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PostPosted: Mon Sep 22, 2008 9:57 pm 
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Location: Pittsburg, KS 6662
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Hey guys, this is on my '89.

I have an all metal radiator and it has sprung a leak at the neck where the cap is and where the neck is for the overflow tube. I got a quote for $50 from a local radiator shop to solder it shut but that seems awfully expensive for a small leak.

I was wondering what I could do to fix this myself? I'm tempted to use some "steel" putty (the kind that comes in a little roll in a plastic tube that you cut of a chunk and knead it to activate it) to fix it and be done with it.

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-1989 Buick LeSabre T Type: 220k miles
-1987 Fiero GT: 224k miles
-2012 Honda Civic (boring, but its a good DD)


Last edited by Alibi on Thu Oct 02, 2008 3:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Mon Sep 22, 2008 11:19 pm 
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JB Weld? If worse comes to worse, you can try it and if it doesn't work, then have the shop do what needs to be done.

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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Tue Sep 23, 2008 8:19 am 
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If you try the JB weld and it doesn't seal, it will probably be a lot more difficult and expensive to get it repaired by soldering. For either soldering or JB weld to work, you will want to make sure the crack and the area around it are clean, bright, and degreased with brake parts cleaner or some other good solvent.

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Last edited by bill buttermore on Tue Sep 23, 2008 8:20 am, edited 1 time in total.

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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Tue Sep 23, 2008 9:03 am 
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From my experience, it is a lot less headache just to replace it. I had a leak there at the neck and then about 3 months later it cracked and started leaking at the upper hose. A short time after that, the lower started leaking. I think with a radiator that old, it is starting to wear thin.


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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Tue Sep 23, 2008 10:56 am 
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Location: Pittsburg, KS 6662
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Hmm... maybe I'll go ahead and do the JB weld and if that doesn't hold then I'll just replace the radiator. The whole thing looks like its made out of copper so if I junk it I'm sure it would fetch a pretty penny. I can find newer radiators out of junkyards with the plastic tanks for cheap around here. I found a very new looking radiator in a newer Olds 88 last year, yanked it, had it flushed and replaced the cooler fittings, and dropped it into my sister in laws '90 LeSabre.

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"Energy and Persistence Conquer all Things" --Benjamin Franklin
-1989 Buick LeSabre T Type: 220k miles
-1987 Fiero GT: 224k miles
-2012 Honda Civic (boring, but its a good DD)


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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Wed Sep 24, 2008 4:47 pm 
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Does your T have the Heavy Duty Cooling? With the oil cooler? And Dual Fans?


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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Wed Sep 24, 2008 6:22 pm 
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Yeah, at least it did from the factory. I've never been able to fit in the second fan since I've swapped over to the Type II ignition and one of my trans lines is bent in the way (will be resolved when I get a trans cooler).

I'm not sure if I have the original radiator or not though... the one thats in there is HUGE though and I like it that way.

Not sure on the oil cooler though, where would that be located?

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"Energy and Persistence Conquer all Things" --Benjamin Franklin
-1989 Buick LeSabre T Type: 220k miles
-1987 Fiero GT: 224k miles
-2012 Honda Civic (boring, but its a good DD)


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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Wed Sep 24, 2008 6:41 pm 
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If it has an Oil cooler it will have oil lines on the drivers of the radiator..

Let me back up... Which T is this... If its the 88 that could have been a mixed year..

But in any event, if it has the oil cooler those lines will be on the drivers side of the radiator, and the tranny lines will be on the passenger side of the Radiator..


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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Wed Sep 24, 2008 6:52 pm 
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No, it just has the trans cooler lines on the PS. This is for the '89.

The oil cooler must be the line that forms kind of a sideways triangle in front of the radiator behind the grille.

An oil cooler though, eh? Would there be any benefit to using a B&M cooler spliced into that triangle behind the grille? :P

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"Energy and Persistence Conquer all Things" --Benjamin Franklin
-1989 Buick LeSabre T Type: 220k miles
-1987 Fiero GT: 224k miles
-2012 Honda Civic (boring, but its a good DD)


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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Wed Sep 24, 2008 7:08 pm 
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That line is the Power steering cooler iirc..

You may not have the oil cooler.. But thats ok you can still easily use the HD radiator


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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Wed Sep 24, 2008 7:29 pm 
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We'll see if it comes to that. Heres a shot of where its leaking from... just follow the trail of (I assume) calcium deposits up to the cap...

Image

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"Energy and Persistence Conquer all Things" --Benjamin Franklin
-1989 Buick LeSabre T Type: 220k miles
-1987 Fiero GT: 224k miles
-2012 Honda Civic (boring, but its a good DD)


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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Wed Sep 24, 2008 8:06 pm 
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wow, that radiator looks rather weathered, i would just replace it personally...

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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Thu Sep 25, 2008 11:03 am 
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If I were going to solder that, I'd want to drain the radiator and remove it from the car to wirebrush the area clean and heat it up with a torch to get the solder to flow. I think a good solder job would fix it, but the labor involved would definitely be worth $50 of my time if I was doing it. I don't think $50 is charging too much for it.

That being said, I'd price out a new radiator, because if they're in the $200 ballpark, you're already 25% there with the cost of the repair. Your car is around 20 years old, so at $200 figure a new radiator costs you $10 a year. If the repair lasts 5 years, do you really want to spend another $200 in five years after spending $50 now, or would you rather spend $200 now and not have to worry about it for another 20 years?

These are just statistics, individual experiences will vary, but it's often how I rationalize fixing things on my car right the first time. in the end, it just plain costs less and lasts longer.

I would never get a radiator from a junkyard, in my opinion it's just a gamble with whatever money you spend on it. Unless you enjoy replacing radiators on your weekends, I'd go with new, and spend the time saved with my kids.

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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Thu Sep 25, 2008 12:11 pm 
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GoldenBullet wrote:
wow, that radiator looks rather weathered, i would just replace it personally...

Agreed!! If the outside is any indicator of what the INSIDES look like, I'd replace that radiator in a heart beat. It just doesn't pay to remove and clean/fix the old one. Also, IF you do go thru the expense of replacing the old radiator, I would go the extra "50 cents" and replace the upper and lower radiator hoses as well if they are more than 5 years old. Oh what the heck, throw in a radiator cap and thermostat too. It's only your money.

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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Thu Sep 25, 2008 12:18 pm 
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Hmm... good arguments. I could do my cooler while I'm at it too...

If I remember right, there was a radiator that was double walled or something that came off a different car. Which one should I go with and can I source it from RockAuto? I need a couple other little things while I'm at it.

I did try a little patch of the kneadable "steel" stuff last night and it did slow the leak down a good deal but I think I would have to cover the whole seam around the neck to completely stop it. Not worth the time IMO if the radiator is just shot.

What about flushing the entire system to get debris and junk out after I yank the radiator? A garden hose work?

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"Energy and Persistence Conquer all Things" --Benjamin Franklin
-1989 Buick LeSabre T Type: 220k miles
-1987 Fiero GT: 224k miles
-2012 Honda Civic (boring, but its a good DD)


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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Thu Sep 25, 2008 12:24 pm 
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Alibi wrote:
What about flushing the entire system to get debris and junk out after I yank the radiator? A garden hose work?


HA! :laughing3: That "debris and junk" is probably plugging up most of your leaks! I think your radiator is on borrowed time and will give you a problem when you least want it to. :sad:

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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Thu Sep 25, 2008 12:29 pm 
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I'm just thinking ahead for After the old radiator is out. I'm sure theres going to be crap floating around in the system anyway and I wouldn't want to just introduce that to whatever new radiator I end up with.

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"Energy and Persistence Conquer all Things" --Benjamin Franklin
-1989 Buick LeSabre T Type: 220k miles
-1987 Fiero GT: 224k miles
-2012 Honda Civic (boring, but its a good DD)


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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Thu Sep 25, 2008 12:54 pm 
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http://www.pontiacbonnevilleclub.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=106

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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Thu Sep 25, 2008 1:03 pm 
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Oh, right... I guess I should have searched first then :P

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"Energy and Persistence Conquer all Things" --Benjamin Franklin
-1989 Buick LeSabre T Type: 220k miles
-1987 Fiero GT: 224k miles
-2012 Honda Civic (boring, but its a good DD)


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 Post subject: Re: Leaking Radiator
PostPosted: Thu Sep 25, 2008 5:55 pm 
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From this picture it doesn't even look like that is the right radiator. Unless this cover is just laying there, the notch should actually hold the radiator by the lip where the tank and core come together.

Image

I know it is my 89 Bonneville, but most radiator supports I have seen look more like this:

Image


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