Have a radiator leak. Tried 3 different kinds of stuff.?

Question

The last one seems to have worked, no more dripping, or pouring when car is hot. Drove it on several short (ussual distance it takes to dump fluid 7 or 8 miles) trips today to check if it would dump after stopped (that is what it does). BUT on the last leg, the gage went beyound hot...after showing no sign of leakage. ???? Please help, I can do some work myself and can not afford a new rad or the labor right now.

I used water to mix. Could it have burned up, or do you think my thermostat is gooked up. Please help, desperate and POOR, (for now). I needed the cheapest possible fix, even do it yourself kinda of stuff, since I have done some work on cars, but older cars and race cars.

Answer 1

You've tried the cheap fixes and they aren't working. The gunk will stop the leak but probably also block the radiator which causes the engine to overheat. Shop around for the best price on replacing the rad but it's either the rad or the engine.

Answer 2

Not familiar with the Dodge, but radiator replacement on trucks is usually pretty darn easy. Far better to replace the radiator than try a bandaid. If the radiator is leaking that bad, either the stuff won't work, or if it does work, you will have a leak somewhere else shortly afterward, as the radiator is already shot. Buy a replacement radiator and do it the right way. I have had problems with the stop leak stuff...clogs up heater cores, creates stoppage in the radiator overflow bottle which caused low coolant levels in the radiator but overflowed the reservoir, etc.

Answer 3

Radiators today can not take all this stop leak like the old ones did. Any stop leak will pick up any dirt or impurities and try to seal the leak but the tubes in the radiator are smaller than the old ones and clog up easier, also the heater core gets full of the stop leak and then clogs. The best answer is a new radiator or a radiator repair shop. This is one thing that can destroy your engine very fast with overheating. Then the cost really goes up.

Answer 4

Too much stop leak will clog your engine and not allow your coolant to circulate. This could be why your car is overheating without leaking fluid. Try running a can of engine flush through your radiator to try to get the engine to circulate and to cool down. (Follow directions on can of engine flush) Replace thermostat and gasket for about $5. Drain completely and refill with water to test. Good Luck

Answer 5

Is the radiator leaking or is the anti freeze boiling over because of a hot engine? If the radiator was leaking and you put all that stop leak in it you probably have the radiator and heater core plugged thats wht the engine is over heating not enough flow through the radiator for cooling. Replace the radiator before you cook your engine warp your heads and other damage can occur.

Answer 6

First of all drain the water out and put a mix of 50-50 water and antifreeze.Pure water wont work well in hot engines.This should help the engine run cooler.Try to get it fixed asap so the engine does not have a overheat problem later.Best of luck.

Answer 7

Go to www.crcindustries.com Scroll for K and W Nanotechnology Permanent Head Gasket and Block Repair or call CRC at 1-800-272-8963 You make the decision.

Answer 8

you will never get the gunk all the way out now that its in, trust me. i flush my system about once a week for a few months now and i still see it. try cracking an egg or two in it. though that helped on a car not overheating badly, and without gunk already in it.

Answer 9

You already made the mistake of pouring gunk in. I think your gonna need some professional work. Sorry. Where is it leaking from? What kind of car?

Answer 10

you plugged it up flush all that crap out twice and replace your radiator! lets see a radiator is like 100.00to 150.00 or another car hmmm? that's a tough one... hope you didn't smoke the engine already though. sheesh.