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Disco radiator change


protoprincess

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Hello :)

Got a 3 door disco which was in a need for a little TLC to get the mot. After everybody else has worked on it from this forum except of me (thank you boys xxx) I did a pre- Ladoga check and I think that the radiator needs replacing. Not sure thou - but got a replacement anyway.

it does not leak but in the lower part there are nearly no fins left - I dont think this is good but really HOW bad is it? Can I drive it and hope for the best?

Imagine thou - I m expecting to do about 2700 - 3500 miles on it in 2 weeks and on russian roads which are horendous and towing a car trailer and being pretty well loaded

But ... If I need to replace it I need to consider that.... I will have to do it on my own as the boys are busy, they will nag if I borrow tools, I have to cook and make coffee at the same time and it must be done latest friday night. (and I am at work during day so it only leaves evnings :( )

I was going to change the rad in Holland but change of plans mean that there is no time to do it there.

So what do you think ?

Thanks

Zuz

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Hi Zuz

GO buy a new rad the two hoses and 4 new clips, bung it in the back, you can always change it some time at one of them F1 pit stops that I guess you are going to make on the travel.

Since your car is the towcar for Mouse it is off rater great importence that you make it and being a towcar it needs a coling system that is in good working order. ;)

As coolant you can use some off the stuff I sent Jez to use in Mouse's system, plain water and 7%-10% off the stuff it will improve heat transfer by 50% in relation to normal rad coolant that are safe down to -20, this will however not be safe if you have frost where you go, but I guess this is not the case :unsure:

Kind regards

Ole.

Ps With regards to how difficult it is, it is hard to say but if nothing goes wrong then I would imagine it's a 1 hour job.

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Ps With regards to how difficult it is, it is hard to say but if nothing goes wrong then I would imagine it's a 1 hour job.

took me 10min to take the rad and intercooler out once i'd got the bottom hose off so 10min to undo the 4 8mm bolts pull the old rad out and put the new one back in bolt back up and put it back in

so an hour should give you plenty of time to do it right.

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I would change now rather than later. Not a dificult job just a bit fiddely. worst bit is getting to the bottom hose clip to undo it.

When my radiator was in a similar state to the way you describe yours I found that even a short steep hill (not towing) would cause the temperature to rise much faster than it should. With the journey you have ahead of you and towing Mouse I don't think it's worth the risk.

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Cheers guys, I know what I am going to be doing tonight then :)

Hi Proto,

regarding the "how bad is it" - the only time i nearly cooked my engine was running a boat up and down the long hills in Dorset whilst taking it from Falmouth to Skye. When i checked the radiator there were nearly 60% of the fins missing around the centre part. Up until that point of running the car hard, the radiator coped with no problem. So im guessing that whether you want to replace it right now depends on how hard your going to make the engine work and how hot the climate is going to be wherever you are going.

As for replacing the radiator, its not very difficult. Hoses can be a pain to get off, just remember when putting the hose clips back on to strategically position the screw heads for easy access (for the next time you need to get them off).

Also, beware you need to disconnect the oil pipes from the RHS of the radiator, so watch for spillage. There are also a couple of o-rings on the end of the oil pipe connectors, try and retain them when you disconnect.

Oh - and some people forget this bit - remember to fill the system back up from the inlet behind the drive belt tensioner first, else you will end up with a nasty airlock!

Hope that helps

Andy

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Changed mine two weeks ago at the side of the road after the core finally died - only real difficulty was the oil cooler adapters didn't want to undo but from the look of the rad its the original. Took about 1 & 1/2 hours or so may have been quicker in daylight tho, I was very pleasantly suprized that everything undid without breaking i took the fan off and fitted a new thermostat at the same time the temperatures been much more consistant since with a much quicker warm up - carrying the fan for now in case she gets warm but have yet to see the guage go over half way even when towing.

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Is it a gen part rad you've got?

Reason I ask is that a lot of places are doing a patern part that has different oil cooler pipe connections - if you get one of those expect to have leaking oil pipes for a very long time untill you finally get it sorted - there's a whole host of problems related to them - postitioning - they are further apart and so dont allow the fitting of the clamp to keep the pipes steady, then the connectors themselves are the wrong internal diameter and are a sloppy fit, combine this with the lack of a clamp and the pipes move and eat through the 'O' rings very quickly (as I found out as mine dumped the contents of the sump on the A66 the other week!). I've solved it now but it was a painfull couple of weeks and I'm still not confident in the things and so check under the bonnet every stop! - not some thing you want to be worrying about on a trip like you have planned!

So, I hope the rad you have is a gen parts one!

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Well the girl is doing briliantly ..... xxx :)

took her for a MOT on Friday and she sailed through, (thanks to Dan - Dirtydiesel, Dave - TSD, and John - Fridgefreezer)

Changed the radiator which really was easy and quick on the night before we left for Russia - decided its better do it where we have the tools...

Left fully loaded and trailer too with Mouse - she is pulling really well after few adjustments. (rushing to load Mouse there was too much nose weight and the tires were too soft :blink: ) luckily Holland and Germany are largely flat so in 5th most of the time between 50mph -60mph, in 4th she does not slow down on hills eighter

So hopefully she will cope well in Russia too !

Thanks guys for advise :)

Zuz

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Hi,

Mine went the same with all the lower fins gone, I left mine and it blew out on a hill in Wales, nursed it back with plenty of water stops and rad weld but ended up having to do the head gasket!!!!!!! My advise DO IT NOW before its too late. Its not a hard job as others have said an hour or so should be plenty of time.

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