Hi. New 348 owner (June '06). First post. After a 15psi test, I have a leaking right hand side coolant radiator. It appears to be leaking from the lower portion of the rad (cracked??), and not from the core itself. The leak is not coming from the upper hoses, the temp sensor, nor the drain plug. Two questions for those more experienced on the ways of a 348: Will I need to remove the oil cooler, which is below (under) the RHS coolant radiator? Can my rad be repaired at a "normal" radiator repair shop, or will I need to buy a new one? ($900. ...ouch) This is a great site, and I've learned much from it. Thanks in advance for your advice.
No you don't have to take the oil cooler out. If my memory serves me correct, it is just attached to the top of the oil cooler via a couple of bolt. Or maybe you will need to take it out. What ever the case it isn't a big deal.
Each 348 radiator core is metal, but the cap on top is plastic. The cap is held on with metal tabs. Just unbolt the radiator (yeah, yeah, OK, unhook the rubber coolant hoses and unbolt the fan first) and straighten the metal tabs to remove the plastic cap. 348 radiators generally spring a leak either through the gasket that rests between the plast cap and metal tank, or right in the metal area of the tabs that hold the plastic cap onto the metal tank. You can make your own gasket with a tube of good gasket-maker if needed, and you can have the metal tab area welded to stop leaks if that's the problem area (Branko had this done locally for his Euro 308). If the metal core itself is leaking, then you are out of my league. I had to replace my left side radiator, in fact, with a new one. The "Stop Leak" magic fixes-in-a-bottle actually do work...short-term, anyway...but for whatever it's worth my experience is that they eventually break down and turn your coolant brown. Likewise, you can have a radiator custom-built to accept your 348's plastic top cap (or you can use different rubber hoses to fit your new metal cap). There's not a lot of top-secret magic going on behind the scenes here. It's a radiator. It's not even the primary radiator. It unbolts with simple hand tools. A screwdriver can unpry the metal lock-tabs to remove the plastic cap for inspection. It's a very straight-forward job to remove, repair, and replace 348 radiators...perfect for one of your first 348 projects if you are a beginner/tinkerer like me. http://www.the348.com/tech/348.html#Water
Thanks for the info No Doubt. ...much appreciated. At this point, I plan to pull both rads (Coolant & Oil) and have them tested/fixed or replaced. I hate doing things twice, so since I'm in the area, both will come out. Thanks again for the advice. Richard '92 348tb
