2005 Radiator Replacement questions

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fblainen11

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Noticed some coolant leaking a few weeks ago and I've just now go around to ordering a new radiator. With 380k I'm shocked it's lasted this long.

I ordered the Denso 221-3152 from Amazon for about $180 shipped.

My question is first, can anyone point me to a write up. I've replaced radiators before, but I'm anal like that and want to make sure I'm not missing anything important.

Secondly, can this job be done without removing the fan? Will the fan shroud move out of the way?

The FSM says that for installation it's necessary to remove. But some threads I've seen say remove battery and battery tray, slide shroud out of the way and remove, then reverse.
 
Looks like there are 3 bolts holding the shroud to the radiator assembly. I guess remove those three and slide it back over the fan?
 
I believe @Mike6158 and @skshepherd went into pretty good detail on this with pics, the link is below. Check it out and hopefully it will help. I've heard changing the radiator is a very easy, quick, and simple job even for the most mechanically challenged.

Radiator Change Today - Questions
 
I put the Denso in mine last month and it fit perfect. Even better than the Koyo I used before. The shroud slides back over the fan. When you pull the rad up the lower hose nipple and the trans cooler stubs like to grab on everything. And sometimes when I put it back in I find if I leave the side bolts loose it's easier to get the lower bolts to thread in place.
 
Take your airbox out for more room too.
 
i suggest taking off and keeping the brass tranny line connectors from the bottom of old radiator. Just loosen the nut and comes right off. If you happen to crack one on the new radiator you can replace connector and not radiator. Ask me how I know.
 
I just did mine a week or two ago with the same Denso unit off of Amazon.

There are four bolts that hold the radiator in place. Two on the each side of the top, two on the lower sides (IIRC, the two on the sides are attached via brackets you will have to swap to the new radiator). Each bolt goes through a large (1.5-2" OD) rubber dampener/bushing. There are four bolts at the top that hold the lines and reservoir to radiator. You have two large coolant lines, one top, one bottom, and two smaller tranny lines (unless this was changed with the 5 speed, I have a 2000 with the 4 speed).

I took the skid plate off, but didn't remove anything else like battery, fan, or airbox. It's really an easy job.
 
Will do. Apparently UPS does not spell logistics. Supposed to be in this past Friday now they're saying it could be Wednesday to Friday of THIS week, but they can't say for sure because there's been no update since Tuesday.

I'll change it as soon as it comes in and get the photos.
 
I did get Amazon to give me 15% off and a free month of Amazon Prime.

They originally offered me a free month, I said no that's not enough. Then she said a free month and 10% off. I said no, I want 15% off. This is my wife's DD to haul our kids around and this is a huge hassle.

They did it. Just an FYI.
 
fblainen11 said:
I did get Amazon to give me 15% off and a free month of Amazon Prime.

They originally offered me a free month, I said no that's not enough. Then she said a free month and 10% off. I said no, I want 15% off. This is my wife's DD to haul our kids around and this is a huge hassle.

They did it. Just an FYI.
Click to expand...
Amazon prime has been flaking out on me frequently lately, how did you get a hold of them?
 
Live to Ski said:
Request: When you remove the radiator, can you take a pic of the bolt/rubber damper combo?

Apparently, the top 2 dampers are missing from my rig, thus the top of the radiator "floats".
Click to expand...

I'm sorry I didn't get exactly what you wanted now that I'm coming back to this thread. I hope these can help some. There's a grommet that goes through them and then the boot goes through that.

IMG_3817.webp


IMG_3818.webp


IMG_3819.webp
 
Thanks for the help. I had my dad come over and help me with this. It's a one person job, but I found it helpful to give him a beer and help remove the old radiator and put the new one in.

I got underneath and moved the shroud around and out of the way of the transmission nipples.
Also, I used about 4 extensions and was able to remove the 2 lower bolts easily.
When reinstalling I'd recommend doing the lower drivers side first and keeping it fairly loose. The passenger side is a bit harder to find the hole due to AC lines that are in the way.

All in all I removed the battery, fan shroud, and overflow tank. Very easy.
 
mattafact said:
I put the Denso in mine last month and it fit perfect. Even better than the Koyo I used before. The shroud slides back over the fan. When you pull the rad up the lower hose nipple and the trans cooler stubs like to grab on everything. And sometimes when I put it back in I find if I leave the side bolts loose it's easier to get the lower bolts to thread in place.
Click to expand...

+1 on leaving the side bracket bolts loose until the end. Makes lining up the rubber-isolated bolts much easier.
 
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