does this need to be repaired?

[mattbombers]

had a little miss-hap in the vt yesterday, well now iv replaced the reo bar (i think thats the name) and taken the dent out of the bonnet, the bumper has only paint damage apart from a crack at the back of it. (cant beleive that!)
but the problem is the radiator has a minor bend in it at the bottom, there hasnt been a change in the temp gauge at all and no fluid has leaked, which to me seems all good but id like some more opinions.
cheers

and heres the old and new bar

[cander24]

Personally i'd be straightening the lower radiator support, but don't touch the radiator. Yes the bottom core is a little bent, but you'll likely do more damage than good if you try to straighten this one yourself. So long as the radiator isn't cracked etc you should get away with it. I'd be keeping a very close eye on the coolant level and temp for a while though just incase. If you're a little sus the radiator may be damaged then you can get it pressure tested to be sure.
Cheers

[The Dok]

That's the condenser (air con) in the pic, it should be ok as they can take a little punishment.

[GRPABT1]

What they said ^

Just get the lower support panel off it so it doesn't rub through and watch for leaks.

[HSV5L]

it should be fine imo.

[ari666]

yeah thatll be fine. unless you know what you are doing then just leave it alone

[mattbombers]

thanks for all the replys, so id just try and bend it back into place with a rubber mallet? im thinking il just put a sheet of mdf up agains the radiator so i dont bend any of the fins?

[VK SL 3800]

I have a feeling the top and bottom row isnt actually part of the core anyways, just a guide for the fins so the real bottom row has proper cooling still. Funny, my XU6 had been written off with less damage then that.

[mattbombers]

I have a feeling the top and bottom row isnt actually part of the core anyways, just a guide for the fins so the real bottom row has proper cooling still. Funny, my XU6 had been written off with less damage then that.

ahh sweet cheers man, and yeah apart from that bar and the radiator theres realy no damage, the bonnet dent straightend out and is barely visible and the front bumper already had paint damage from the last owner, so as far as anyones concerned i dented my rims going up a drive way too fast (shifty eyes)

[ari666]

so id just try and bend it back into place with a rubber mallet?

whats the point?

1. you cant really remove that ac radiator unless you de-gass and re gas it.
2. the chances of you striking it are quite high
3. you strike it and itll leak all your ac gas
3. you are NEVER gonna get it completely straight
4. you will most probably end up just seperating the two layers of steel that make up the lower rad support, which will let water/dirt in which will lead to rust INSIDE the support
5. its not damaging anything the way it is

so all the effort you go to might bring that lip down a bit to look nicer, but its never gonna be factory perfect. there is a saying "if it aint broke, dont f**k with it"

but its your time and its your car. so if you are going to give it a shot you will need something bigger than a rubber mallet. although you can bend one sheet of that 0.8mm steel easy enough, you will find that trying to bend both of them spot welded together is gona be a whole lot harder. a sledge hammer and a piece of floor joice will do the job but you will need an unsuspecting victim to hold the wood

[calais24/7]

did a very similar thing in my vl, pushed the radiator support up, ( ran over a massive rock) anyway just got a big bit of timber and a decent size lump hammer and straightened it out, wasnt perfect but the radiator sat back down and it looked pretty good. used a $2 can of black paint for the support and you wouldnt have been able to tell unless you were looking for it if the radiator is fine how it sits and is still in place then i wouldnt worry to much about it.