Original radiator split at the top. I might not have noticed in time if I hadn't been in the habit of popping the hood 1-2x/week in order to connect a Battery Tender to keep it topped up; coolant was everywhere.
Fortunately I already had on hand:
- Radiator
- Shroud
- Hoses & clamps
- T-stat
- Overflow reservoir
- Coolant
- Tees
I got every coolant hose replaced except for 1) the rearward one that exits the oil filter housing and 2) the small one that exits the thermostat housing. (Yep, the ones under the car got replaced as well). Since I had all of that room under the hood, I replaced spark plugs and PCV valve/hoses, and flushed the two heater cores with distilled water and a modified garden sprayer. Also, I used a can of foaming coil cleaner to make sure that the AC condenser coil and the trans cooler coil were both clean, since it's hard to do this when the radiator is in the way.
Old radiator looked great right up until the end. (2nd pic) I'm glad that it happened at home, I really would have kicked myself if it happened on the road.
And I'm *especially* glad that I used a venturi vac filler to fill the system with coolant, because I had a leak; the new thermostat wasn't seated square in its housing (1st pic). Better to have to figure out why it wouldn't hold a vacuum, than to have to figure out why coolant went everywhere! That was a quick fix. Venturi filler also made easy work of actually filling the system; even after having drained the block there was no burping needed, and no adding coolant after cooldown.
*images snipped*
