Radiator failing - Is it safe to keep driving? (1 Viewer)

[slo60]

Noticed a split in the top cap of my radiator a few days back, along with a very minor coolant leak. I have ordered a new OEM radiator (Thanks Onur!) and it will be here on Friday and I will be replacing it this weekend along with new water pump, hoses (yes, that PHH too), and coolant.

My question is what are the chances of catastrophic failure of the radiator should I choose to drive it around town while I wait for the replacement. So far the coolant loss is hardly noticeable, but I am concerned about the top of the radiator blowing apart. Is this a valid concern, or are these radiators tougher than that?

I have tried a stop-gap repair of JB Weld, and it cracked again in the same place. The radiator is an OEM part, and I assume that it is the original radiator with 210,000 miles. That's good enough!

 

[Romer]

It's hard to answer your question. No idea how bad it is. Let me answer it this way, If your engine does not get sufficient coolant, then you should not drive it.

You have to figure out how fast it leaks or escapes under pressure. If you fill it when its cold and drive only a few miles it should be OK as long as there is nothing major.

Do not open the cap until it has cooled down for a bit

 

[slo60]

Ken,

Thanks for the response. Like I said, I have not seen a significant loss of coolant. The overflow is a little above the low level, the radiator appears to be full, and I have not had to add any coolant yet No cooling issues whatever.

I guess that I am wondering if an OEM radiator with this kind of defect is subject to complete and sudden failure, of if it will will continue to leak small amounts for a period of time gradually getting worse? Has anyone ever had an OEM radiator blow out suddenly?

Here are some pictures of said crack:

 

[coax]

All I can offer is a data point from when my radiator failed. IT was an OEM w/ 170K on it. Started leaking on the plastic top tank right where it clamps to the metal. Wasnt so bad when I noticed it, just a bit of coolant accumulated on the top. After 4 hours or so of driving it was noticeably worse. (This could also be due to the fact that I *believe* the HG was bad and pushing exhaust gas into the cooling system. If the radiator cap was bad...and too much pressure...)

At any rate, if you drive it, just check the coolant level often.

 

[CowboyUp]

Noticed a split in the top cap of my radiator a few days back, along with a very minor coolant leak. I have ordered a new OEM radiator (Thanks Onur!) and it will be here on Friday and I will be replacing it this weekend along with new water pump, hoses (yes, that PHH too), and coolant.

My question is what are the chances of catastrophic failure of the radiator should I choose to drive it around town while I wait for the replacement. So far the coolant loss is hardly noticeable, but I am concerned about the top of the radiator blowing apart. Is this a valid concern, or are these radiators tougher than that?

I have tried a stop-gap repair of JB Weld, and it cracked again in the same place. The radiator is an OEM part, and I assume that it is the original radiator with 210,000 miles. That's good enough!

What JB weld you used? I used first time on my van radiator JB Weld fast dry... and don't hold at all and next time I used JB Weld 24 hour and worked great. Try one more time, JB Weld is a good product. I used also JB Weld 24 hour to weld a hole in the oil pan and hold for almost two years.

 

[zx9r]

Just keep a close eye on it. I drove mine with similar cracks/leaks for well over a year while I kept trying various patches that all failed in the end. If you are losing only a little coolant each time you check I doubt you'll see a major failure as long as you keep topping it off.

 

[The Nak]

If you try JB Weld again, "bed" something into it to give it more strength. I've used screen and fiberglass cloth a couple times in the past and the patch held great until the radiators were able to be replaced.

 

[slo60]

If you try JB Weld again, "bed" something into it to give it more strength. I've used screen and fiberglass cloth a couple times in the past and the patch held great until the radiators were able to be replaced.

Thought about that. Just didn't have any bedding material on hand. I'll try again tomorrow.

Thanks for all the responses!

 

[CowboyUp]

If you try JB Weld again, "bed" something into it to give it more strength. I've used screen and fiberglass cloth a couple times in the past and the patch held great until the radiators were able to be replaced.

Thought about that. Just didn't have any bedding material on hand. I'll try again tomorrow.

Thanks for all the responses!

Yes you guys are right about this "bed", I used aluminum foil that are used for cooking. Also, is a aluminum duct tape that worked great when I did the oil pan .

 

[tirewater]

Considering that you're getting a new radiator soon, I wouldn't worry too much about it. Just don't drive far.

The flexing of the radiator probably split the JB weld patch. You could look for a more flexible apoxy to try and fix it.

If the top of the radiator is made out of ABS or PVC you could search around for repairs to those types of products.

Next time, you could try and find a plastic welder and repairing it that way (providing the plastic can be welded). Too much JB Weld on it to do anything like that now. You may get away with putting a wire mesh over it and adding more JB Weld.

 

[80t0ylc]

........ I have ordered a new OEM radiator (Thanks Onur!) and it will be here on Friday and I will be replacing it this weekend along with new water pump, hoses (yes, that PHH too), and coolant.........and I assume that it is the original radiator with 210,000 miles........

I would suggest that you replace your thermostat while you're doing all this to your cooling system. My '94 t-stat lasted for 222K miles and you're almost there. Replace with OEM and get a new o-ring/gasket, also. Mine started running warmer than usual with engine under load (hills) and cooled way down on down hills. I only noticed it because I have done the RT temp gauge mod. When I tested the old & new t-stats together, it was obvious the old one was tired. It's movement was real sluggish compared to the new one, which explained the symptoms.

 

[slo60]

Alright, I picked up some more JB Weld, and some fiberglass bedding material and tried another patch last night. At this point, I just want to see if I can make it work! Getting my new radiator on Friday

As a side note, the failure might have been caused by human error. My hood struts recently started giving out. They would usually let loose at the worst possible time, i.e. with me up under the hood A couple months ago I found a 3/4"X1" stick and cut it to length in order to support the hood. I found the perfect storage location for it, right in front of the radiator It was not a tight fit, so I thought that it would be ok there, now I'm wondering if the front of the radiator got a little beat up by that stick. No real signs of damage to the radiator other than the obvious cracks, but wondering if that could be the cause.

 

[scottm]

I've had a few catastrophic radiator failures, one on a test drive (which certainly helped my negotiating position). You'll be stuck, but I doubt you'll damage the engine if you shut it down.

 

[slo60]

I would suggest that you replace your thermostat while you're doing all this to your cooling system. My '94 t-stat lasted for 222K miles and you're almost there. Replace with OEM and get a new o-ring/gasket, also. Mine started running warmer than usual with engine under load (hills) and cooled way down on down hills. I only noticed it because I have done the RT temp gauge mod. When I tested the old & new t-stats together, it was obvious the old one was tired. It's movement was real sluggish compared to the new one, which explained the symptoms.

Good suggestion! I have ordered the T-stat and gasket along with the radiator and water pump. I already have all new hoses, including the PHH, that will be replaced in one fell swoop. The only thing that I am holding off on right now is the blue fan clutch. Mine is working great right now, so I will replace when needed. I also have some PS leaks at hose connections right below the radiator, so hoping to fix those at the same time. It's going to be a fun weekend

 

[80t0ylc]

Good suggestion! I have ordered the T-stat and gasket along with the radiator and water pump. I already have all new hoses, including the PHH, that will be replaced in one fell swoop. The only thing that I am holding off on right now is the blue fan clutch. Mine is working great right now, so I will replace when needed. I also have some PS leaks at hose connections right below the radiator, so hoping to fix those at the same time. It's going to be a fun weekend

Jeff,

When you take the radiator out, take off the fan clutch. You'll never have such a good opportunity to easily remove it and get familiar with it. Trust me, it will pay off for the future. When you get it off see if it's an Eaton or a Aisin, so you'll remember later. These black hubbed clutches will out perform the newer adjustable blue-hubbed ones, unless the bearings go. Just drain out fluid and replace. Refer to Landtank's thread. The last few pages deal with these clutches and are an excellent source of information. Kevin (Tools R Us) has really helped out some of us that have these clutches and are not real convinced to get the newer blue adjustable. With radiator off you can also get a good look and replace your idler pulleys. With the age & miles on the truck, that, I think, is going to be my next project, as long as my radiator holds out.

 

[slo60]

Jeff,

When you take the radiator out, take off the fan clutch. You'll never have such a good opportunity to easily remove it and get familiar with it. Trust me, it will pay off for the future. When you get it off see if it's an Eaton or a Aisin, so you'll remember later. These black hubbed clutches will out perform the newer adjustable blue-hubbed ones, unless the bearings go. Just drain out fluid and replace. Refer to Landtank's thread. The last few pages deal with these clutches and are an excellent source of information. Kevin (Tools R Us) has really helped out some of us that have these clutches and are not real convinced to get the newer blue adjustable. With radiator off you can also get a good look and replace your idler pulleys. With the age & miles on the truck, that, I think, is going to be my next project, as long as my radiator holds out.

Thanks again. I have had the fan clutch off before and it is an Aisin. Performed some baselining immediately after I purchased the vehicle 2 years ago. At that time, I installed a factory re-manufactured alternator from C-Dan, new idler and AC idler pulleys, new belts, all new fluids as well as a front axle re-build. I am going to install new OEM belts this weekend. Two years ago when I did everything else, I failed to order belts from Dan and ended up with some belts that I haven't been too happy with.

I have been looking forward to addressing the entire cooling system for some time now. It's one of those things you think about on long trips. Won't have to think about this for another 200K. I'm just glad that everything held out until now! Got some time, and can dive in this weekend and git er' done.

Also, I did get that JB Weld and fabric mesh patch job to hold! Put quite a few miles on today with no more leaking!

 

[LanEvo]

My radiator cracked in the same place and i used JB weld as well. Give it a few days and its going to leak like crazy to the point where you can actually see the coolant squirting out from the front. That is why i got a brass tank radiator instead of a plastic tank when i replaced it.

 

[slo60]

Just wanted to give everyone a quick update. I started the project late Friday afternoon, and finished everything up yesterday. Everything went smoothly, and I continue to be amazed with the quality of Toyota products.

Here's what I did:

Replaced original factory radiator with new OEM replacement. Original made it to 210,000 miles, so I figured this was good enough reason to replace with the same part.

Replace the majority of hoses in the cooling system. All the major hoses were replaced, and I decided to wait on a few of the smaller heater hoses as they look and feel like they are still in very good condition. I did replace the PHH, and found the the original was still in very good condition. No signs of impending failure whatsoever. This was fairly straight forward, with the hardest part being the removal of the bolt at the back of the intake that faces the firewall. We got it though, and before re-assembly we notched the bracket to allow for easier installation (Thanks Mud for this tip).

Install new OEM water pump. The old pump was in surprisingly good condition, showing very little wear. Those pumps are beefy!

New OEM thermostat.

New OEM belts.

I then did a complete flush of the cooling system. I actually started this on Friday before pulling the old radiator. I drained the old coolant (Radiator and Block) and filled the system with tap water. Drove for a while with front and rear heaters going full blast. After cooling, I drained the system again before I started in on the project. Once I completed the installation, I filled the system again with tap water and let everything circulate for about 15 minutes. Drained the system again and hooked up the Prestone flush kit and flushed the entire system for another 20 minutes. At this point there was no sign of old coolant in the system at all. I then filled with distilled water and drove about 20 miles with all heat on, then let everything cool down drained one more time and filled with Toyota red and distilled water. Done!

I do have to give a shout out for for my two assistants in this project! Thanks Jonathan and Joel for all your hard work, and putting up with your Dad when you work with me And no Joel, your hands aren't smaller than mine anymore but thank you for being willing to give that PHH a try