Today, i found a leak in my radiator..ive been and had it repaired. Refitted it,, put the water/ anti freeze in/.... let it run with the cap off, for 1/4 hour... until the fans came on.

everything seemed ok, so i drove to work...on the way, i got to the motorway, and then as i put foot down, there was a plume of mist over the front,...immediately pulled over. the top hose had come off, maybe not tightened enough..... i refitted it, and crwled to work.

i efilled it, run it, and found the top left of the rad was roasting, but the bottom left, stone cold.


I took the thermostat out, and the water behind it was roasting... so ive replaced the thermostat,...

ive refitted the new one, but again the top right, is roasting , and the bottom left near the thermostat is cold... the engine temp is showing normal , and fans come on ok.


Question..

which direction does the water flow thru the rad ..is it top to bottom, or bottom from the thermostat to top....

the rad doesnt appear to be blocked.


any body any guidance, as ive got to try and get home...

im thinking of taking the thermostat out, if i do get home,,.. !!!

car is 93 wrx



many thanks


Frank

 

i got home ok, (10miles taking it very easy) ...when i got home i checked the radiator, and it was stone cold...


anybody any ideas please...

how do you clear air locks - could that be the problem??

thanks, Frank

 

ive had this recently Frank, I got round it by running the engine, leaving the cap off and gently squeezing the bottom hose every so often (just be careful if the fans do kick in), make sure your fans are blowing in the car and are set to hot, also make sure the coolant in the reservoir (nr battery is filled to max as well) It does take time, not hard to do just time consuming.

 

out of interest where was the rad leaking from and how did you get it repaired?

 

hiya mate,

thanks for your reply...

the rad was leaking across the bottom three rows - left to rightfrom the thermostat end.

it turned out to be a hole in one of the cores...

there is a place in Widnes (cheshire) called DRS, they specialise in radiator build and repairs...

they did a recore for me, and rebuilt the side due to the usual plastic cracking...




Frank