Radiator leak by drain plug

[airbells]

Not sure what happened on the way home yesterday. I drive passed a construction site with potholes and when passed it my car began to make bubbling sounds by the radiator. It's when I got home that it was starting to overheat and I spilled on the antifreeze on the ground. We checked to see where it was coming from and the leak was coming out by the drain.

Now we're wondering if it's the drain plug I need to replace or what could cause the leak there

 

[reload40s]

If it is the radiator it could just be age. They are mostly plastic on both sides and get brittle over time. I had the seam on the driver's side of my 2006 start to leak due to age. You have some detective work to do before you can nail it down to the radiator. If it is bad the replacement is not very expensive. I think mine was $100 shipped from Rock Auto.

 

[Ksat]

Mine leaked at the same location. Maybe it's a common failure point. I tightened the petcock to no avail and just ended up replacing the rad. Not a hard job.