radiator small leak..replace/repair?

classicalgreen

Active Member
have. an p6b 3500 auto. rad has been reversed flushed with jet pressure washer etc and whole system new hoses etc . using Evans waterless coolant and had a minor leak unable to trace .. so added ( checking first with Evans) that RadWeld was ok to use. seems to stop leak at least for a while!
using car for local runs up to 45/50 mins drive .speeds variable up to 60mph ( villages etc) noticed temp still climbs when in traffic. take ages to cool once above mid point.
car now off road for winter ( as going to service etc) as our car club meets have ended for season.
thus removing bumper to replace bumper Iron rubbers I noticed water along bottom of rad section. checked level and has dropped by about a half to less of an inch.
ergo ..I have still got a leak.possibly explains overheating in traffic! issue now is where to source an uprated auto rad at modest cost ( wife wants divorce if I spent any more on the old girl) there are. 2 rad specialists. with traveling distance to me .
anybody have ideas as to current sort of prices I would be looking at?
seen a guy with a rover Buick engine at car show with fully alloy rad ..impressive but I think price will reflect that!
will start putting coins in a tin now, so hopefully by start of season after xmas I can get it sorted. :) meanwhile do enjoy yours.
 
I had the radiator for my 2200 re-cored earlier this year. Cost a couple of hundred pounds, including VAT. My car is a manual, so no gearbox oil cooler in there, so might be a bit cheaper than one for a V8 auto.
 
Hi, If the rad is having trouble cooling indicates that it's silted up and if it's now got a leak means the rad is not going to get any better. If you decide to get it rebuilt I would suggest a 3 row core to assist with cooling and do a transmission intercooler delete and fit a external cooler, because when that decides to go you end up with water in the gearbox and they don't bear that well and a rebuild will follow.

I don't know where you are but I've heard reports that Aaron radiators in South London are good.

Colin
 
thanks advise. nice idea about external oil cooler . though would have to research effectiveness etc. where to put one being another thing.
there are 2. rad specialist near me Ipswich or Colchester about about 45mins drive. No hurry to get sorted as car will be off road for duration ( probably around march 2019) as I don't use it in foul weather. with a few chores to do on it as well as rad fix, will check out but actually have a spare rad I bought ( used) couple of years ago I had stored back of garage. can't recall if seller said it was. taken form working engine but did say it was ok.
no keen putting it in and finding it too leaks! so will likely save for a few weeks and see if I can get a price from one of the specialists to rework mine.
 
Interestingly there is a Rover (Unipart) Part Number for a radiator sealing pellet, GAC148, and if remember correctly all V8's had one in the cooling system from new.
 
Interestingly there is a Rover (Unipart) Part Number for a radiator sealing pellet, GAC148, and if remember correctly all V8's had one in the cooling system from new.

I wonder if that was to address porous aluminium castings in the heads and block? I Subaru still have their own sealing liquid. I saw one once and it was a relabeled Bars Leaks bottle from the UK. Incidentally the UK bars leaks is much better than the stuff they sell over here in the states.
 
Now you mention it, I think it was a backstop for porosity and Bars Leaks were the supplier. They did a pellet and a liquid version.
 
Try K seal, comes in different specs, even sealed a head gasket on a mates diesel !!! has never failed to work for me.
 
found Wadhams do both exchange unit and uprated £££. so will likely choose an option after my holiday .. ho ho fun owning a rover p6. ..well def fun driving round corners tyre squeal easily and roll can be a bit unsettling! ( even at 20mph)
 
V8 runs a 15PSI cooling system (2 to 3 times most cars of the period). The chances of any gunk sealing it for long are not good.
 
found Wadhams do both exchange unit and uprated £££. so will likely choose an option after my holiday .. ho ho fun owning a rover p6. ..well def fun driving round corners tyre squeal easily and roll can be a bit unsettling! ( even at 20mph)
If that's happening at 20mph I would add new rear springs to the shopping list. That'll help enormously.
 
was a tight turn though I am beginning to suspect ( squeal was front trees) might be. an out of alignment issue with steering ? car shows light damage not front nearside bumper on close inspection though I have no idea if a wing? has been replaced. internally all panel work and frames seem damage free. So possibly a simple check on wheel alignment needed next service . tyres are fairly new all round so no wear. pattern to show defects .
having. checked out external oil coolers versus built in rad one. ( including air.water to oil /brass.aluminium /plastic .numbers of rows etc ) have decided that was was good for over 40 years ought to work for another 40 if I get a decent rebuilt rad! plus cheaper as when you add up costs of reworking .cooler.hoses etc the extra cooling or positive idea of no risk of water in tranny is outweighed by benefits keeping existing set up by BLMC.
an added though there is that the tranny oil cooling is also heated by rad when. first starting off. so making gearbox oil work better at designed temps quicker. so a sort of win win situation.
 
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