Jeep Wrangler Forum banner

Time For a New Radiator

2K views 13 replies 9 participants last post by  Jerry Bransford 
#1 ·
The time has come to replace my factory radiator, and to tell you the truth it has lastly me a lot longer then excepted. Its a 2000 2.5L with 104xxx miles on it and after doing research on TJ radiators i thought it would go at 80xxx at the most. But anyways started to notice i was going thought way to much coolant and noticed leaks where the upper part of the radiator is clamped on. When i noticed this I came to the conclusion that i need to invest in a new radiator, and i also thought it doesn't look that complicated to install a new radiator. So did some research on this forum and found that its not that difficult at all to do if you have some mechanical skills. So i just purchased a new Metal 3 Core Radiator form Radiator Burn and am excited to take this task on. This will be the first Radiator that i ever replaced and was wondering from you guys and ladies that have completed a job like this if you have any pointer for me to make this job go smoothly?
 
#7 ·
It depends on exactly what you are doing when you change the radiator. The approximate dilution you need is 50/50 in the entire system.

If you are just replacing the radiator, when you disconnect the hoses, a lot will drain out but there is still an amount of 50/50 that will remain in the block. You want to fill with 50/50 so either dilute the 100% antifreeze before filling or buy prediluted (cheaper to buy 100% and dilute yourself).

It's best if you flush all the old coolant out (how old is it?). You can do that buy connecting hose connections to the heater hoses and running it through the system.

With regards to green, and this will spark all sorts of debates, yes YOU CAN use Prestone any color antifreeze with whatever is in there.

Buy a tester. It has a bulb and will measure the boil/freeze points. Test what in the radiator after several heat/cool cycles.

It also depends on where you are located if you need the -34 freeze protection. Straight water actually cools better but you do need corrosion inhibitors in anti freeze or other off the Shelf additives.

If you flush, there will be more straight water in the block, so you need to add more 100% anti freeze. Again you want your net mixture to be 50/50. Don't forget to fill the overflow tank.

I just replaced my radiator last weekend. I flushed the system and added two gal of Prestone and the rest was filled with water. According to the tester, it was right on the money.
 
#5 ·
Most antifreeze products are mixed with water, and make sure to ONLY use distilled water you can find at your local grocery store... don't use tap water. Some antifreeze products are premixed with water, just look at the bottle to see what is what. If you mix it yourself, which is cheaper, 50:50 is the preferred ratio.
 
#6 ·
Prestone is doing a deal with seemingly every Autozone where the premixed fluid is on sale for roughly $12.

I got the pre-mixed anti-freeze, the flushing super cleaner and a scraper/brush combo for $21. Fine by me!
That is my next task. Sometime over my break. Get off work tom. at lunch! come on clock!
 
#8 ·
Prestone is doing a deal with seemingly every Autozone where the premixed fluid is on sale for roughly $12.

I got the pre-mixed anti-freeze, the flushing super cleaner and a scraper/brush combo for $21. Fine by me!
That is my next task. Sometime over my break. Get off work tom. at lunch! come on clock!
Just bought anti-freeze at Autozone. Got the 'mix it yourself' type which was cheaper than the premixed. Why anyone would buy premixed instead of the other is beyond me. You get twice as much for less money. Go figger.
 
#10 ·
URascal said:
Just bought anti-freeze at Autozone. Got the 'mix it yourself' type which was cheaper than the premixed. Why anyone would buy premixed instead of the other is beyond me. You get twice as much for less money. Go figger.
Because they are lazy and don't wanna be bothered with mixing it themselves. I'm due for a radiator swap myself, as mine is leaking at the top at the normal spot. It's a fairly easy job, as I had to pretty much remove it to replace my AC condenser coil that was jabbed by a stick. Now that was a bitch, mostly getting the old one out. Radiator wasn't leaking then, though lol
Good luck!
 
#11 ·
Because they are lazy and don't wanna be bothered with mixing it themselves. I'm due for a radiator swap myself, as mine is leaking at the top at the normal spot. It's a fairly easy job, as I had to pretty much remove it to replace my AC condenser coil that was jabbed by a stick. Now that was a bitch, mostly getting the old one out. Radiator wasn't leaking then, though lol
Good luck!
I figured it would be better because it was pre-mixed at 50-50 and I wouldn't have to worry about it. Its not that big of a deal to pour in half a bottle then half water , but why not just pour in one bottle and be done with it ?

There's a thin line between lazy and convenient....

Would someone be lazy if they bought a gallon of margarita mix with tequila already added into it ?
I certainly don't think so.
 
#13 ·
Old post I dug up here, but if I JUST wanted to replace the upper radiator hose (shows signs of bulging on the engine side), please tell me it would not necessitate me draining the entire system before doing so? If the engine is cold, should I be worried about tons of spillage?
 
#14 ·
Yep you can just change the upper hose without needing to drain the entire thing, go for it. You won't lose that much coolant. If you don't know what type of coolant/antifreeze is in there, I would just replace the lost coolant with distilled water until you replace all the coolant with a known type... with Zerex G-05 being a very good choice.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top