I need to pull the radiator (when it stops raining) to look for and seal up a minor leak. I think it is a small crack in the plastic near the crimps. I see 4snap-on clamps on top and they just pop out. What else other than undoing the hoses? Does the oil cooler stay put or come out with the radiator? Are there bottom mounts to the radiator? Too wet to crawl under to look.

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85 300D turbo pristine w 157k when purchased 161K now
83 300 D turbo 297K runs great. SOLD!
83 240D 4 spd manual- parted out then junked

You may have to pull the fan to get it and the shroud out of the way, but then it's just the top clips, lean it back and lift.

you want to separate it from the oil cooler.

to do this: you will see a mounting clip with a bolt through it on the top, there is another at the bottom. You will have to lift the radiator to get the lower clip off - a little frustrating.


pull the radiator by itself. I have done it with the fan in place (the hoses come off first, then the shroud.)

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Good luck, but I'd have a new one on order. The plastic gets so brittle over the years with the expansion and cooling, the crack will probably get bigger despite attempts to seal it. Not trying to be discouraging, just happened to me...tried repairs to no avail and just ended up with a new one from here.

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TC
Current stable:
- 2004 Mazda RALLYWANKEL
- 2007 Saturn sky redline
- 2004 Explorer...under surgery.

Past: 135i, GTI, 300E, 300SD, 300SD, Stealth

What did you do to seal the leak? I've had success sealing leaks at crimps on plactic radiators by cleaning it real well, rough it up with sandpaper, degrease, and apply a thick layer of RTV over the crimps.

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85 300D turbo pristine w 157k when purchased 161K now
83 300 D turbo 297K runs great. SOLD!
83 240D 4 spd manual- parted out then junked

don't forget the auto cooler lines!

X2 on the brittle plastic. I found a good radiator on a 84 SD at PNP. looked like new, good fins, clean etc... removed the upper hose clamp, wiggled the hose a little, and the neck broke like a potato chip.
Showed 172,000k on the spedo.

when I replaced my new engine on 07, I bought a new Behr radiator, pricy, but so is a new engine. cheap insurance.

Charlie

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there were three HP ratings on the OM616...

1) Not much power
2) Even less power
3) Not nearly enough power!! 240D w/auto

Anyone that thinks a 240D is slow drives too fast.

80 240D Naturally Exasperated, 4-Spd 388k DD 150mph spedo 3:58 Diff

We are advised to NOT judge ALL Muslims by the actions of a few lunatics, but we are encouraged to judge ALL gun owners by the actions of a few lunatics. Funny how that works

Well the initial leak is only part of the problem. I used JB weld and it couldn't take the expansion and contraction of the heat (you'd be surprised how much that plastic moves), then used RTV thinking it was more flexible. Unfortunately it simply wasn't strong enough and split again under pressure. If it is small enough you might be able to get away with it. The second half of the problem is that the plastic on your radiator is brittle enough to break. That means the entire upper portion of it is running a risk with every warm up and cool down. Any time you clamp the upper hose you run the risk of crushing the neck. It seems a lot of these radiators go for about 200-250k before breaking, but I would just invest in a new one, cost me less than 300 bucks from peachparts and its cheap insurance plus better cooling (compared to my old one at least).

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TC
Current stable:
- 2004 Mazda RALLYWANKEL
- 2007 Saturn sky redline
- 2004 Explorer...under surgery.

Past: 135i, GTI, 300E, 300SD, 300SD, Stealth