bloc
SILVER Star
When you get around to replacing the radiator consider trying to see how tough that stuff is to chip off the old one. I’m curious what kind of bond it’s making.
2008-2018 Radiator Failure and Public Service Announcement (2 Viewers)
- Thread starter jclarke450
- Start date
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When you get around to replacing the radiator consider trying to see how tough that stuff is to chip off the old one. I’m curious what kind of bond it’s making.
Tripledave
SILVER Star
Any updates on this repair??? Real curious on how it’s held up. Thx
is the 200 a high pressure radiator? will it cause catastrophic engine failure if its not caught early? I have a 100; caught a whiff of coolant and opened my hood to find a 2 foot gash in my radiator from where it popped. Not a lot of coolant sprayed, and my engine never overheated.
bloc
SILVER Star
I’ve seen lots of coolant sprayed everywhere on multiple rigs on this board but *maybe* one overheat..
It's only been about a tank of fuel since then, but so far no leak.
Tripledave
SILVER Star
Good to know, I also attempted a temporary patch on my radiator with the same stuff. I had a bit of "seepage" from the crack as well and thought I'd give it a shot. It still drips a tiny bit but should get me by until my radiator shows up from Camelback early next week.
You can try to plastic weld it. I am waiting to try it once mine cracks. I keep a plastic welder, jb radiator repair kit, and tape (recommended in another thread) in my roadside kit in case it blows on a trip.
I tried that kit with the same thought process. After one heat cycle, it just made pink fiberglass patch and didn’t hold. It did however prevent the spraying of coolant.
2010 LX with 99,000 miles joining the club. I’m in the process of swapping out the radiator, water pump, belt, tensioner, and upper/lower hoses. The radiator is draining as we speak, but I can’t seem to find the two engine drain plugs. Does anyone have any tips on accessing them?
bloc
SILVER Star
The passenger side is easy to get to. Right above that tire, look straight into the engine bay along the front edge of the upper spring perch. In there you’ll see a roughly 14mm brass hex. It screws into a bigger steel hex with a spout on the bottom. The brass part is what needs to be loosened, and no the outer steel part won’t come out. I accessed the brass part with a long series of extensions.
You really only need to drain one side, as this will get the level low enough to do the water pump work. If you are draining the entire system for a flush, I can’t help getting to the driver side drain. I never could locate it.
gaijin
GOLD Star
I can't help with the drain plug location, but what's up with the fluid level in your brake master cylinder resevoir? It is currently filled way above the MAX mark...
HTH
Good catch, thanks for pointing that out. I’ll have to drain some off!
They are both located directly behind the shock towers. Passenger side is a little easier to get to. Driver side you will likely need a flex joint. It is easier to remove the tire to have better access. You will also need to drop the upper part of the splash flap. It's just a few clips.
But I agree, only one side needs to be done. I did the driver first and only got a few oz out of the passenger side.
But I agree, only one side needs to be done. I did the driver first and only got a few oz out of the passenger side.
Thanks, this helped me find the passenger side drain plug. It was much deeper than I expected.
Unfortunately I’m having trouble loosening the brass head, which feels like it might be stripped. Has anyone replaced their water pump without draining the engine blocks?
bloc
SILVER Star
I hope I didn’t give you the wrong size. Might be 12mm.. it’s been a year since I messed with mine.
You can definitely do it without draining the block, it will just dump the coolant out the front when you remove the thermostat and pump, vs more controlled draining out the side.
edit: I was wrong. Just went and put some extensions and a socket together. The drain plug is 10mm. I’m getting old.
Thanks for checking, it was a 10mm head. I was finally able to get the passenger side to drain. Turning the steering wheel all the way to the right opened up better access and using a six point socket instead of a twelve point socket helped grab the slightly rounded brass head.
Thanks to everyone for their help!
I dont have a crack yet at 120K. I'm considering using the jb weld plastic weld to build up the area that cracks. Reinforce the stress area before it cracks. Do you think that would help? Anyone here try that yet?
bloc
SILVER Star
My concern would be with it masking the crack if it starts to develop. While the JB Weld might help, we don’t have much experience with it.. it could let go all at once. Generally once the crack starts people have plenty of time to address it before it totally fails. Personally I’d rather be able to monitor the progress and plan the work well before it leaves me stranded.
I would be a bit wary of fixing these cracks that develop. As someone mentioned a few pages back, this seems to be an engineered solution that is designed to fail before a more sinister problem can develop.
My 2 cents: if it was engineered I don’t think the engineering solution would have to create an unpredictable failure with a stress riser at an unnecessary angle. I think they just wanted a flat surface for labeling and didn’t appreciate the stress riser they were creating.
On my earlier Q, would building up the weak spot relieve stress or concentrate it somewhere else like in overdoing a weld in metal?
On my earlier Q, would building up the weak spot relieve stress or concentrate it somewhere else like in overdoing a weld in metal?
