VP radiator drams

[Ploughboy]

Lads. First post on your site. Great info for us C'dore die hards on here.
I had & have again an over heating prob with the VP, she kept spitting the top radiator hose off..cooling system presurising. Anyway put in new thermostat and radiator cap..went like a dream, assumed the right operating temp (used to run cold all the time even in summer although sometimes she went up to 3/4). Went into town and back (80km round trip) no dramas, everything good until I pulled up at the front gate and noticed the temp creeping up (thermo fan not cutting in) played with the connection and the fan started..something wrong with connection. Noticed the top radiator hose pressurising again and then I notice a little crack in the drivers side tank of the radiator.
here inlay my questions..1/. was the car overheating and the sys. pressurising because of the crack in the radiator tank? I don't think the thermo fan has much to do with it as she did the same thing once in the dead of winter. Jess did I write all that..sorry men. Any info appreciated. C.J.

[Shortstuff]

Could be a blockage in the cooling system somewhere, so it might be worth flushing it all through and seeing what you find if you haven't done that already. Also see if both radiator hoses are getting hot, and feel to see if the rad is hot right through from top to bottom.

From the experiences i've had with my car I wouldn't think a small leak would cause the system to pressurise like that.

[holden007]

Guess you have an outgoing radiator and don't be surprised if the water pump goes aswell soon.

Mine went step by step, thermostat, radiator, water pump, water jackets, hoses, radiator cap...etc. My water system in my car is new and should last me another ten years.

[Tree cutter]

Probably got hot because it was running low in coolant.The coolant would have been slowly leaking out of the crack in the tank while you were driving. When you stopped at the gate the little bit of coolant left in the radiator would heat up quickly because there is not as much air flowing through the radiator. Also if you have any slight leaks in the radiator or a hose the radiator will not suck coolant back out of the overflow bottle when your motor cools down, it will just suck air back in from where the leak is so your overflow bottle stays full but your radiator becomes empty. I think you need to either repair or replace your radiator.

[Ploughboy]

Thanks for the input. There was still plenty of coolant in the system, only a pin hole in the side tank. Which leads me to my next question...anyone repaired one of these plastic tanks? and how?

[Hillerus]

It may not be such a bad idea just to get a brand new radiator. My rad got a hole in a side tank, so I ripped it out at work, sent it to a rad mob, told them to ring me before doing any work, to let me know what the core etc was like. I didnt hear from them all day, they turn up with my rad, flushed and soldered up, told me my core was a bit ordinary and would be the next to go, then stung me $110. My point being that money spent on repairs is sometimes best spent on a brand new part.......