radiator out; now what?
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 3,268
Likes: 2
From: Minnesota in the summer, Las Vegas in the winter
radiator out; now what?
I did the radiator thing today; took me two hours to get it out, mostly due to those little 7mm screws in the shroud way down low. Now that I have cleaned up everything, should I take it to a radiator shop to have them thoroughly clean it out? I don't think I can get it clean enough by hand and as long as it's out I want to do it right. For some of you this may be a simple project but for those of us who are mechanically challenged, we don't want to do this again..... anything else to do while I have it torn down this far? :rolleyes:
Le Mans Master
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 7,858
Likes: 2
Re: radiator out; now what? (brdd)
If it were me I would just straighten all the fins (looooong job), get the tiny pebbles dislodged that are most likely stuck all up in between fins everywhere, and rinse it down good (low pressure) after maybe spraying it down with some sort of cleaning solution that is safe for aluminum. Unless you're talkiong about the inside of it. I don't think stuff like deposits and such can be gotten out of the inside safely without causing other problems.
This is just what Iwould do.
Or you could just buy a new one as mentioned above if that's all they cost.
[Modified by Lone Ranger, 5:36 PM 8/15/2002]
This is just what Iwould do.
Or you could just buy a new one as mentioned above if that's all they cost.
[Modified by Lone Ranger, 5:36 PM 8/15/2002]
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 5,320
Likes: 4
From: Kyle TX (Because Mojo Made me fill it in)
Re: radiator out; now what? (brdd)
http://www.radiators.com has new ones pretty cheap if you dont want to spend time cleaning.
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 3,268
Likes: 2
From: Minnesota in the summer, Las Vegas in the winter
Re: radiator out; now what? (VetteNoob)
I degreased the radiator and pressure sprayed it with hot water; looks great and I got about half a pound of sand out of it; reinstalled and everything works fine. Total time: under four hours. If I can do this anyone can. Ever notice how, when you do a job like this you always come up with at least one extra screw or bolt or nut?.......... no substitute for proper tools! They're worth every penny! :yesnod:
Advanced
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 74
Likes: 0
From: Kennesaw GA
Re: radiator out; now what? (brdd)
I just cleaned mine with my pressure washer, got the big chunks out, and re-installed. Temps went from 230 to 190. Unless there is a leak, not much needs to be done. You can be somewhat **** and remove every small piece of debris, but the value added doesn't make up for the time spent (my humble opinion). Oh - forget the two small screws when you reinstall - again, value added doesn't equal time spent.
Pro
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 646
Likes: 0
From: Alexandria Va
Re: radiator out; now what? (92_Polo_Pilot)
You don't have to forget the screws, just flip the screw insert over, and you can re-stall them from under the car right by the air dam. Then you don't have to worry about having a stack of "extra" pieces. :yesnod:
Team Owner
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 44,773
Likes: 1
From: 63.8% of all statistics are made up on the spot.
St. Jude Donor '08-'10
Re: radiator out; now what? (Lone Ranger)
If it were me I would just straighten all the fins (looooong job), get the tiny pebbles dislodged that are most likely stuck all up in between fins everywhere, and rinse it down good (low pressure) after maybe spraying it down with some sort of cleaning solution that is safe for aluminum. Unless you're talkiong about the inside of it. I don't think stuff like deposits and such can be gotten out of the inside safely without causing other problems.
This is just what Iwould do.
Or you could just buy a new one as mentioned above if that's all they cost.
[Modified by Lone Ranger, 5:36 PM 8/15/2002]
This is just what Iwould do.
Or you could just buy a new one as mentioned above if that's all they cost.
[Modified by Lone Ranger, 5:36 PM 8/15/2002]
That's what I did.
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Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 4,763
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From: Connectivette
Re: radiator out; now what? (joecaver)
I did mine last week. With a garder hose (without nozzle) I hosed one side of the radiator and watched black crap come out the other side. Then turned it around and hosed it back. Did this maybe 3 times on each side. Then I repeated this process with an air hose. Temps dropped 10-15 degrees :eek: