balgobin24

First off guys, I'm new to the site so here's my quick story. Decided to flush my coolant out and replace a leaking upper hose. All went well until there was excessive air in the system after multiple attempts of bleeding the system. So I said whatever tomorrow I'll just do the entire process again. So here's where all hell broke ..

While removing the drain plug, half of the plug actually got stuck inside the drain hole and I decided to use a screw extractor.

The result of such had me ending up with a damaged drain hole with no threading. SO NOW I HAVE TO REPLACE THE RADIATOR !!!

Anyone ever replaced their radiator and how much did it cost?

blnewt

iTrader: (13)

Might try a radiator repair shop first, might not be nearly as much as you think.

bigc

iTrader: (5)

Sorry that you're going through this. If you can't get a shop to repair your current radiator, you can get higher capacity aluminum radiators for $250-325. OEM replacement radiators can be found for $150-$200. You can probably do better than these prices, but these are the ranges I've seen over the years. Swapping out a radiator is pretty straightforward, but as you've experience, bleeding the air out of the system is a pain. Get a Lisle spill free funnel - makes bleeding air out much easier and less messy.

UCLAG37

I second that recommendation for a Lisle funnel kit. Used it for flush/drain on my G and my friend's G as well with no bleeding issues. Swapped out both upper and lower hoses too.

UCLAg37

balgobin24

Even with the spill free funnel my car was just giving me headaches. I located all the air relief plugs and properly filled coolant until it was coming out of both air relief plugs but still ended up with too much air.


Contacted the local mechanic and he was charging me nearly $800 for replacement and install.

Black Betty

iTrader: (60)

If you have a 6MT, here's a very affordable upgrade.

https://www.myg37.com/forums/private...6-mt-only.html

balgobin24

However, I didn't note that I have a 5AT. Purchased a TYC radiator today, not sure if anyone has ever heard of this company before. Cost was about 270.

Black Betty

iTrader: (60)

TYC is a large company that makes many OEM radiators.

m3clubracer

Always upgraaaayyyed! Get away from plastic and go aluminium all the way! Worth it in the long run. I know, I had 3 radiators in my E39 540. The last was to sell that pig.

JSolo

iTrader: (14)

I used this last time I did the coolant. The entire refill process took about 5 minutes, no bleeding involved, no air relief plugs to contend with. This is the same tool shops/dealers use to refill a system without having to waste time bleeding it. A compressor is required. A lisle bleed funnel is what, $30-40 depending where you buy it? This is 4x more, but gets the job done in 1/10th the time Money well spent IMO.

Why did you decide on emptying the radiator a second time?

m3clubracer

If you drive the car (which you should to test for leaks) and get the RPM's up above 3k a couple of times it will burp itself. Water wetter is also a good item to use if you track. I even use it in my street cars.

Black Betty

iTrader: (60)

How does this work? How does the trapped air escape the cooling system by driving it over 3K?

m3clubracer

Oh forgot the most important part! After flushing out all the air by revving engine (parts of the engine will have trapped air in it) you will need to remove the rad cap and refill. Providing the cap is cool and the cars front is higher than the rear while cooling.

balgobin24

There was just alot of air in the system, I knew this because all I could hear was a water gushing sound in my air vents.

JSolo

iTrader: (14)

^^I know what that sounds like. Did a cooling flush in a car few years back and could never bleed it thoroughly with the lisle funnel.

Btw, instructions usually say to turn the heater control to the highest temperature possible. This opens the valve controlling coolant flow to the heater core.