Just driving along to pick up a bumper and...

[Mtbcoach]

Pics tell the tale...

I've paid for AAA for longer than I can remember (literally decades) and never used it. Today paid for this year's dues for sure.

So, I'm heading to Wendell to pick up Kevin's Short Bus bumper, making the transition from Hwy 540 to Hwy 264, huge spray on the windshield, steam spewing from under the hood. Quick glance at the temp gauge, all is "cool", WTF?

Pull over quickly, shut it down, pop the hood to start looking for the blown hose or other failure that would cause such rapid deployment of coolant. All looks fine through the mist and steam, look to the front, low and behold, I think I found the problem...

All the rust pieces when it blew were all over...

Drove it into the driveway, let it idle until it got to temp and I could see the steam starting to blow through the failure. Apparently, it simple blew through all the little tabs that hold the "tank" onto the "body" of the radiator.

Oh well, glad I was relatively close to home...

 

[angerhater]

what kind of mileage you at?

 

[Mtbcoach]

A measly 160k. It wasn't hot, never ran hot (to my knowledge, my daughters have been driving it the past few years), looks to me like the radiator rusted through from the inside. When I bought it, the coolant looked "rusty", changed it out never had an issue, until today that is...

 

[krzyabncanuck]

Mine was the same way when i got it. Radiator was doing the exact thing.

 

[NCFJ]

Good news is that you did not smoke the motor. You were bored anyway right, nothing better to do than swap out a radiator LOL.

 

[GarnerFJ40]

Yeah, Jerry you don't have any projects going on right now!

 

[Mtbcoach]

Yeah, nothing better to do right now. We "were" planning on driving it to Asheville for Brianna's move-in and I'm relatively relieved it went now than somewhere along I40. So, I'll take it with a smile on my face...

 

[jfz80]

ill take that bumper off your hands to ease the radiator pinch haha




like you said, glad it was in town instead of en route to asheville
mine had a 1'' crack form right on the front of the top plastic tank last spring

 

[Mtbcoach]

ill take that bumper off your hands to ease the radiator pinch haha

You mean the stock, take off bumper, right?

like you said, glad it was in town instead of en route to asheville
mine had a 1'' crack form right on the front of the top plastic tank last spring

Reading too much on aftermarket, OEM, aluminum, Kevin's take out? Regardless, check off another thing that WON'T break in the future...

 

[GLTHFJ60]

At least it was relatively close to home!

Man do I love AAA

 

[lt1fire]

Damn that sucks Jerry....... just go all in and do your diesel swap while your in there

 

[Mtbcoach]

Damn that sucks Jerry....... just go all in and do your diesel swap while your in there

I know that's what will happen, thanks for the jinx Al.

I'll go through everything on the engine, chassis, drivetrain, then the engine will take a crap and I'll have to do the swap anyway. It's just the way my luck works out...