i just got a replacement radiator for my '77 240D. The one I got is a Behr Radiator but it looks different than the Behr currently in my car, so i'm confused on replacing it. I think I just need a little orientation to the whole radiator scene...

First off, on the driver side of my current radiator there is an aluminum strip about 3" wide running top to bottom with two lines at the bottom of it. Thats the oil cooler I'm assuming? Is that part of my radiator or its own unit that will snap on/off?

On the new radiator I have two smaller brass fittings on the bottom left and right side (AC I'm assuming?). Then the very bottom has a drain plug, and then something that looks like a plug but doesn't open and I'm unclear of its function.

So....my questions are:
1) My AC was cut out some time ago. Will I need to cap the brass AC fittings somehow before filling with coolant? Can't tell if they are sealed internally.
2)Assuming oil cooler is a seperate unit then is it just as easy as draining the old radiator, disconnecting the big hoses and throwing the new one in place?

Thanks for any help!

The oil cooler is not a part of the radiator. It must be very carefully detached from the radiator. If you can do this without detaching the oil cooler lines that is the way to go. The cooler usually has a through bolt at the bottom and slips into grooves at the top of the edge of the radiator. I repeat be very careful with the oil cooler it is very fragile.

The brass nipples on the bottom are for the automatic transmission cooler. If your car is a stick you can ignore these or plug them. They will not leak but if you leave the nipples open it will be a negative if the radiator should ever need to be used in an automatic equipped car.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

Only if the stick is connected to an automatic transmission.

Thanks, I changed the post to correct my mistype.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

The function will become obvious as the job progresses.

The drain plug is the one you see at the right, facing the front of the car.

The second one is a top-secret drain plug to be used only when the radiator is installed on North Korean market police w123s.

Sorry, very inside joke

Put it this way: if you twist it and it doesn't open, try the other one.

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Mac
2002 e320 4matic estate│1985 300d│1980 300td
Previous: 1979 & 1982 & 1983 300sd │ 1982 240d

“Let's take a drive into the middle of nowhere with a packet of Marlboro lights and talk about our lives.” ― Joseph Heller, Catch-22

ok. so the next question is...antifreeze!?! went to NAPA today to get zerex cause i remember that being mentioned in prior posts. they had Zerek G (what I thought I remembered people sayign to use) and then regular Zerex. Guy sold me the regular cause he swore it was what i should use. thoughts?

also, i have no idea what is currently in there, except that its green. do i need to do a citrus flush (please say 'no') or am i fine just draining the current coolant and filling back with whatever zerex is recommended?

All you needed to do was read the labels on the bottles. G-05 will state Mercedes approved on the label.

I see that Zerex is now selling a universal coolant. That's interesting, in as much as they took legal action against Honeywell (and prevailed) for doing just that.

It will say on the back if its okay for a Benz. I got Zerek G-05. The concentrate was about $11 and the pre-mixed about $14. Oddly.

I just put G-05 in to replace the green crap. It took a lot of work and I SHOULD have pulled the plugs on the back of the engine. But I could not find them. I did not do the citrus. Too cold here to drive around for a couple weeks with it in there.

I got the engine hot. This was to open the t-stat. Then I drained the radiator via drain plug. With a garden hose I put in tap water. It took A LONG time to become clear. I used a glass and sampled what poured out of the radiator bottom. I have a heated washer fluid tank, so I also disconnected those lines. With a rag I put the hose in the expansion tank and used the rag to seal it as best I could around the hose to pressurize the system with tap water. This caused a bunch of green stuff to come out those hoses. I also fired up the car for a bit to get things to cycle through while water poured into the expansion tank and was pouring out the bottom of radiator. In short, FLUSH and FLUSH well. And keep flushing to get all the green out.

I followed by some distilled water. But the tap water here is very pure and soft.

But since I did not pull the plugs, almost 2 gallons of tap remained. So then of the two gallons of 50/50 and one concentrate I only got in the concentrate and one gallon of 50/50. Bad thing, but I tested and it came to a negative 20 degrees safe.

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1991 560 SEL / 185k miles
1992 750il / 17k miles - project car