Replacing only the radiator?

buhlahkay

buhlahkay

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Hi everyone. As a follow-up to my previous post, I finally found the source of my coolant leak when it suddenly opened up like a faucet today. It appears the bottom plastic seam is separating, so obviously the radiator has to be replaced. My question is: do I replace only the radiator, or should I also replace everything else?

I've heard some folks advocate for doing it all at once to avoid going back in multiple times—especially on an old 2006 like mine where everything is still factory—but how far do you go? Clamps & hoses? Thermostat & housing? Water pump? The time required and cost quickly add up. I'm also concerned that I wouldn't properly seat a gasket or something and create a whole new leak. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, right? So basically I'm wondering what I need to replace now (at a minimum) without snowballing this project into a whole weekend-long $1,000+ repair. Thanks!
 
I'd replace the radiator with a replacement Mopar (no other brand so far as I am concerned), then also install new hoses, a new Mopar water pump, and a fresh 195 degree (make sure it's a non-failsafe!) thermostat. Avoid aftermarket radiators, only really expensive high quality radiators will even come close the the Mopar's quality and ability to cool the engine.

Especially avoid any store brand parts where the water pump and radiator is concerned. They don't work worth a crap for very long.
 
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Plus 1 on the above. I did my waterpump, thermostat, and hoses myself. First “big” job I ever did. Wasn’t bad, just took my time and studied posts and videos.

All this to say I did that and 3-4 weeks later the radiator went. It will find the next weakest point and expose it 😂

You could just do the radiator, but be prepared to do the rest later on. I would absolutely recommended new hoses and clamps as well. Good luck!
 
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Dunkut88TJ said:
Plus 1 on the above. I did my waterpump, thermostat, and hoses myself. First “big” job I ever did. Wasn’t bad, just took my time and studied posts and videos.

All this to say I did that and 3-4 weeks later the radiator went. It will find the next weakest point and expose it 😂

You could just do the radiator, but be prepared to do the rest later on. I would absolutely recommended new hoses and clamps as well. Good luck!
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X2, though I'd stay with the OEM constant tension hose clamps. They work much better than the screw types.
 
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Just replace what's broken. You aren't driving in the Sahara where it takes two weeks by camel train to get parts. Many people have 200k on stock Mopar water pumps and they are extremely easy to see when they go bad. With the exception of inexpensive parts like the radiator cap there is no need to go all in.
 
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So that's two votes for everything and one for rad only. I think you guys all make excellent points. I'll for sure go with a Mopar rad and OEM clamps. As for the pump and T-stat, I guess I'll price it out and call an audible this weekend. Thanks for all the advice, fellas!
 
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If you're gonna pull the radiator at a minimum I'd change the hoses too. I'm 50/50 on the water pump just because.
So that's 2 1/2 for everything and 1 1/2 for just the radiator sort of.
 
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Jodh said:
If you're gonna pull the radiator at a minimum I'd change the hoses too. I'm 50/50 on the water pump just because.
So that's 2 1/2 for everything and 1 1/2 for just the radiator sort of.
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Haha, alright then I'll just do it all (no offense pagrey, it's a numbers thing). I also went back and read the well written FAQ by @Chris which added a nice layer of guilt.

Quick question though: are y'all replacing the heater hoses, too?
 
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check your cooling fan clutch condition too... if your gonna be in there already. also, dont reuse the coolant if possible if your not sure how old it is, coolant degrades over time and becomes aggressive to engine internals.

I found the bearings were sloppy recently on my fan clutch after I had replaced the rad, thermostat, hoses, coolant and water pump last season.
 
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Half the work in replacing waterpump/thermostat/etc is removing the radiator. Do yourself a favor and freshen it up while the radiator is out. Also what's your mileage? If over 100k throwing in new water pump is a no brainer.
 
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This is one to not screw around with. Replace the:

- radiator (Mopar)
- waterpump (Mopar)
- thermostat (195 degree)
- fan clutch
- idler and tensioner pulleys
- hoses (heater core and radiator)
- fan belt

Before putting it back together, flush the block and heater core, and use the stock spring clamps on the hoses.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00R74I5UY/?tag=wranglerorg-20
This all sounds like a lot, but do it right and you'll get another 10+ years of reliability out of the cooling system!
 
buhlahkay said:
Haha, alright then I'll just do it all (no offense pagrey, it's a numbers thing).
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None taken, I'd probably do the hoses too. Plenty go all in, I think somebody just posted they did EVERYTHING twice just because maybe one part wasn't right. To each his own. Just because "everybody" does something one way doesn't mean there's anything wrong with my suggesting what I'd do. I think the word budget means something different to everybody and when people ask about cost sensitive repairs I try to suggest what I'd be comfortable with.
 
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Don't think anyone mentioned the rad cap, Replace that as well as the spring weakens over time and and the seal can go bad. 18 PSI.
 
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Wow thanks for all the input, everyone!

@03coloradowrangler - Yeah I definitely plan on flushing the whole thing out with distilled water and putting in fresh Zerex G-05.

@Cornbread - Good point. I just rolled over 100k, so all the more reason to do everything.

@pagrey - Good points on balancing budget with necessity and not blindly following others. In my case, since I'm over 100k and can spare a couple hundred bucks, I'll just do it all. I do appreciate your perspective though.

@JKP - For sure will get a new rad cap. Not often listed but important not to forget. Thanks

@Irun - You're the first person to recommend preemptively changing out the idler pulley, tensioner, and belt. Any specific reason for this? (just curious) Also, regarding the Thermocure you recommended: do you run it through before or after you change out everything?
 
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I just replaced radiator (rereplaced from two years ago, non-Mopar), water pump, upper and lower hoses, inlet housing, thermostat, idler, tensioner and belt. All Mopar, except the idler, tensioner and belt were a Gates kit. So nice to know I shouldn’t have to mess with it for 100k or so.
 
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I would go ahead and replace idler, mine went out, shredded the serpentine belt and cost me a good day of wheelin. Went out at 115k miles.
 
buhlahkay said:
Wow thanks for all the input, everyone!

@03coloradowrangler - Yeah I definitely plan on flushing the whole thing out with distilled water and putting in fresh Zerex G-05.

@Cornbread - Good point. I just rolled over 100k, so all the more reason to do everything.

@pagrey - Good points on balancing budget with necessity and not blindly following others. In my case, since I'm over 100k and can spare a couple hundred bucks, I'll just do it all. I do appreciate your perspective though.

@JKP - For sure will get a new rad cap. Not often listed but important not to forget. Thanks

@Irun - You're the first person to recommend preemptively changing out the idler pulley, tensioner, and belt. Any specific reason for this? (just curious) Also, regarding the Thermocure you recommended: do you run it through before or after you change out everything?
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The primary reasons for me are time and reliability. Since I don't want to do the same job twice, I remove all parts associated with the cooling system, clean up any oil/grease, then put all new parts back on. Some would rather replace pieces one at a time, and I get this. However, I don't want to go back and do the same job again, just to save a few bucks. Inevitably, if I skip a step it comes back to haunt me! To be clear I'm not saying my way is a must do. You can certainly just replace a few pieces with success. I'm just not wired that way!
 
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buhlahkay said:
Quick question though: are y'all replacing the heater hoses, too?
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For me, if I'm doing a radiator, I'm doing the radiator hoses, If I'm doing those hoses, I'm prolly gonna do heater hoses, too. My logic is that (unless they've obviously been replaced) they're just as old as the radiator (which failed) and have put up with the same temperature cycles that it has.
 
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