How do I take out the radiator?

[koda6966]

Never done this before, I'd rather do it right than get halfway into it and end up yelling "AWW SHIT."

So what tools are needed and how do you do it?

 

[koda6966]

So far it looks like one rubber hose and two metal hoses on the radiator that I would have to take off. In order to get it out I would also have to remove the intake and fan shroud, or would I be able to get away with just taking off the shroud and pulling the Radiator strait up?

Is there anything I missed?

 

[kevinsranger]

i think you can take the shroud off the radiator, remove the upper and lower hoses, trans cooler lines, and then unbolt the upper support brackets and lift carefully

 

[BlackBII]

i think you can take the shroud off the radiator, remove the upper and lower hoses, trans cooler lines, and then unbolt the upper support brackets and lift carefully

Just what he said

Shroud
Hoses
Tranny lines
Top Brackets
Lift!

Flathead Screwdriver and 10mm wrench I bet

 

[Psychopete]

Use a line wrench on the transmission lines to the radiator to avoid stripping the hex out with an open end wrench. Don't force anything, it should come out relatively easy.

Pete

 

[BlackBII]

Oh, and a bucket to catch all the AntiFreeze

 

[koda6966]

Use a line wrench on the transmission lines to the radiator to avoid stripping the hex out with an open end wrench. Don't force anything, it should come out relatively easy.
Pete

I don't have a line wrench..

Oh, and a bucket to catch all the AntiFreeze

There's no antifreeze in it. Or whatever is left is extremely diluted. Been running on strait water since spring.

 

[rangerrager]

thats no good for ur core plugs dude

 

[koda6966]

thats no good for ur core plugs dude

I've heard that alot, but I know people that run water year round. (southern)

All they have problems with is the lower boiling point of the water. The "coolant" has a higher boiling point and also less of an ability to cause rust in your vehicle. Now since I was using tap water, the deposits COULD build up, but oh well. Should have went with distilled but once again, that costs too much for the amount I would use. Tap water's free.

Do you think that people put antifreeze in their trucks in the desert? No, they use water or just plain coolant. I wouldn't even have decided to fix the radiator if the leak didn't get worse, and if winter wasn't coming up so I would NEED the antifreeze.

 

[Psychopete]

Just keeping the water from freezing isn't it's only function. Like what you stated, it increases the boiling point, but also has a corrosion inhibitor that keeps the system clean.

Tap water will only make it rust (because it has a bunch of minerals, unlike distilled water), which is going to cause problems down the line. But since you're going to have the radiator out, it might be wroth while to flush the system to try and make sure most of the sediments are out so that the replacement rad doesn't fail prematurely.

Running strait antifreeze is senseless to me. Water has a higher cooling capacity, as well as 50/50 mix being cheaper to run than strait antifreeze. IMO, I don't see any benefit to that at all.

FWIW, Running tap water in a radiator instantly voids the warantee if it's new.

Pete

 

[MAKG]

Line wrenches (also known as BRAKE line wrenches or flare nut wrenches) are rather important here. Make sure it's decent. The cheap wrenches often distort around the nut.

Even if the "coolant" in the radiator is 100% water (which I agree is a bad idea especially in the desert due to the low boiling point), it's still toxic. Save the neighbor's cat a trip under the local apple tree and catch it in a bucket and dispose of it properly.

 

[koda6966]

Even if the "coolant" in the radiator is 100% water (which I agree is a bad idea especially in the desert due to the low boiling point), it's still toxic. Save the neighbor's cat a trip under the local apple tree and catch it in a bucket and dispose of it properly.

That is true.. there probably is a bit of residue left in the water..

And that would be my kitten not the neighbors cat.

I'll do it the RIGHT way and not the time saving way I guess.

 

[koda6966]

Gah. That was hell.

I spend probably a half hour getting the sucker out. Those hoses are tighter than they look & the tranny fluid lines were rusted on.

But here's the good news - I don't need a new radiator! I thought it was cracked because of the amount of leakage, but it was just a lose nut that the PO left on the lower tranny pipe and it loosened over time from my frequent rough backroad trips to my girlfriends. We tightened it, laughed, and then swore like hell when we realized that we put the tranny lines on in the wrong order and the top one wouldn't reach. Then I forgot to put the fan shroud back in it's spot and had to redo that. Ended up popping my air filter and discovering a brand new filter in there. I was happy about that. All in all
I'm pretty darn happy!

Now I just have to find me a oil pan, snowtires, and fix my power steering leak before winter!

 

[funkingonutz]

good luck on that oil pan....i did one on a 94 3.0L and it was PITA
a few hints..... loosen the nut on the passenger side axle beam, stick a bottle jack on the passenger side radius arm... aim jack for frame and crank away until you can wiggle that damn pan out.
this is'nt everything but a few hints, if you want what i did then PM me and ill give you a step by step.......WARNING!!! its a Bitch.

 

[sdjr]

Doh!! He said...

my frequent rough backroad trips to my girlfriends. We tightened it, laughed, and then swore like hell!