This flawed radiator design was used on all LC & LX up until the 2018 model year. They switched to the new version for the last half of 2018.
Someone (OP or a mod) really should update the thread title to reflect the full model year range affected.
2008-2018 Radiator Failure and Public Service Announcement (8 Viewers)
- Thread starter jclarke450
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This flawed radiator design was used on all LC & LX up until the 2018 model year. They switched to the new version for the last half of 2018.
Someone (OP or a mod) really should update the thread title to reflect the full model year range affected.
The correct answer ^.
Getting mine done under warranty with the right photo to capture my hairline crack. Its in early stages.
2017
done- could have been worded a bit better though
Just say'n
Why didn't you just post that instead of being unhelpful?
bloc
SILVER Star
Thanksdone- could have been worded a bit better though
I was helpful. Do you see the new thread title?
I could also add that the ridiculous “AhC FaiLUrE WaRningz!,” pin thread on the front page is asinine. Can we change that BS too?
bloc
SILVER Star
IMO you have plenty of time. It’ll extend out 1/8” or so to the driver side before it actually fails, based on the dozens posted here.
Rough it up, put epoxy on it and call it good.
While there's no way to "prove" this, and it's certainly debatable, I'm confident that a GOOD patch job on a radiator that is in decent shape to begin with should last indefinitely.
By GOOD I mean
- Clean the area with window cleaner, then again with isopropyl alcohol.
- Scuff the area with 60-80 grit sand paper, just deep enough to get good adhesion, but not so deep to remove excess material.
- Clean the area again with isopropyl.
- *edit If you really wanna get fancy, apply some adhesion promoter, which is a product specifically used to strengthen the adhesion of primer (usually epoxy) to plastic. Commonly used in auto body/paint shops to ensure paint doesn't peel off plastic surfaces like bumper covers.
- Clean again with isopropyl (seriously, the cleaner it is, the better adhesion you'll get).
- Properly and thoroughly mix JB Weld (tested by Project Farm as the best overall 2-part epoxy)
- Apply JB Weld liberally, working it into every crevasse.
- While JB Weld is still wet, push a layer of fiber glass mat onto it, making sure the JB Weld soaks in uniformly.
- Let the JB Weld tack up (5-6 hours or so) and apply another layer or JB Weld and fiberglass.
- Anything more than three layers of JB Weld/fiberglass is probably overkill. You're more likely to break adhesion to the radiator and develop a leak through the gap than you are to develop a crack in 3 layers of JB/fiberglass. This is why scuffing and cleaning the area is so important.
If used properly, for the right application, JB Weld is pretty amazing stuff. This is a pretty ideal use case (ie patching hard, non-flexible plastic). When combined with fiberglass to increase tensile strength, it should hold indefinitely, especially if a significant crack hasn't formed yet (plastic will have a much harder time cracking open if it's being held together by a strong patch). Also, you might lose visual indication of a failure (or not), but if it doesn't fail in the first place, that's a non-issue. Also, the radiator itself is around $300-$400, plus shipping/tax, plus installation, it's closer to $800-$1000 total. JB Weld and some fiberglass is more like $8-$10. That's the route I'm going personally. Time will tell how it holds up. I'll post updates here how things are going over the years.
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bloc
SILVER Star
If you mean indefinitely with regard to not failing before the rest of the radiator I don’t think you’re wrong. But I’ve posted pictures of what the rest of the radiator looks like.. personally a fresh radiator to solve both problems (the crack and the degraded plastic) seems like a small price to pay.
This summer my wife and I attended the LCDC event in Breckenridge, CO. We pulled our Oliver LE2 travel trailer from MN to CO with our 2013 LC. The fiberglass camper weighs over 5,000 lbs loaded. After the very first day out on the road I noticed the radiator crack starting in the typical spot. Faced with either turning around, or continuing on our long planned trip to LCDC, we decided to throw a patch on the crack and keep an eye on it.
In a small town NAPA store I bought this kit and installed it in a brewery parking lot someplace in Nebraska while parked for the night after everything had cooled off: Permatex® Plastic Tank Repair Kit – Permatex - https://www.permatex.com/products/specialized-maintenance-repair/repair-kits/permatex-plastic-tank-repair-kit/
We pulled the camper up and back down the I70 grade west of Denver without issue. The patch held fine. I suspect I’ve put at least 5k miles on the rig since the patch. I’ve got all the parts here to change out the radiator with the new style, but the summer and fall got away from me and now it’ll need to wait until spring. It’s too cold outside in MN to work on cars in the driveway now.
In my profession I’ve had the opportunity to bring in a 3M adhesive engineer to consult on a few projects. The main item I picked up from him is the importance of proper prep work in order to achieve a sound adhesive bond. Clean the surface as directed, then clean it again. Use the specific cleaning products asked for. Don’t cut corners or get in a hurry. Go to the store and get the correct solvents.
The patch has worked for me even towing a heavy travel trailer on and off for at least the last five months. It’ll be another five months before it’s warm enough to work outside and replace the radiator. I’m not worried about the patch letting go, but I will certainly replace the radiator before going on the next big out of state road trip.
HTH, Ken
In a small town NAPA store I bought this kit and installed it in a brewery parking lot someplace in Nebraska while parked for the night after everything had cooled off: Permatex® Plastic Tank Repair Kit – Permatex - https://www.permatex.com/products/specialized-maintenance-repair/repair-kits/permatex-plastic-tank-repair-kit/
We pulled the camper up and back down the I70 grade west of Denver without issue. The patch held fine. I suspect I’ve put at least 5k miles on the rig since the patch. I’ve got all the parts here to change out the radiator with the new style, but the summer and fall got away from me and now it’ll need to wait until spring. It’s too cold outside in MN to work on cars in the driveway now.
In my profession I’ve had the opportunity to bring in a 3M adhesive engineer to consult on a few projects. The main item I picked up from him is the importance of proper prep work in order to achieve a sound adhesive bond. Clean the surface as directed, then clean it again. Use the specific cleaning products asked for. Don’t cut corners or get in a hurry. Go to the store and get the correct solvents.
The patch has worked for me even towing a heavy travel trailer on and off for at least the last five months. It’ll be another five months before it’s warm enough to work outside and replace the radiator. I’m not worried about the patch letting go, but I will certainly replace the radiator before going on the next big out of state road trip.
HTH, Ken
3M is God level when it comes to adhesive products. Unsurprisingly, that engineer is dead on the money. Like with auto body, it's all in the prep work. Every corner you cut on the prep work will be amplified in the end result. With paint it's "just" cosmetic, so not that big of a deal. But with adhesives you risk mechanical failure. So yes, definitely clean before sanding (to avoid grinding contaminants into sanded surface) then clean again after. Pure 99% isopropyl is ideal, but 70% is fine if that's all you've got. If you really wanna get fancy, use adhesion promoter as well, which is a product specifically meant to help primer (usually epoxy) better adhere to plastic surfaces.
bloc
SILVER Star
Any risk of an adhesion promoter negatively impacting the remaining plastic for the heat cycling and pressures it sees?
Good question. Not to my knowledge. I believe it's just surface prep/etching, kind of like that liquid sandpaper product, but honestly, this is above my pay grade. You'd have to direct this question to an engineer at one of the companies that produces this stuff for a shot at a definitive answer. But again, I highly doubt it.
Which epoxy did you use? I am about to order the JB Weld radiator repair kit. It says it’s good up to 250ºF. But I might be interested in what you used if it’s good to 400ºF.
Some 2 part plastic epoxy from JB weld. Can’t remember specifically which one.
