Radiators

[eyehatetofu]

So the radiator in my ol' heep took a crap yesterday on my way home from work. Need to replace and am looking for opinions on what to buy. I've seen a few threads on here about people having to replace them multiple times, so I don't want one of those ones.

Napa has one for $160, RockAuto has a Mopar one for $180, and has a few other ones for considerably less. Who makes the best non-Chinese radiator for our KJ's?

Plan on replacing the hoses and whatnot too. Throw in a new thermostat while I'm at it. Any other parts that should be replaced at the same time as well?

 

[tommudd]

Go MOPAR
Buddy of mine tried NAPA, after 6 or 7 gave up, tried from other places / same thing, busted in a few months and finally went MOPAR and no more issues

 

[Rowlette]

I learned my lesson with after market, never again.

 

[cplchris]

napa gets my vote, (stock radiator lasted 4 years in the jeep), i replaced with napa for 170 and it has a lifetime guarantee, so between 2010 and now i think im on my 2nd or 3rd napa radiator (all covered under the original lifetime guarantee). it is an easy swap if you don't have the mechanical cooling fan setup. they all seem to fail at the same seam as the stock radiator so i don't see a point in dropping extra money for something that won't be a permanent fix.

more importantly make sure you replace the reservoir cap with a mopar one, i used an off the shelf stant one the first time i replaced my radiator and i think that is what killed the first 2 napa radiators...when i did the 3rd one i got a new cap from the dealership and im still going strong 2 years later.

 

[tommudd]

NAPA with lifetime warranty was what my buddy thought was a great deal as well, until he replaced several, extra time, expense etc got to be a huge PITA

 

[tjkj2002]

napa gets my vote, (stock radiator lasted 4 years in the jeep), i replaced with napa for 170 and it has a lifetime guarantee, so between 2010 and now i think im on my 2nd or 3rd napa radiator (all covered under the original lifetime guarantee). it is an easy swap if you don't have the mechanical cooling fan setup. they all seem to fail at the same seam as the stock radiator so i don't see a point in dropping extra money for something that won't be a permanent fix.

more importantly make sure you replace the reservoir cap with a mopar one, i used an off the shelf stant one the first time i replaced my radiator and i think that is what killed the first 2 napa radiators...when i did the 3rd one i got a new cap from the dealership and im still going strong 2 years later.

So 3 radiators in 5 years? Pretty bad there and anyone with any common sense would say the same.I'm on 5 years with my replacement MOPAR radiator after having 5 aftermarket fail in less then 3 years.

 

[uss2defiant]

So the radiator in my ol' heep took a crap yesterday on my way home from work. Need to replace and am looking for opinions on what to buy. I've seen a few threads on here about people having to replace them multiple times, so I don't want one of those ones.

Napa has one for $160, RockAuto has a Mopar one for $180, and has a few other ones for considerably less. Who makes the best non-Chinese radiator for our KJ's?

Plan on replacing the hoses and whatnot too. Throw in a new thermostat while I'm at it. Any other parts that should be replaced at the same time as well?

How's your water pump?

 

[eyehatetofu]

NAPA with lifetime warranty was what my buddy thought was a great deal as well, until he replaced several, extra time, expense etc got to be a huge PITA

This is exactly what I don't want to do. The Mopar one only costs a few more bucks. My time and effort are worth that at least.

So 3 radiators in 5 years? Pretty bad there and anyone with any common sense would say the same.I'm on 5 years with my replacement MOPAR radiator after having 5 aftermarket fail in less then 3 years.

Good to know. Mopar it is.

How's your water pump?

Operational. I'm at 108k miles is this something that would be smart to replace while I have everything apart? I don't want to replace something that isn't broken but if it is a smart move I will defer to the more knowledgeable. A new water pump seems to be reasonably priced.

Thanks for the replies everybody.

 

[cplchris]

So 3 radiators in 5 years? Pretty bad there and anyone with any common sense would say the same.I'm on 5 years with my replacement MOPAR radiator after having 5 aftermarket fail in less then 3 years.

no doubt. like i said i got it for the cost and warranty...and no the first 2 replacements went somewhat quickly, this one is at least 2 years and no problems. at the time i bought the napa radiator a mopar one was going for 400 bucks. and the stock mopar radiator only made it 3.5-4 years from the factory. i couldn't justify spending more than 2x the money on a mopar one only to have to buy another in 4 years. i spent $170 once and i never have to buy another radiator as long as i live...if mopar had an updated radiator design that addressed the original point of failure (seam on the drivers side end cap at the top) then i would spend the money and get it. but by getting the napa radiator i only spent 170, and have free radiators for life. now based on the factory raidator lasting a whopping 4 years as opposed to the 2 that my current napa radiator is on and the price being more than double, i would say anyone with common sense would say the napa radiator is a better choice. because the next time the napa radiator breaks it costs me some time and a gallon of coolant. but the next time the mopar breaks it costs time, a gallon of coolant, and $400. so if i keep the jeep until 2018 i could have spent 1,200 on mopar radiators, or 170 on a napa radiator and saved over 1,000 bucks.

 

[cplchris]

NAPA with lifetime warranty was what my buddy thought was a great deal as well, until he replaced several, extra time, expense etc got to be a huge PITA

yea it is definitely an inconvenience to have to replace one, but it only took me about 45 minutes, including the trip to napa to return the bad radiator.

 

[tommudd]

My original radiator lasted 9.5 years
didn't think that was too bad considering what some say about them

 

[M38 Bob]

As I said in a previous thread, aftermarket rads for over 40 years, professionally, never a comeback. Just lucky, I guess,,,,,,,,,,,


Bob

 

[tjkj2002]

As I said in a previous thread, aftermarket rads for over 40 years, professionally, never a comeback. Just lucky, I guess,,,,,,,,,,,


Bob

All alloy sure,plastic/aluminum = no-go.

 

[ltd02]

As I said in a previous thread, aftermarket rads for over 40 years, professionally, never a comeback. Just lucky, I guess,,,,,,,,,,,


Bob

I don't doubt you but I'm assuming they weren't in KJs. What brand rads were they? I tried one aftermarket Spectra Premium and it failed in a few months but I had used that brand and other aftermarkets rads in 4-5 other vehicles over the years without problems. Seems like this KJ design yields a weak spot in that corner as they always seem to leak in the same spot.

 

[John3seventeen]

Yep they sure do ! I've been through 3 of them in 2 years. I've been nursing this last one along till I can get a Mopar. I just don't feel like pulling the ARB right now anyways.

 

[M38 Bob]

I don't doubt you but I'm assuming they weren't in KJs. What brand rads were they? I tried one aftermarket Spectra Premium and it failed in a few months but I had used that brand and other aftermarkets rads in 4-5 other vehicles over the years without problems. Seems like this KJ design yields a weak spot in that corner as they always seem to leak in the same spot.

Whatever was cheapest. For years from 1-800-RADIATOR. Recently, O'Reilly.

Bob

 

[tommudd]

Whatever was cheapest. For years from 1-800-RADIATOR. Recently, O'Reilly.

Bob

Lucky

 

[tommudd]

Yep they sure do ! I've been through 3 of them in 2 years. I've been nursing this last one along till I can get a Mopar. I just don't feel like pulling the ARB right now anyways.

When I replaced mine the ARB was on, never removed it
So go for it, tight but can be done :icon_lol::icon_lol:

 

[cplchris]

My original radiator lasted 9.5 years
didn't think that was too bad considering what some say about them

definitely not bad, if mine had lasted that long i would have gone mopar in a heartbeat.

 

[M38 Bob]

Most customers with a 9+ year old vehicle are 2-3rd owner, lower income. Most of those vehicles are on their last legs. Those of us with older "toys" can afford to be choosy.

Also worth noting, every one of those failed radiators started out as brand new OE.

Bob