I started to notice my Coolant Resoivoir was low even after filling it. I saw no leaks on Floor or in Garage. Took a Flashlight and looked down with hood open & noticed coolant stuck along the plastic covering over the bottom front of my car. Took it to my Mechanic & he confirmed thereis a small leak on bottom of Radiator. I'm bringing it to a Radiator shop tomorrow. They weld and fix Radiators, if they do not need to be replaced. My question is what do you guys think a fair price for them to do this type of repair should be ? I know I can get a new Radiator for like $150. But then the install Labor probably another $70. Forget Bars Leak. I'll never do that again. So what's a fair price to weld & solder I guess to patch it ? I'm not a Mechanic as you can tell. Thanks for all & any help. btw, Protege DX 2000 Auto 1.6

 

if i were you, i would go ahead and get a new radiator. the labor on the repair is going to be fairly similar to the cost of a new radiator and installation. then you will have a new one instead of one that has just been patchworked together. if this leak came up, how far along will it be before another one comes up. i know they probably warrant their work, but warranties only cover the area that has been fixed and not the rest of the radiator. that is just my advice on what i would do.

 

Hey thanks for the reply. Other people have made the same suggestion. Do you know if the bottom of the radiator is plastic or metal ? Thanks.

 

all of the ones that i have seen were metal and they sat in either a metal or PVC tray where they meet up with the car. now, i'm fairly new to the import scene so i can't vouch for it too much but i'm pretty sure

 

I hope your right. I don't want to replace the entire Radiator for just one small leak. I don't have the $ right now. I'm on my way to the shop now to find out. Thanks. I'll let you know how it turned out.

 

If it is the original factory radiator then the bottom and top tanks are plastic. Take a look at your top tank. If it is plastic then so is the bottom one. Most aftermarket are metal tanks.

 

so I guess it's plastic then and it cannot be repaired. I went to a so called Radiator specialist and they had my car hooked up to that pressure device and he said he could not find a leak. My mechanic already saw the leak & confirmed I do have one. I know there is a leak because there is fresh coolant on my splash gaurd. I don't even think the idiot bothered to look underneath the car. He said he did. When I got the car back to work and opened the hood, sure enough there was a fresh puddle of coolant. This is suppose to be a pro Radiator shop, mind you, that does nothing but Radiators & AC all day. These guys charge $75. per hour Labor. Needless to say I'm pissed off. Wasted 3 hours of my life. He knew better than to try & charge me anything for doing nothing. My mechanic told me to buy a Radiator on my own, as he would have to mark it up if I bought from him, and he said he'd charge me $100. for the install. What do you guys think of all this ?