it would be great if I could just spot the leak, but I don't see it yet. I'm guessing it could be at the top hose just under the air intake? I revved the motor a couple times but that didn't seem to increase the leak where I could find it. Here's a pic (albeit probably not that helpful). Also, radiator is wobbly....supposed to be?
The top tank tends to split, best to replace the rad soon.
Is "top tank" the black plastic part running across the top of the radiator? I'm going to give it a good look tomorrow in the daylight just to see if I get lucky and it is the hose leaking under the air intake piece.
If I have to get a new radiator, what's recommended for replacement? I don't mind quality aftermarket if it can save me some cash over OEM. Also, if I take this to a shop, how many hours of labor is expected?
Is "top tank" the black plastic part running across the top of the radiator? I'm going to give it a good look tomorrow in the daylight just to see if I get lucky and it is the hose leaking under the air intake piece.
If I have to get a new radiator, what's recommended for replacement? I don't mind quality aftermarket if it can save me some cash over OEM. Also, if I take this to a shop, how many hours of labor is expected?
You can order a whole replacement radiator from places like 1-800-radiator, etc. They are easy to replace. Few things you need to be aware of other than the obvious such as whether to replace the hoses as and that coolant will have to be replaced:
1) you will have to remove and re-attach the cooling fans
2) some people have problems with the bottom mounts rusting out so check for this before ordering anything
3) AT cars will have a set of hoses that go to an AT cooler within the radiator. MT cars do not have to worry about this but they will see the capped off lines.
I don't believe there is a huge variance in quality of aftermarket radiators, just don't go super budget and you'll be ok. Also be sure to use OEM coolant - some coolants eat away at the water pump, which (I believe) is a much more costly repair than a radiator.
Radiator replacement should be an hour labor for a shop. It's something you could do yourself as well, if you don't mind getting a little dirty.
1. OK, so watched a video and replaced the radiator yesterday. Took this shade tree mechanic about 90 minutes start to finish. Pretty easy really, but I only replaced the radiator and didn't have to bother with trying to get the upper and lower hoses off of the engine. Radiator I bought was brand Murray from the local OReillyAuto. No idea if that brand is garbage or not.
2. I used Peak 50/50 pre-mix coolant. Damn the torpedoes.
3. For the rubber radiator mounts (top and bottom), be sure to check those. Bottom ones were fine on mine. Top ones seemed to be a little worn (causing more wobble than I thought there should be) based upon looking at pictures of brand new ones. I ended up wedging in a little leftover piece/slice of fuel hose I had laying around. Radiator still has some slight movement when installed but less wobble.
4. Toughest part was not dinging up the radiator fins as I installed it and put the bottom hose (and auto trans coolant connection hoses back on). OK, I made a couple dings against the radiator fins....it'll probably run just fine. Made sure to "burp the radiator" after driving 5 miles to work this morning. Added another pint. Will burp it again later and maybe check another time after that.
In the end, yes, the old radiator had a small weep hole developed near the top inlet. Really only leaked when the engine at temp. Thanks for all the help here!!
04-10-2018, 08:33 PM
