Replacement radiator

So, stopped for gas today, and I noticed my fan motor running. The A/C was off, no defrost running, weird.

 

Turned the Torque app on my phone, and temp was warm (204*), but not scary.

 

Drove the 5 miles home, peaked at my phone again, temp was now up (after slow driving in 45* air) to 212*.

 

I sat in the drive with the car idling for a few, shut down when the temp reached 224*. As soon as I opened the door to exit, I got that sickening sweet antifreeze smell. Popped the hood, and there was a bit of coolant on the driver side frame and front of the engine...definitely not where it belongs.

 

 

The car has 106000 miles on stock radoator, so it owes me nothing, but I'm struggling to find a replacement. Does anyone make a good radiator for the 5th gen GTs?

 

I have a road trip this weekend, so I hope to have something by then, but will take my wife's car if waiting means I get something better.

 

Thanks for the help.

 

 

 

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http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/mishimoto-sti-08-radiator-install-255262.html

 

if the fitment is correct any 08+ sti radiator will work, probably wrx as well, so look for an aftermarket unit for the STI.

:lol:Yeah considering that OEM is more expensive, you might as well upgrade.

CSF, Koyorad or Mishimoto would be the aftermarket performance options.

I just had my radiator replaced.. wasn't the radiator. Head gasket. I had the same presentation; radiator fluid sprayed in the drivers-side engine area.

I hope its just the radiator.

Please update demographics so that we know your vehicle model.

 

good luck

So, the story continues. Stopped by Subaru today and picked up two gallons of Subaru blue coolant to top off my old system to look for symptoms before blindly tossing money.

 

First off, the temp never spiked past 208*, even after idling constantly for 30 minutes. As soon as the fans kicked on, the temp dropped down to 195*. The fans quickly cycled off, and temp rose pretty quickly up to 208*.

 

No smell, no visible leaks, but even after running for 30 minutes, you could still see some white exhaust. Unhappy with this, I went inside and let the engine cool.

 

I went back out, took off the radiator cap, and started the car back up. I let it run for a minute, then revved it a few times to "burp" any air trapped in the system when it got low yesterday.

 

After settling down, I let it idle again. It bubbles. I'm almost positive that means it's lights out, but I'm sure the LGT braintrust knows more than I do.

 

Where do I go from here?

 

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A good way to check for a small hg leak is to drive up a long hill on the freeway etc.. Be sure to keep it at low boost for a couple miles. Then pull off and check the reservoir. If there are bubbles after this then more than likely you have a hg issue. Ask me how I know.

BBPiek, so, in coastal NJ, the biggest hill I encounter is the entrance into my drive. I'll try to figure out a way to stay in low boost. Maybe a nice trip in 5th gear at 30mph? I can monitor boost and coolant temp via the AP, or Torque app.

 

The sad is starting to kick in. I've dropped some bucks in the last year on clutch, timing belt, new turboback, full suspension, and new tires.

 

Time to start saving up and building up a new engine. Ebay and craigslist here I come.

 

Suggestions? Currently sitting at stage 2, no real plans to go much further...it is my dd, and sees almost 30k per year since I purchased it a few years back.

 

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It's not that dire, if you can do the work yourself, you will need about a week and a gasket set, and some arp head studs. I would bet all in you could do this repair for less than $1k and never have to worry again. As long as everything checks out. But since your in there some sti cams would be good, lol.

 

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You should be able to get a valve job and head surface for around 500 from a good machine shop. So FLlegacy is spot on. Less than a grand and a little time and you will be good to go.

BBPiek, so, in coastal NJ, the biggest hill I encounter is the entrance into my drive. I'll try to figure out a way to stay in low boost. Maybe a nice trip in 5th gear at 30mph? I can monitor boost and coolant temp via the AP, or Torque app.

 

The sad is starting to kick in. I've dropped some bucks in the last year on clutch, timing belt, new turboback, full suspension, and new tires.

 

Time to start saving up and building up a new engine. Ebay and craigslist here I come.

 

Suggestions? Currently sitting at stage 2, no real plans to go much further...it is my dd, and sees almost 30k per year since I purchased it a few years back.

 

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Have you pressure tested the system? Do that first to address the leak. If it maintains pressure for 5 minutes then move on to the head gasket test. You can use a hydrocarbon/ combustion leak tester to be 100% sure it's a bhg. Pull the oil dipstick, does it look milky?

Have you tried using the Subaru Coolant Conditioner?

The blue coolant already has the conditioners chemicals in it.

 

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On my way to pick it up from mechanic now. Pressure test passed, held fine for 15 minutes before leaking down at all.

No hydrocarbons at all in the coolant either.

 

So, I'm happy it doesn't seem like a head gasket, I just have to figure out where my coolant went.

 

I'll update as I find more.

 

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I lose coolant fairly regularly, I put it up to the extra heat from the turbo, lol. Sounds good anyway...I add some every few months.

 

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FLlegacy: Every time I have pulled my motor I have found tiny coolant leaks at some of the small coolant hoses from factory clamps. In fact I just found another leak today. You may want to change out any factory clamps as you have the chance. They are not big leaks and you won't really notice them, but a good idea as regular maintenance.

I agree - had leaks at both ends of the upper radiator hose for me. ended up replacing the OEM clamps with t-bolt clamps.

So the story just keeps going. Not sure what to try next, but I'm praying it's not a HG.

 

I am having issues with the radiator not drawing coolant back into itself from the overflow resevoir.

 

My mechanic tested the coolant, no combustion gases, and pressure tested the radiator...very slow leakdown, "something to watch, not an immediate concern."

 

Driving at 75-85 on the highway, coolant temp is 175-185F. Parked in the driveway, Temps occasionally continue to rise up to 210F before I shut it down. Not sure if radiator, or hoses.

 

All hoses replaced about a year ago by AZP when I had my clutch and downpipe installed.

 

Continued support is appreciated.

 

Really sucks, because now that's it's lifted, it's like a brand new car. So much fun again.

 

SOS.

 

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Those temps sound pretty normal. Mine will hit 210F while sitting in traffic, then the fans come on and bring the coolant temps down. Cruising temps for me are 187-192

Mine got up to 213 a few days ago.

 

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Mine regularly hovers around boiling in the summer. Do you have any other issues?

I would suggest asking Cobb what they think if you're at all unsure. I asked them about IATs a while ago and got a very helpful response:

 

Out here in Austin it is pretty common for us to go weeks at a time in the summer over 100. As far as the IAT's a high temp isn't a huge concern. On many cars you can get temperatures above 200 when you're in traffic as it's affected by the engine and coolant temperature. The only you really need to keep track of when it's really hot outside is coolant temp and that can get into the mid 200's. The most important thing to remember when it's hot outside is that your car is getting cooled by air that's already 100 so it will cool less efficiently. This means try not to blast around at WOT for a few hours in a row. Otherwise you should be good to go! If you had any other questions feel free to shoot me a message.

Yeah, that's why I'm confused. The temps seem fine, but the radiator isn't drawing coolant back in when it cools.

 

When the engine is cool, I can open the cap and see fins, and the overflow will be completely full.

 

Bad radiator? Bad clamps, hoses?

 

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replace rad cap