Radiators

Radiator hoses are located on almost all cars in front of the engine block. One hose on top and on on the bottom. Open your hood and look between the top of the headlights, you should see the first one next to the radiator cap. The bottom one you can see under the car, behind the bumper. They are the largest hoses under the hood.

The cost is going to include the going price for the plumber to get to your house. From there, it depends on the issue and the materials and labor time required to fix the problem. If you have any resulting damage, that may require another sort of repair person after the problem is solved.

if the radiator is getting hot enough, yes the white steam is most definitly from the antifreeze. anti freeze gives off a slightly sweet smelling white smoke when burned. You will find the same or similar smoke from your tail pipe if you have a bad headgasket. bad head gaskets can allow coolant into the firing chamber and end up in your exaust.

a radiator for a 2001 ford focus dual overhead cam will cost you 135.16 including taxes at autozone. you can find radiators to about 30 dollars below that on-line or around 50 dollars above that anywhere else if you purchase it at any of your local parts store.

Make sure your boiler (probably in the basement) has water in the glass vial in the front of the unit. For each radiator to work the valve for that respective radiator must be open.(looks like a water knob attached to the pipe leading to the radiator.) For maximum efficiency the vent must be the right size but it was probably installed with the unit propperly.

You remove the lower rad hose and run a hose through the system. GM engineers didn't see fit to put a drain plug in the rad.

While this is the best way to flush the radiator, I wish people on this site would stop saying GM stopped using drainplugs on radiators. Every 99-04 Alero, 97-04 Malibu, 97-2000 Cutlass, and 99-04 Grand Am, has a drainplug on the engine side, driver side of the rad, you turn it to the left w/ a quarter inch ratchet, and the fluid

drains out the hole in the middle of the mount grommet. Also, these cars don't have a cap on the rad, they have a pressure cap on the tank on the pass side fender.

There is no DRAIN PETCOCK on the radiator , You have to pull the lower hose to drain . Thanks GM designers someone asleep at the wheel.

It will bubble (soapy). remove the bottle & wash it out & top it up with the correct coolant before you drive it. If you already have driven it you should get a cooling system flush $50-80.00

Hey Ken==The radiator cap isn't sealing. Replace it. GoodluckJoe

If replacing the radiator cap is not enough then look at your radiator as the problem. Your radiator when the car is running should be the same temperature top to bottom. Run your hand down the radiator (careful you can burn yourself) and see if it is cool toward the bottom. If it is cool at the bottom but hot at the top your radiator is clogged. Flush does not work so save your money. I would start looking online for a new radiator their cheap enough. Good luck.

-mspolyar

If it still vents with a new cap then the excessive pressure could be due to a blown head gasket pushing combustion pressure into the coolant system, if the vehicle has been overheated recently it is a good possibility

I had the same problem. Check your upper and lower radiator hoses. You might also need to replace your thermostat. The thermostat is a spring seal for coolant. These get stuck open and closed often for civics in the 1990's. I had to replace mine 2 times within a month. Part of it was my fault, because i drove it like i stole it. When your engine gets hot, the thermostat opens up and lets coolant in. When it is too cold, it closes and doesn't let coolant into your engine so it will warm up. Your thermostat probably got stuck closed. Also, check the little hose running from the reservoir tank to the radiator, it might be clogged.

It is easiest to remove the thermostat and drain the radiator by removing the lower hose. Dispose of the coolant properly. reinstall the lower hose and run water from the garden hose through the engine with it idleing until it runs clear. Then remove the lower hose to drain the radiator and reinstall the thermostat with the spring toward the engine. Then fill the radiator with coolant and start the engine up and top off the radiator after the thermostat opens. You should end up with about a 50/50 mixture of coolant and water. Good Luck Joe

if it's a bad leak, look with a trouble light. start on the floor, then go straight up from there. try to trace it to the source. otherwise, mechanics use a pressure tester to pump up the system while engine is cool. not exactly a cheap tool and some work far better than others. ( i have one and it's a piece of crap compared to others I've used) don't forget to check the floor under your dash in case your heater core is leaking. if you never see any leaks but you keep having to add coolant, the coolant is going inside your engine, either getting burned with the fuel or it's in the oil. but boy i hope not. check the oil, doesn't look like a chocolate shake does it? as far as fixing, it depends on what's leaking.

I had a 1994 Grand Am SE and it had the same problem. The fan is probaly not working. When you are going down the road, air enters the front of the car and helps cool the radiator and engine down. When it is sitting the fan should come on. It could be a relay, but it probaly the fan. We had the fan replaced and that fixed it. i had that problem too. if you have the know how you can hook up your existing fan straight to the battery to see if it is indeed a relay or the actuall fan. if your fan still works then try the relay. you can also hook up your fan to a toggle switch inside the vehicle, or run it to a switched hot terminal in your fusebox and it will run as long as the car is on. I also had the same problem I just took the fan out cleaned it and oil and greesed up the motor and insie and now it works fine. I had that problem too, I changed the engine coolant, and somehow that fixed the problem.

fixing a leaking hose its a pretty simple task , make sure the replacement matches the old one(shape wise and size) and just remove the old one put in the new one and done. the cost would depend on where you are and where you go.(i wouldn't pay more than $30) the hose it self should be aprox. $10(depending make ,model,year)

Stop leak is a temporary fix. I don't recommend it. Tighten the clamps on the hoses going into the raditor.

The radiator alone, aprox 2 to 3 quarts. The complete cooling system, aprox 10 to 11 quarts.

If the vehicle isn't overheating then it's probably not a blown head gasket. There could be a problem with the oxygen censor.

On the left hand side of the radiator on the bottom. It's hard to get to and make sure you don't lose the drain cock because it is difficult to replace.

bottom driver side of radiator

Buy a good manual. You get what you pay for. If you are going to keep the car, buy a factory manual.

Get new seals for sensors BEFORE you start the job.

Drain the coolant. While the coolant is draining remove fan. Then disconnect all hoses tubes and wires from radiator. (Sometimes hoses must be disconnected before the fan can be removed.) Remove radiator. Transfer any sensors to new radiator and apply seals.

Reverse steps to re-assemble. Do your best to avoid smashing the metal fins on the radiator. Refill with coolant. There is likely a cooling system bleed valve that needs to be opened to let air out. Close bleed valve when coolant comes out. DO NOT OVER TIGHTEN. The bleed valve is usually located by the thermostat housing. Your manual will give you more specifics.

When radiator appears to be nearly full and coolant has come out of bleed valve, start car with rad cap off. Let the car warm up to the point that the thermostat opens. You know this happens when the upper radiator hose starts to get hot. This process can be accelerated by holding the engine RPM at 2,000. After T-stat opens, top off radiator. Fill reservoir to middle of max min marks. Pour water over any areas that have antifreeze on them. Water dries quickly, antifreeze doesn't. This way you can see if there are any leaks after your test drive.

IT'S NOT DONE UNTILL IT IS TESTED PERIOD.

In order to flush the radiator on my 1996 Safari I had to remove the radiator fan cover under the hood (there are 6 bolts holding it in place). You will find a plug on the bottom of the radiator that has to be unscrewed and the old water will drain. I ususally put a hose in the cap and let the engine run (with the heater on) to flush out all the old fluid. Then re-plug the radiator, re-install the fan cover and re-fill with fresh fluid.

Some are hard to get at and are plastic which can break easily so I just remove the lower hose end to drain rad; its easier and faster.

Temp.sending may be bad. BUT FIRST replace Thermastat. That should fix problem.If not then replace Temp.Sending unit. Brett

Radiator fluid or antifreeze as it's called circulates through your heater core under the dash and provides you with heat and warm air for defrost. If you are smelling it inside the car then your heater core may have a leak. IS there any visible signs of leakage on the carpet in the car? The heater core usually has an inlet tube and an outlet tube through the firewall and maybe one of these is leaking. It could be leaking on the outside as well. Look for wetness around any hoses connecting to any tubes coming through the firewall. If you keep having to add antifreeze, you definitely have a leak.

Engine overheats When a car or truck overheats idling, in town, on the highway, while towing, etc. it is important to find out the reason to prevent engine damage. First, with the engine cold, make sure the radiator is full of coolant; if it is low, fill it and keep the radiator cap off while the engine idles to insure all air is bled out of the system ( air trapped in the system can cause overheating also). Check the coolant level daily; if the coolant goes down without visible leaks, it may be a head gasket starting to leak which will also cause the heater to blow cold air due to the lack of available coolant. If the coolant stays full, but the car continues to overheat, the next step is to replace the thermostat in the engine and flush the cooling system if that has not been done over the last few years.Buy a thermostat at a parts store and a PRESTONE flush kit which has excellent directions on the package.After completing these steps and the vehicle still overheats, have your cooling fan sensor/switch ( if equipped)checked out to insure it is coming on. Water pumps are seldom the cause as they are mechanical and will continue to work until their bearings give out. Finally, the radiator itself is often the problem as it tends to build up corrosion internally which prevents it from transfering engine heat to the coolant. Remove it and have it 're-cored'. One of these steps will solve the problem.