Why you should never use "Stop radiator Leak"

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Formulaonehd

Formulaonehd

NWZ - The storm is here
Joined
May 22, 2016
Threads
72
Messages
527
Location
Pilbara Region Western Australia
Had just finished replacing oil cooler housing and servicing the oil cooler when doing the rad and engine flush noticed the second flush around (glad I did this as I would have wasted over $100 of Toyota coolant !) that the radiator started leaking .

All of a sudden it all became clear why my housing failed and so much gunk was built up around it ..... radiator stop leak only works to create another problem within the engine . Was also warned numerous times on this forum to stay away from "stop engine oil leak" as well as it can mess up your head gasket and cylinder heads in te process of clogging small leaks .

Users beware I now have to buy a new Ras but I spose it's the original and an aftermarket one will give me peace of mind in the harsh climate that I live in here :)

IMG_1423.webp
 
Apologies for the blurry image it was a snap from a video, I will post up that vid later of the job for those who need tackle it in the future
 
Stop leak has it's place, that place for me is when I'm miles from home, and spring a leak out on the trail. It can save you a BIG tow bill, or even death if you break down in the desert in the summer time, but if i use it, i always plan on doing a complete cooling system flush, and radiator cleaning once i get it home. Plus fixing whatever caused the leak in the first place.
 
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Don't get me wrong guys im sure in the case of saving your ---- out on the tracks that stop leak is a life saver. Im talking more of a cheap fix. I have spent over $500 and hours of my time fixing something the PO did instead of addressing the problem.
Sure if you get home and do a complete engine/rad flush you will be fine but you will still need to fix the problem instead of leaving the stuff in there :)
And yes it was stop leak as radiator specialist has confirmed
 
Try this. Nearly same formula as OEM, comes already mixed so you will likely need 3 @ $16 each. Much less than $100
Zerex Asian.webp
 
Hornd said:
Try this. Nearly same formula as OEM, comes already mixed so you will likely need 3 @ $16 each. Much less than $100
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Nice! that would be great if they sold it on our shelves here :) might be able to order it reasonably cheap
 
NLXTACY said:
Bar's postponed my head gasket replacement for a good two years.
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Same hear, put some bars tablets in my system when I was losing coolant into the oil over 3 years ago. Recently flushed the system to replace PHH saw no issues and still going strong. I realize someday it will fail but that is the day I put a V8 in.
 
Pascoscout said:
Same hear, put some bars tablets in my system when I was losing coolant into the oil over 3 years ago. Recently flushed the system to replace PHH saw no issues and still going strong. I realize someday it will fail but that is the day I put a V8 in.
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So is this the gasket sealer? does that stuff target the rear main bearing as well for leaks?
 
Formulaonehd said:
So is this the gasket sealer? does that stuff target the rear main bearing as well for leaks?
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Formulaonhd the answer to your question is NO, radiator stop leak will not stop a rear main seal ( your post listed it as a rear main bearing leak) from leaking. Now if you have what you think is a rear main seal leak, before you start spending any money you need to do some research first, to pin point where the leaks coming from. I see that you live in western Australia, so the rest of my post only applies if your truck is a model year 93, to 97 with a 1FZ gas engine. More then once a Mud member though they had a rear main seal leak, only to find out later it was the upper oil pan arch gasket leaking, or even a valve cover gasket leak.

Now don't get me wrong, none of these problems are any fun to fix, but if your paying someone else to do the work for you, there's a big difference in labor cost. I'm only going to list the items in this thread needed to do a rear arch seal, or the rear main seal. A oil pan arch leak means you'll need to unbolt your motor from the motor mounts, and jack it up a few inch's in order to get clearance to remove the upper oil pan. Then you'll need to remove the starter motor, maybe the fan shroud along with the fan clutch plus a few other parts and pieces. Then both the lower, and upper oil pans can be unbolted and removed. But a rear main seal means the removal of your rear drive shaft, transfer case, transmission, torque converter, flex plate, along with a few other odds and ends. I'm sure someone else will jump in here and point out a few other steps i forget to list, but i think you now get the idea that not knowing where a oil leaks coming from, can make a BIG difference in the labor cost, along with the work needed to repair it. I hope this help. Cheers
 
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Rifleman said:
Formulaonhd the answer to your question is NO, radiator stop leak will not stop a rear main seal ( your post listed it as a rear main bearing leak) from leaking. Now if you have what you think is a rear main seal leak, before you start spending any money you need to do some research first, to pin point where the leaks coming from. I see that you live in western Australia, so the rest of my post only applies if your truck is a model year 93, to 97 with a 1FZ gas engine. More then once a Mud member though they had a rear main seal leak, only to find out later it was the upper oil pan arch gasket leaking, or even a valve cover gasket leak.

Now don't get me wrong, none of these problems are any fun to fix, but if your paying someone else to do the work for you, there's a big difference in labor cost. I'm only going to list the items in this thread needed to do a rear arch seal, or the rear main seal. A oil pan arch leak means you'll need to unbolt your motor from the motor mounts, and jack it up a few inch's in order to get clearance to remove the upper oil pan. Then you'll need to remove the starter motor, maybe the fan shroud along with the fan clutch plus a few other parts and pieces. Then both the lower, and upper oil pans can be unbolted and removed. But a rear main seal means the removal of your rear drive shaft, transfer case, transmission, torque converter, flex plate, along with a few other odds and ends. I'm sure someone else will jump in here and point out a few other steps i forget to list, but i think you now get the idea that not knowing where a oil leaks coming from, can make a BIG difference in the labor cost, along with the work needed to repair it. I hope this help. Cheers
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Thanks for the response rifleman i think you will find though i wasnt tackling a job for the rear main bearing. I was commenting on how stop rad leak can destroy your oil cooler housing like it did mine. Someone else mentioned they use stop oil leak and i was curious as to whether it targets the rear main bearing seal . But again appreciate that input especially the second part which i will be mindful of when tackling those jobs in the future when they present themselves :)
 
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