308 GT4 Radiator Leak Suggestion

Robert,

That leak may be indicative of other problems with your radiator you are unable to see.

Not a good idea to try a solder repair while on the vehicle.

You probably should remove and have a radiator shop go through it. They will paint it for you at the same time.

Don't know about the A/C condensor removal on that one, however. The GT4 wizards will have to advise you on that.

Best to do it right the first time and not ahve to deal with it again.

 

From tour description it sound like it has been leaking for a while. So based on that it should not be any different then you driving it around town. So I don't think it will be a problem. My 2 cents

 

Take along a gallon of pre-mix Prestone in the trunk and bleed the system every time you start it. After the show and you return home, remove your hood and store it carefully, this will facilitate removal of your radiator to take it to a trusted radiator shop. It's worth the effort and expense to have them work your original radiator.

 

I bought my second 308 as a parts car, so when I decided I could make it a driver and finally have some actual driving fun this summer, I proceeded from an aspect that it did not have to be perfect. One of those items was a leaky radiator. It has green death stains along that same top seem. Its damp/wet, and I can smell coolant when I drive.

But leakage wise its minor. The tank never seems to go down much and I now have put over 1000 miles on the car. But I have driven a lot of crappy cars over the years, and have a lot of experience herding POS cars around with many things not up to par. My experience told me it would not suddenly rupture. Just to be safe I carried along a gallon jug of water. I rank your radiator in about equal status.

Make sure its full up before you leave, as well as that its been running cool, and take along a water jug for just in case. Its not hard to stop along the way and check it. You can get the radiator rebuilt later. On my other radiator they needed to order a new core and it took a week and a half. So whenever I get done taking spins in it, it going up on jack stands for the winter.

 

I agree, carry some spare coolant to the event & then find a good radiator shop.

My luck with re-soldering while in the car has been slim. Usually by the time you get the repair area properly heated up, you melt solder out of somewhere else & things go downhill from there. It can be done with a micro-torch, but needs an experienced hand.

DO NOT use JB weld, while it probably would seal if you had the surface clean bare metal & dry, It's a bear to get off when it's time to do a proper repair. I've got a radiator that someone JB welded & am not looking fwd to trying to remove it.

BTW, you have the opportunity to have it re-cored with a high capacity core. Probably only another couple of hundred or so while you're at it.

 

throw some aluma-seal in there.. that's what I would do. Then when you have time, pull it and replace it with a new radiator or have it repaired by a shop.

Ray

 

Ray is that a product that you put in your radiator through the water system?If so I was told that that stuff catches up with you in time when you want to pull the heads off and makes it very difficult or a you talking about a JB Weld type of profduct?

 

1. Hood comes off
2. Hoses, top and bottom.
3. Bottom valence comes off if you really want to clean up the whole thing
4. Condenser comes off
5. Then radiator comes off.

Take it to a shop and have it rodded, cleaned up and painted for about $100.

 

Robert,
Your car is too nice. Don't screw around by trying to repair it.
I had a leak in mine in almost the exact same place.
I had a new 5 row unit made for $250.
Why take a chance? It isn't big $$.
Replace it.

 

$1400!!! FORGET THAT!!! Try about $700 or so for a new aluminum one from fchat sponsor Nick Forza. That is what i use and my coolant temps came down about 15C on hot track days. Nick's also has a proper air bleed screw and is much lighter than stock, but then some say it holds more fluid so... Due to tracking and the usual track clag and whatnot hitting at over 100mph we added some chicken wire in front of it. See pics below.
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

C'mon this is Robert Garven we are talking to.... Where possible it will stay original. With no cooling issues there is no reason to replace, just have it repaired/repainted.

 

Would have gladly given you my old one before we threw it out. Best bet is probably to have it recored.

 

Rob,
Go to any radiator shop, take in your old one, have them boil out the ends and replace the core with a new one they'll build for you. They'll replace all the fittings on your tanks and you'll have a new radiator with better cooling and still be factory correct to the eye.
Really don't screw with it. Trying a bandaid fix will haunt you forever.

 

.
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Hi Rob
Like you, I prefer to stay original with as many parts as I can. When I bought my car, the first thing we did was get the rad re-cored. Original tanks, frame etc. Can't visually tell it is not original (ok perhaps if you look really closely). CD$500 installed.

So, find a good rad shop, as Dstacy said.

Gerrit

 

Rob, I can understand how you feel. Try Classic Coach in nearby Elizabeth New Jersey at (908) 352-3939. Ask for Rocco. He was able to find a NOS radiator for a friend's 365 GTC/4

Barry

 

classic seam leak very easy to fix. Take radiator out and drop off at any radiator shop to be rodded out. They will pressure test and resolder the copper core for about 150 bucks and respray it black. I've done it a million times. Tell them it is from a fiat.

 

Quit asking around & have it re-cored. These days radiatory shops mostly do commercial and/or high performance car work, so their quality has to be very high or the business goes elsewhere.

Recoring with high capacity cores has been a routine repair for decades, no rocket science, etc. Had it done to my XK150 Jag in '68, made a big difference in cooling.

BTW, Eastwood sells a proper color, thin film/high thermal conductivity satin black radiator paint.

Strange that the shop does gloss, my repairs/recores always came back with the proper satin black.

 

And the last time I did this for an Alfa Romeo, it took 4 hours at the re-core radiator shop.

You could have done it by now.