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iboughtatahoe23
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Need support. Just found out my radiator is leaking
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iboughtatahoe23
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Alright y’all here’s some pics. Can’t tell exactly where the leaks coming from I added coolant up to the fill line last night after letting it cool down and it looks like it went down a little bit(coolant level). If I squeeze the hoses, the fluid in the reservoir goes up and down, and I don’t see it gushing out anywhere when I squeeze the hoses either so I think that’s a good sign? I’m also curious if I have an oil and trans cooler it looks like I have a trans cooler running directly to the radiator itself. I don’t think I have an oil cooler I could be wrong. I didn’t see any lines running from the engine.
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I'm not familiar with that brand of radiator but be careful what you buy. Some of the aftermarket rads don't have the correct port reduction in the port that connects to the small hose that goes to the surge tank. Measure your old one (with a drill bit?) and compare when you get your new rad. They should be very close in size. If the hole in the new one is larger than the OE one the engine may not warm up correctly. It's been documented in several threads on here.
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iboughtatahoe23
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it looks like my pictures posted in another thread for some reason?
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iboughtatahoe23
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Here’s a link to the radiator photos:
uploading pics on here is kind of a pain in the butt. Anyway, I refilled the tank after letting the engine cooled down last night came back out in the morning and it looks like it went down just a tiny hair. If I squeeze the lines, the fluid in the reservoir will go up and down. So I think that’s a good sign that hopefully the leak is not too big. I was gonna start it up and see if the leak goes out anywhere.
uploading pics on here is kind of a pain in the butt. Anyway, I refilled the tank after letting the engine cooled down last night came back out in the morning and it looks like it went down just a tiny hair. If I squeeze the lines, the fluid in the reservoir will go up and down. So I think that’s a good sign that hopefully the leak is not too big. I was gonna start it up and see if the leak goes out anywhere.
petethepug
Michael
The leak will likely be on the coolant reservoir or plastic portions of the radiator. When they leak it’s typically through a crack.
As the pressure in the system rises and temp heats up the pressurized coolant escapes and vaporizes leaving behind a whitish residue.
Run the truck with a/c on full, lights on and allow it to get hot, but not overheat. You’ll likely find your leak as the temp is creeping up.
As the pressure in the system rises and temp heats up the pressurized coolant escapes and vaporizes leaving behind a whitish residue.
Run the truck with a/c on full, lights on and allow it to get hot, but not overheat. You’ll likely find your leak as the temp is creeping up.
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iboughtatahoe23
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That’s the plan, but I’m just really nervous about accidentally overheating it. Thinking about grabbing a buddy and just having him sit in the driver seat and watch the temp. It hasn’t overheated yet.
petethepug
Michael
Yup, better safe than sorry.
these trucks don't overheat from a small leak, the coolant has to be fairly low like none in the reservoir
if you are trying to find the leak then you need to pull the cover off the top of the radiator support and get a flashlight and start looking around over, under, to the side, etc, etc.
might have to pull the lower splash guard off as well in order to see up in there.
if you suspect the radiator then check the sides really closely, the black plastic end caps are prone to getting a small fracture if there is nothing there then you need to check the metal fins and look for a redish-orange color tint spot, the front can be hard to see so you may have to unbolt the top supports and tilt it back.
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iboughtatahoe23
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Yes, I’ve been watching some videos, but I allotted Saturday to address my gas issue, not being able to pump gas.
Tomorrow though… I’ll have a friend available to sit in the driver seat and then we can figure out where this leak is. He’s pretty good with cars and he can help me get that support off the top of the radiator and what not.
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