honda1998civic

hi,
just wondering on my radiator right next to the drain plug there is a little nipple that sticks out on bottom of radiator is there supposed to be a hose hooked up to it>? I got mine back and it doesnt have any hose hooked up to it and its leaking.. Any pictures would be nice. Its located near the passenger side wheel.. Please let me know what y ou guys think

jaje

that little nipple is where the coolant drains from...usually there is a 1 to 1 1/2 inch rubber hose to help it drain down better...you just stick a bucket underneath and loosen the drain bolt

if it is leaking then your drain bolt is no longer holding the seal (that is if you have it tightened)...you will need to score a new one but i don't know where from..maybe just score a new or used radiator in better condition

honda1998civic

how would you know if you need a new radiator? Any obvious signs besides corrosion? where should i look?

S2Kev

Is it leaking from anywhere else besides from the drain? If your radiator cap is good but your radiator doesn't hold pressure and it overflows the coolant reservoir then it's bad. But that might indicate that you might have a warped headgasket because it is boiling the coolant. Usually if the radiator doesn't hold pressure though, it's bad.

I know they sell new drain bolts or you can also buy a new washer for it online. I'm sure you can find them at parts stores too.

jaje

most people replace radiators b/c they are leaking from cracked welds or had cooling fins badly damaged

i'd do a compression test to see if you could have a leaking headgasket as it looks like pressure maybe getting to high but wasn't sure from your original post...does it only do it when the car is running...or only when the car gets hot from spirited driving??

A_PHOBIA

stock radiators are crap.my last stock radiator neck crack from the heat that was inside i always thought they were metal but it turns out the whole damn casing was plastic.i got stuck on the other side of town with a jug antifreez,duck tape well i had to stop every 1 to 2 min to let her cool off. cheap bastards.......sorry for the rant.if i were you, i would get it checked out,other wise you will be stuck some were you would least want to be.

honda1998civic

the radiator just started leaking.. it leaks when its on and still drips when its off from drain. WHat kind of radiator do you guys reccommend? off ebay? are those any good?

jaje

if you plan on keeping the car for awhile or want to modify it in the future you can get a dual core from an integra or del sol (better cooling capacity)...other than that a oem replacement from an autoparts store is still better than the dealer as they are made of more metal