Thar She Blows!

ebay ones are good

i can sell you a pro alloy or a forge one if you would like a high end one

Edited by Wolfstone, 27 August 2019 - 06:27 PM.

Thanks all, will do some more research when I'm back home. Is it likely to be something a novice could do or should I get it booked into a garage?

 

Thanks all, will do some more research when I'm back home. Is it likely to be something a novice could do or should I get it booked into a garage?

I've got one fitted, good quality.

Regard fitting, if your handy with a spanner helps, front clam off, rad housing, rad plus lots of fun

 

And also handy with a dremmel/angle grinder!
 

Don't assume it's the rad, the hoses blow off the fittings as well.  It's not the most straightforward DIY job, but it's a lot of labour hours for the many simple parts.  If you have the tools and the patience do it, but as is said above, be prepared for seized fittings.

Last time I lost coolant it was a hose connection issue. Turns out the header tank cap was knackered and pressure built until the weakest point in the system (top hose on the rad) was found.

Thanks all for the advice so far. I've got one of the coolex rads that Wolfstone suggested, and replacement s/s fixings for the clam and radiator - I'll need them as I've had to dremel the heads off 8 bolts so far!

I've run into a snag with the rear radiator housing screws, all 3 are rusted to hell and all immediately stripped with very little pressure. How on earth do I get these off? Access seems ridiculously limited, especially the one blocked by the abs unit, is it a matter of attacking the brackets I can just about reach through the crash box, and is so, which is the best tool for the job? Drill on a flexi?

Edit: obligatory leaking car pic.

Edited by Tinowyn33, 07 September 2019 - 04:42 PM.

remove the old rad from the rad surround and then you will have access to dremel off the rear fixings

So I can just yank it out with those three screws in place?

Last time I lost coolant it was a hose connection issue. Turns out the header tank cap was knackered and pressure built until the weakest point in the system (top hose on the rad) was found.

So I can just yank it out with those three screws in place?

yes the rad can be removed with the rear three screws in place

Figured it out Vocky, thanks, one of the top bolts that I had to dremel off wasn't quite free of the rad, once i pushed it through the problem solved itself.

But thanks to everyone on here, the new radiator is now in place. (sorry if this is a bit pedestrian for you guys, its a massive achievement in my world!)

Was a bit of a tight fit getting the housing back in place (which I'm putting down to build tolerance or my own ineptitude) and I won't know if I've actually been successful until the new coolant arrives Tuesday, but fingers crossed...

Thanks again all, I wouldn't have been able to do this without your knowledge!

Just a quick update for anyone interested, following another week of swearing, disassembly (and reassembly), cutting, and re-bleeding (also some me-bleeding), the car is now back on the road (until tomorrow, when it'll no doubt fail the mot on something nebulous).

The radiator housing being a tight fit should have been a warning sign that something wasn't right - turned out I should have cut back the radiator mounts. The difference in thickness was only a few mill, but enough to throw out the clam fixings; something I'm sure everybody on here (and anyone with an ounce of sense) already knew, but hey-ho.