E46 318i Radiator help

[Vin]

Started my car yesterday afternoon and immediately noticed the coolant level warning light. Checked level and it was low. Took about 1 litre of water. Could not see any visible signs of leaks. Drove home with no issues. This morning I saw water trickling down the left radiator tank. Started up and immediately could see small bubbles at the top where the tank joins to the core. Is this something that is repairable? Or does the entire radiator need to be replaced?

 

[Dippies]

Maybe Sort Term repair but in the end once cracked even if Hairline crack you will need to replace.

Sometimes its better to replace now and have peace of mind then when repaired to worry when it will start leaking again. it usually happens when you urgently need to drive somewhere or on vacation.


Good luck :thumbs:

 

[Vin]

Thanks Dippies. There is no visible cracks on the tanks. It seems the seal between the aluminium core and tank is failing.

 

[moranor@axis]

you will need a new radiator... they about 1k

 

[Vin]

Called quite a few places and the cheapest quote was R950 for a plexus radiator at Midas. Have never realy heard or plexus so decided to stay clear. The stealers want R3500 for a radiator. The price of a Behr is R1447. The catch is you can only buy it through an agent like Silverton radiators. The supplier is a company called Behr Hella service. Seems like they control the pricing as I tried many radiator places and all quoted exactly the same price for the Behr. I eventually settled for getting it done at Silverton radiators in Johannesburg they give you a nationwide guarantee on the Behr radiator. For the benefit of other fanatics I believe that if you plastic tanks are damaged or the seal between the tank and core gone this may be fixable without replacing complete radiator. I have had a plastic tank replaced on a similar design radiator in the past and the fix lasted around ten years. The tank was sourced for me by silverton radiators in Midrand.This branch has since closed.