Hi Everyone,

I noticed a tiny bit of smoke from my engine the other day, and upon pulling over, saw a tiny bit of dried/burned antifreeze on the top left outside of the radiator. A mechanic who checked it out said he wouldn't be surprised if the coils on the inside are busted as well as the exterior casing.. So I need to replace the radiator in my 1977 Dodge Aspen SE /6 (AC installed aftermarket)!

Can I simply order one of the numerous "1977 Dodge Aspen 3.7L RADIATOR" deals from ebay, or like this?
http://www.genesisautoparts.com/product ... 2X9119.htm

How much work is involved replacing the whole radiator setup? My brother is a mechanic in training, and I am a bit handy.. Just hoping for any tips before I do this work on my f-body. Thanks guys...

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'77 Dodge Aspen SE, /6 2225, 1 bbl

Well before you go around buying a new radiator, see if you can find where the hole is. A little bit of soldering and/or jb weld can go a long way when it comes to saving the radiator you've got. Don't just take someones word for it.

If its really messed up, it's an easy thing to swap out. 4 bolts hold it to the chassis. 4 screws hold the shroud to the radiator. 2 big radiator hoses and then two transmission lines connect to the bottom. Just make sure you put a little bit of tranny fluid back in after you get the new radiator in to make up what might have been lost when you took the lines off. I'm not sure if a 77 is more complicated than that but it shouldn't be.

Welcome on the board.

Replacing the radiator is a very easy job. It's a simple matter of draining the coolant, disconnecting the hoses (and the steel transmission fluid cooler pipes if the car has an automatic transmission), unbolting the plastic fan shroud if the car has one, then unbolting the radiator from the car (4 bolts) and lifting it out. Installation is just the reverse of removal. You'll want to install new upper and lower radiator hoses with new clamps, a new thermostat, a new radiator cap, flush out the car's cooling system, and use new coolant.

Be careful buying parts on eBay (or anywhere, for that matter) — it's easier than ever to get poor-quality parts. If you aren't already very familiar with the brand of parts offered, post here on the board and ask.

But before you decide you need a new radiator, you'll want to do some proper diagnosis so you don't wind up spending more money and time than you need to. From what you describe, you may have nothing more than a small leak where the radiator top tank meets the radiator core. That's something that can be fixed by a radiator shop. However, your car (like all of our cars) is old, so if the radiator's clogged, you may need more extensive work on it, or possibly replacement. Don't decide what parts to replace based on some random guy saying he "wouldn't be surprised" if you need a whole new radiator.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Hello, welcome to the board!
Dan and the others gave good advice; make sure that you do need a new radiator before you pull yours out and buy a new one.
If you do need another radiator, they are fairly simple to remove and replace. I have a '78 Volare with a slant six as my daily driver, and the radiator in it now is from a 1978 Volare station wagon that had a 318 V8. I had it cleaned out at a radiator shop, and also had them move the top hose inlet to the other side. I would bet that a radiator from a Diplomat/Gran Fury/Fifth Avenue/etc. would work.

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"Ja, Ich fahre ein altes auto."
'78 Volare 225
'67 Charger 318

Well thank you all very much. I'll definitely stop by a radiator shop and have them inspect it, but if it does need replacement, I think my instructions are all above ^^^. Do you think I would need to flush the system when emptying it?

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'77 Dodge Aspen SE, /6 2225, 1 bbl

Since you're going to have to drain the cooling system anyhow, and you don't want whatever junk might be in the system to clog up your new radiator, it's a very opportune time to clean out the cooling system, yes.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Welcome home.

Flushing is not a bad idea, HOWEVER flushing can uncover other leaks that would take longer to show up. Basically, you are washing all the gack out of the system, gack that could be plugging up other small leaks, but that same gack could clog a new radiator, so as long as you are prepared to maybe fix other things, I would flush it out real good.

To test your radiator, start with a cold engine. Get a few thermostat gaskets, remove the thermostat and put the housing back on with a new gasket. Fill the system with water and start the car with the cap off. Look in the radiator you should see flow as soon as it starts. Rev the engine and you should see the flow noticeably increase. If you see little flow or no increase when reving, your radiator is clogged OR your water pump impeller is rusted off. If water shoots out as soon as you start the engine, you have a blown head gasket letting compression in to the cooling system. Once repairs are made and testing is over, remember to install a new thermostat and coolant.

To look for leaks, you will need a pressure tester, which can be rented up at most auto parts stores that have a loan-a-tool. You just install the tester in place of the cap, and pump it up, much like a bicycle pump, 16-18 psi should be plenty. Once pumped up, you just look around for leaks. This is a good way to test after doing leak repairs too.

Hope this helps some.

TopHat

Thanks everyone. A local radiator shop looked at the piece and said it is definitely on it's way out - there is a tear along one of the topmost coils. So, as for replacements

-I could go to a junkyard and pick up a replacement (should I be aware of any differences? Can i use any non-ac /6 rad from a volare or aspen? what about a 318 radiator?)

-Would part # 433517 at rockauto.com be a good option?

-what about this one off ebay? http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayI ... MEWAX%3AIT

I hear what you guys say about buying junky stuff, so was wondering if anybody has experience with any of these rads. Thanks again!

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'77 Dodge Aspen SE, /6 2225, 1 bbl

I do not have an extra one but probly someone on here does try posting in the wanted section, also try moparts.com people are putting v-8s in so they throw thier /6 radiator out. As far as where to buy a new one, I'm not sure but doc and the other experts will

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All in a days work

Yes, you could... and whatever you find will likely be about the same age as what you have now. Might last for another few months or years, ya never know. IMHO, it's a lot of work to flush everything and put new coolant in, just to discover that an old unit doesn't work as well as you'd hoped and you have to do it all again. This is especially true if you live in a hot climate where you need all the cooling capacity you can get.

Even if you have a non-leaking radiator, they seem to all get partially plugged eventually. My 40+ year old unit looked fine, but wouldn't cool the engine very well... I installed a brand new unit, and suddenly all my problems disappeared. It was like night and day. Best money I ever spent.

There's much more theoretical stuff to add about heat dissipation and equilibrium operating points and thermostats, but I'll wait for another day.

- Erik

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Lots of early Valiants and Barracudas have crossed my path.
Also a handful of other toys for variety now and then.

hello,
there is some interesting reading in this site.
LOTS of reading in fact,but if you take the time to browse through it all,you will learn a lot, I think.

click here

regards,Rod

I have looked at those radiators (they also have aluminum versions) for my own '77 Aspen, and I am going to order one. The difference between 76-77 and later years is the placement of the attaching nipples for the oil pipes for the automatic transmission cooler, from the pictures it seems like the 78-80 models and all V8 models are wider spaced. The left pipe for a slant must be shortened to use a V8 or newer radiator. An easy way to cope with the problem is to have hydraulic hoses made instead of the pipes, then you can pick any radiator from the selection.
Olaf

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Aspenized

I had custom hydraulic hoses made to attach a Ford power steering pump to a Volvo steering rack. It was a bit more expensive than I'd expected. I'll bet it'd be cheaper to get a flaring tool and then "roll your own" steel lines. The total number of connections (and thus leak points) would be lower, and the steel would last virtually forever.

Let's see, cheaper and less failure-prone... yep, I'd always choose hard lines over hoses, where possible.

- Erik

PS. Most of the slant six tranny tubing I've seen has a lot of bends and twirls in it, to go around the exhaust pipes and so on. Wouldn't there be enough extra slack to move the endpoints a couple of inches?

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Lots of early Valiants and Barracudas have crossed my path.
Also a handful of other toys for variety now and then.

Maybe, I'm to lazy to go down to the garage and check, but 30+ year old lines often have a tendency to develop cracks when you change the direction of load on them. A short connecting pipe between old line and radiator would also be possible, a new pipe can be turned and twisted any way you want.
Olaf

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Aspenized