Slow Coolant leak

[Jae Yu]

Hi I need some consult here. Looks like I have a small coolant leak and some splatter. Any idea how I can troubleshoot this from the photo? Really appreciate it thanks!

 

[flintknapper]

Check the area around your radiator cap first. If you see alot of that same residue there, replace cap with OEM.

If nothing found there, check the top portion of the your radiator. The plastic top is crimped in place and has a seal around it (known to leak). Also look for evidence of a 'pin hole' in the upper radiator hose. These usually don't leak until the engine is warmed up. The engine fan appears to be blowing the fluid back onto the engine.

 

[Jae Yu]

Hi thanks for your feedback. I had someone take a peak at the radiator and it seems to be leaking. The upper hose I replaced not too long ago and hope it's not leaking as well...if I were to do a radiator replacement DIY, what additional parts are recommended to replace? Any additional hoses? Thanks so much!

 

[sharkCamo]

You can do upper and lower hoses, new clamps (the clamp for the lower hose to radiator nozzle is larger than the other three), thermostat, thermostat gasket, and thermostat housing (if you feel like it). I would get some coil cleaner to clean out the AC condenser fins while you're there too. Overall it's a really easy job.

 

[sacmaster]

Mine has a slow leak as well. I think I’ve narrowed it down to the bottom of the radiator. Planning to replace soon. 100 recently retired from DD status, so it is a low priority.

 

[sharkCamo]

Here are my parts notes. I just replaced mine a week ago, but I don't think I can recommend the Denso radiator as it seems like there's a small crusty buildup along the upper crimp and my coolant level is slowly going down. I have a 2004. Everything but the coolant and clamps came from Amazon.

Denso 221-3152
Gates upper hose 21660
Gates lower hose 21491
thermostat 90916-03100
thermostat gasket 16346-50010
Zerex Asian 2 gal

slow leak at lower hose clamp at radiator, replaced clamps with MP27048 from O'Reilly (x4)

Also forgot to mention to get a new radiator cap and replace the heater tees.

Here's a big thread discussing the different aftermarket radiators:

Best replacement radiator for the money today...

forum.ih8mud.com