Dr.Le

for many things the junkyard is good, but a rad,,,, no.

You really can't patch it up w/ something? like liquid welds? (j-b weld?)
I would recommend a kit that has a patch w/ a metal screen in it, those work better. there's are many radiator repair kits out there.

then you can rent a "pressure pump" and test if the patch is air tight under pressure. this worked far many cars i've patched.

maybe you're damage/leak is non-repairable if its really bad/big.

Dr.Le

okay, here's a debatable idea.... drive w/o the thermostat. you wont overheat.

this should be a temp fix though. im sure others will tell you the cons of this approach.

Daehawk

I hate radiator troubles. I swear all my cars but two had one.
First car - Therm stuck..twice so i removed the damn thing. When it overheated I took the cap off cause i was in a hurry and it scalded my whole back.

2nd car - stuck therm. tried to get it 'just a wee further' and cracked the block. Whole new engine...for a 86 Tran-Am in 87 that was a tough lesson.

3rd car - no prob.

4th car - Had problems with both the air dam under it and a bad fan. Replaced the dam and had the fans wired on when key is on. 85 trans-am there.Another time I parked at the doctor and it blew..I mean the thing blew through the fins. That time I drove 30 miles home with the radiator cap loosened.Had to stop 3 times to fill it back up. Then I parked at the mall one day and it did the same damn thing. That's when i bought a new radiator and not a used one.

5th car - no radiator trouble..timing belt broke weee.

6th car - current...no problems..crosses fingers.

Trust me..buy a NEW oem one. Otherwise you'll pay twice Id bet.

BabyGT

DO NOT run no t-stat, you will still overheat and will lose coolant even faster. Running no t-stat is a super temporary fix if you have a stuck t-stat, not a leak. It will only make things worse with a leak.

Marcus H.

Well my situation isnt completely urgent. My commute is 20min including traffic. The leak isn't big and rarely overheats with such a short commute, so I top it off any time I notice steam coming from my hood.
I bought the JB weld with the highest psi rating even though the autozone manager told me its not repairable. The leak is just above the lower ac coolering line. He said its probably something internal the busted causing the leak in that area and patching it would be pointless. I guess it wouldn't hurt to try it anyways. If not I'm definitely buy a NEW radiator.
I work insane hours with one day off so I haven't gotten a chance to work on it, but thanks again for all the helpful info.

Marcus H.

Still having the same issue with my temp gauge. I've replaced the radiator and worked out all the air pockets. I also replaced the Temp Sender while I was at it. My cart doesn't overheat anymore and my heater works like normal. Is this something I should even worry about?

petrock

Yeah, I would. If you do develop an overheating problem you would never know until it was too late if the gauge doesn’t work properly. But its your ride.