20PPV
TYF Newbie
Just thought I’d share my experience. Just purchased a 2020 Tahoe ppv (ex Texas Highway Patrol Tahoe) 142k miles. So far I have replaced both motor mounts, spark plugs, Wires, trans fluid and filter change, oil change. Good to go… or so I thought. I noticed a drip drip drip after a drive and the smell of coolant. I found the drip coming from the plastic tank on the driver side of the radiator. I assumed it was cracked so I ordered a replacement plastic tank from a company in Dallas for $30 dollars. Upon further inspection a few days later I noticed the leak was coming from the top of the radiator core where one of the passageways meets the end cap (slash circled in red). I decided to pry the plastic tank off and used a MAP pro torch and a low temp aluminum brazing rod to “weld” the gash up. I was going to also replace the plastic tank with the new one however I ended up ordering the wrong size (2 1/8in wide) and my radiator tank was 2 3/4im wide. So I used some permatex water pump and thermostat etc silicone to dress the old gasket and reused the old plastic tank. This is my first time trying to fix a radiator. I am leaving it over night so the permatex will dry properly and tomorrow I will apply vacuum to see if it is all sealed up. Will update. I briefly considered buying a new radiator. And then I saw that an oem one cost $600 at the dealer. $450 at rock auto and while that is less than at the dealer. That is STILL $450. so if this works I will have cost me about $20 for the fix. Fingers crossed
