so i am sure that anyone who does a search for posts that i have posted, i have had fun w/ my radiator for a while now

anyway

99 blazer, 4x4, 4dr
cracked radiator

what is the easiest way to get to the underside of the radiator?

remove the fan shroud (upper and lower)
or remove the rock guard, on the bottom of the engine compartment?

reason i ask, is that i tried to fix the leak with the leak fix stuff. that apparently didnt work. and i would top off the radiator every week (about a liter) but it finally overheated, luckally i was on the way home and the 'check gauges' or 'check engine' for 2-3 minutes.

so i dont think too much permanent damage is done. it has been running @ 210 rather than 195 for the last month. (hopefully that isnt doing damage other than wasting gas since the the engine is operating over optimum temperature for best performance.)

i am hoping that, since i know the problem is in the bottom (the plastic part) of the radiator, that i will be able to find the crack, which is in the underside (as the car place says) of the radiator and seal with some some industrial glue (gorrilla, epoxy, etc) that will not leak when heated.

i dont have the $200-300 to get the radiator replaced and am tempted just to sell it, especially since its time to renew my license plate, and if it isnt going to last a month, i see no reason to waste any more money into it.

kbb says that its only worth $2000-2500, so im hoping i can get $2500 with fully advising the purchaser that the radiator is at a loss, but for $300 they can have a good running car.

my wife has a civic, so its not like i am going to be stranded. and i carpool to work, so its not a necessary daily need to have a vehicle. (assuming the other guy wont mind me paying him for gas and his car maintenance over my driving) and i have time to think about this, as i wont have to drive till after thankgiving break.

thanks for the advise.

 

Best thing to do is to pull the radiator out rather than trying to fix it in place. If it is cracked between the aluminum and plastic the best you can hope for is a bandaid fix. Epoxy should work reasonably well if only on the plastic, JB Weld or similiar if only on the aluminum. I don't know of anything that would work well on both.

 

Have you tried a local junkyard? You probably could find one there for under $100. Just be sure when it comes time to install it that all the mounting brackets are secure and not broke. That way you won't be doing it again.

 

I got a new, not remanufactured, radiator from a local shop for about $140 or so a couple of years ago. Another option, which I highly recommend, is to pull your radiator and bring it to a local shop to have it tested and repaired, along with a cleaning. However, if the crack is between the plastic and aluminum, they probably won't fix it and tell you to get a new one. Ask me how I know...

 

I have a perfect GM radiator, from my 98 Jimmy, which was rear ended and totalled. $100 plus shipping, or free local pickup.

 

i took the plunge and ripped the radiator out (i didnt know that there was another one (or heatsink type device) just behind it) - looks like the oil cooler based on the lines going into it...

i tried plugging the radiator hose holes (the big ones) and filling the radiator (outside of the car) with water to see if it would leak anywhere, nope, but i am guessing that is b/c it only leaks under the 15psi pressure?

i have ascertained that coolant goes from the engine (hot) into the radiator and flows through the thin horizontal channels between the two plastic ends of the radiator. then back into the engine after it has been cooled.
is the high hose (right side when looking @ engine) the hot or the cold?
also, it appears that there is an oil line going in/out on the right side, one high/ one low.
there is also a pair of lines on the left side, with what appears to be a red thick iridescent liquid - what is that? (transmission fluid)

2-3 months ago, i tried the radiator leak stop, after cleaning, then using the leak stop and refilling the radiator. when i did that, the right plastic underside (the plastic between the engine compartment and the wheel well) was torn-up, so i ripped it out. should i replace that with something (is that causing a problem with the overheating)? i only ask b/c there is the oil filter door (in the rock shield) that says something how it must remain closed for proper engine cooling.

so where should i proceed from here?
there was the suggestion to take the radiator into a shop and have them test it properly (hopefully more effective than my water test)

if it does appear to be between the plastic ends and the aluminum core (probably at the joint / material change) would it be affective to seal that with an epoxy, or would that just be a waste of time? (e.g. when the engine heats up, the epoxy would melt (and probably emit toxic vapors))

thanks

 

The lines on the right side (looking from the front) are engine oil going into the oil cooler. The left side are the lines for the tranny cooler.

The hose on the right side is the hot side coming from the engine. The left side is the cool side going to the water pump.

I believe what you are calling the "heat sink" that is actually in front of the radiator is you a/c condenser. There shouldn't be anything behind the radiator other than the fan.

As long as your fan shroud is in place and intact you shouldn't have any problems with overheating, providing the rest of your cooling system is up to par.

Being as you have the radiator out, do take it to a radiator shop and have it test being as you can't find the leak yourself. It usually costs nothing just to have it tested, but some shops may charge your.

I have tried on more than a few vehicles in the past, including my Blazer, to take the cheap route on radiators and it has never paid off. Have someone who does this for a living and get it fixed correctly the first time. Stop leak is only a bandaid and will mess up the rest of your system eventually.

Sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and replace the radiator. I've only been lucky on one vehicle that they could braze the crack, the rest I had to replace.

 

Well, I look at it this way (just replace the radiator), you can fool with it and fool it until you go out a spend the bucks for a new one.

The newer radiators of today, with that plastic just don't do well and once they go, its gone, no repair is going to help it.

So fool with it and fool it and waste your time "Trying" to save a buck. You will spend more fooling with it and then your time and the cuss words.
Na, break down buy a new and smile and look at that shinning new radiator that I put it, ani't it pretty!!!

 

Do it right or don't do it at all !