I smelled some coolant as I was driving today and popped the hood to find some coolant on the plastic skirt that is just beneath the radiator. I rubbed my fingers over the bottom of the radiator and it seems to have coolant along the entire lower piece. The drain plug is tight, I can't see any damage, and the upper/lower hoses are secure and not leaking. Is it just time for a new radiator or is there something else I should check?

If it is that time, feel free to post what radiator you are running. I am AC'd so I'm guessing it will have to be a full size??

 

Might be a puncture in the fins.

 

Probably because I can't see anything out of the ordinary. I guess it's time to upgrade.

 

Use some coolant stop leak for a temporary fix.

 

I don't like that stuff because I imagine it get's everywhere in your coolant passages and not just at the leak.

 

your rad probly seperated at the seam where the core meets the plastic bottom tank. it will still look ok but there will be a verry verry thin, long gap that it will steam out of. mine split on the top and i couldnt figure out where it wasnt coming from till it got so bad that i could actually see it spraying out at idle. left me over heated and on the side of the road. as for replacement. I would recomend getting one with welded on metal end tanks.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by grundle &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">your rad probly seperated at the seam where the core meets the plastic bottom tank. it will still look ok but there will be a verry verry thin, long gap that it will steam out of. mine split on the top and i couldnt figure out where it wasnt coming from till it got so bad that i could actually see it spraying out at idle. left me over heated and on the side of the road. as for replacement. I would recomend getting one with welded on metal end tanks.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Exactly what I was going to say, it's not uncommon for Honda radiators to split where the plastic and metal meet. I'd say it's actually pretty easy to see if it does that because there'll be a bright green 'border' running all around the radiator where the plastic and metal meet. You can buy a full-aluminum radiator at radiatorbarn.com and you won't ever have to worry about a split radiator.

 

Looking at either koyo, fluidyne, or mushimoto. Must be split at the bottom because everything is dry up top.