Radiators! EEEEEeeeeeerrrrr!

[Hedgehog]

Yep, another radiator gone! About a month ago I started noticing green wetness around the top lip of the CJ's radiator. It darn near over heated yesterday EEEeeeeerrrrr! Oh well I got 5 or so years out of this one. It's a good thing it's got a "last forever" warrantee on it.

 

[Torxhead]

Hedge, why not just resolder it, if that is all it needs?

 

[Hedgehog]

I have never been very good at soldering a radiator. Generally the end product is worse than the start. Then I actually have NO idea where the leak is. I do know there is a leak there somewhere, green water around the top and running down the core. ..... Also, messing with it will void the "Last Forever" warrantee, I.E. free replacement forever. ...... The job is made more difficult by the drain plug NOT working. There is nothing neat about getting the old fluid out. Messy Messy Messy........

Also to short circuit the scolding's. The original antifreeze was a 50/50 mix and only distilled water has ben used to top things off. The radiator has been taken care of from the beginning.

 

[Lumpy Grits]

What psi cap do you run?
Could flexing of the radiator from the mounting, be part of the issue??

LG

 

[Torxhead]

Yeah Hedge, I could use a new radiator also.

 

[Belizean]

What psi cap do you run?
Could flexing of the radiator from the mounting, be part of the issue??

LG

I've had a life time warranty on my radiator and have gotten several new ones. I think LG is right about the flexing problem on jeeps though!

 

[Hedgehog]

Lumpy .... What ever the stock PSI is. I should know, but don't.

 

[Posi]

15 psi

 

[Hedgehog]

So, removing a radiator is no big deal. What I'm struggling with is removing the radiator hoses. They are essentially welded to the old radiator and engine. I am actually pealing them off with a knife. Since it appears that I'm going to need to replace radiators at regular intervals a question arises is there a product that can be used to coat the hose fittings that will allow the hoses to seal without leaking AND removed easier?

 

[hole]

The only time I've had trouble with hose removal is on old hoses as the rubber gets really soft and sticks like glue. Probably not a bad idea to be changing them at the same time for piece of mind. Cant think of any kind of coating that would help 5 years down the road.

 

[Posi]

Don't pull reward on the hose to break the seal.
I simply use channel locks, with slight pressure, twist it left and right to break the seal. Once the seal is broke slide the hose off. Easy, and works every time for me.

 

[Lumpy Grits]

HH-Silicone spray works very well to keep the hose from 'gluing' itself to the fitting.
I also double clamp those connections.
LG

 

[Belizean]

LG is right again. . I use the silicone spray sparingly on inside hoses

 

[Torxhead]

How about somebody suggesting a non aluminum radiator replacement for a CJ?

 

[Belizean]

Well I have a 96 Cherokee with plastic radiator and I'm not a big fan of them either. Just saying. They hold up fairly ok.

 

[Hedgehog]

Posi - That has worked well in the past, this time I had to actually peak the hoses off like an orange. I usually get a pry bar of some sort behind the hose and crack it loose that way. It's usually fairly easy, this time it was a struggle.

Lumpy - The hoses I had trouble with were double clamped, I wonder if that actually was part of the problem. .... B-T-W, that '51 Willys Wagon sure looks nice in my drive way. Got it home last night and started washing the desert dust off it as soon as it hit the ground. its a head turned. I was following my buddy who was trailering it to my place. It was fun to see the folks watch it go by .... smiles and thumbs up were everywhere.

I planned on replacing the hoses anyway, it was a struggle to remove the old ones.

Honestly, I'm a little disappointed with Autozone. After struggling to remove the old A-Z radiator the replacement is absolutely NOT the same radiator. The older one was almost identical to the original, big solid, 4 row. The new one is aluminum, a single row with plastic tanks. You can actually see through it. An odd thing, it also REALLY breaths air. After washing some spilt antifreeze off it I started the engine. You could easily see the fan sucking the water through the core. Rev the engine and the water turned into a fine misty cloud soaking everything. I don't recall seeing that before. ....and I've changed a bunch of radiators.

 

[Belizean]

HH glad you got it running.

 

[Lumpy Grits]

I use the double clamp deal and silicon spray where the hose attaches.
Never an issue to remove the hose.
LG

 

[Hedgehog]

The spray is a good idea. Of course now that the radiator is plastic the hoses will probably not stick as much.

 

[Lumpy Grits]

I wouldn't go cave-man 'tite' on those clamps now.
Do you have a link to this plastic radiator you now have?
LG