timitsoo Posted March 15, 2009 Share Posted March 15, 2009 Hello, I have a leaky radiator on my 90 legacy wagon. I was going to swap it out but never having done so, I was looking for some advice or anything important I need to know before jumping into it. So, let me know anything necessary to making sure I get this job done correctly. Should I got to a wrecking yard or buy a radiator on-line, or what? Help!! lol I guess I'll have to buy a manual, but am not happy about it being that they charge 24.99 for them. ugh. Any chance someone can send me an Adobe file with the instructions on how to do this work? Thank you if so. And, thank you all in advance for any help offered. Timitsoo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Platinum_Racing Posted March 16, 2009 Share Posted March 16, 2009 Radiators are easy. Make sure to use the driain plug ro drain out all the fluid before you take off any hoses. Do this with the engine cool of course. If it's an auto you're going to lose some tranny fluid because of the transmission coolant lines that go into the bottom of the radiator, so you're gonna want to buy some before you start the swap. Put the electric fans on before you get the radiator in the car. If you get one from a junkyard make sure you take it and run some water through it before you install it. Just take a garden hose and spray it out before you put it in. Who knows what kind of gunk there might be inside a used radiator. Make sure not to get any water in the transmission side of the radiator though, you don't want that moisture anywhere near your tranny fluid. When filling the radiator, make sure to use the right ratio of antifreeze/water. You can also buy the premixed stuff, but you're gonna need more of it since you won't need to add your own water. The owners manual will have the capacity of the coolant system. Fill the radiator with the car off, then with the cap removed, start the car and let itwarm up and idle while you top it off... You might need to top it off a few times to get all that coolant through the engine. The fluid won't enter the engine until the thermostat opens (Once the engine has warmed up) so let it get up to operating temp before you finish topping it off. The coolant won't shoot out at you if the cap is off when it warm up because it's not a closed system. If you let the engine get hot wih the cap on you'll get a facefull of coolant when you remove the cap to top it off. Also, make sure the tranny coolant lines are secured VERY TIGHTLY to the radiator. Ususally the barbs that the lines go on are metal, so don't feel bad about torquing those hoseclamps down real tight. There's alot of pressure in those lines, and they WILL blow off if they're not tight. I've learned this from experience... More than once. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timitsoo Posted March 16, 2009 Author Share Posted March 16, 2009 Radiators are easy. Make sure to use the driain plug ro drain out all the fluid before you take off any hoses. Do this with the engine cool of course. If it's an auto you're going to lose some tranny fluid because of the transmission coolant lines that go into the bottom of the radiator, so you're gonna want to buy some before you start the swap. Put the electric fans on before you get the radiator in the car. If you get one from a junkyard make sure you take it and run some water through it before you install it. Just take a garden hose and spray it out before you put it in. Who knows what kind of gunk there might be inside a used radiator. Make sure not to get any water in the transmission side of the radiator though, you don't want that moisture anywhere near your tranny fluid. When filling the radiator, make sure to use the right ratio of antifreeze/water. You can also buy the premixed stuff, but you're gonna need more of it since you won't need to add your own water. The owners manual will have the capacity of the coolant system. Fill the radiator with the car off, then with the cap removed, start the car and let itwarm up and idle while you top it off... You might need to top it off a few times to get all that coolant through the engine. The fluid won't enter the engine until the thermostat opens (Once the engine has warmed up) so let it get up to operating temp before you finish topping it off. The coolant won't shoot out at you if the cap is off when it warm up because it's not a closed system. If you let the engine get hot wih the cap on you'll get a facefull of coolant when you remove the cap to top it off. Also, make sure the tranny coolant lines are secured VERY TIGHTLY to the radiator. Ususally the barbs that the lines go on are metal, so don't feel bad about torquing those hoseclamps down real tight. There's alot of pressure in those lines, and they WILL blow off if they're not tight. I've learned this from experience... More than once. Thank you very much. Very helpful information for me being a bit of a newbie to subie radiator. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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