Taking A Leak!

[Slow Six]

Parked in front of the dealership to pick up a seat belt part and noticed antifreeze leaking. They ran truck in and called me later to say the radiator needs changing, something about the plastic tanks breaking from the cores and that it cannot be fixed. Any one else have this problem and is a new rad the only proper fix? I plan to keep truck for a long time.

 

[MickeyMiller]

I've been on this site for quite a while and this is the first 'radiator plastic tanks breaking' that I've heard of. I have heard of problems with the plastic intercoolers failing (not on the '03, yours is all metal!). I plan on keeping my '03 a long time as well and don't want to hear about radiator failures... I do carry JB Weld and Goop so I could make a temp fix if I had to.

 

[Bernie]

No experience with this on a CTD, but BMW went to the same plastic end configuration in the 90s. It sucked. A lot of failures. A whole aluminum radiator upgrade industry sprung up overnight.

I'm surprised Dodge would do that on med duty truck like ours. Plastic ends are usually found on economy cars, not on trucks.

Glad I've got an 03!

 

[MickeyMiller]

The '03 RADIATOR end caps are plastic (I just went out to look to be sure) but they do look like heavy plastic! The intercooler is all metal though... just one more thing to worry about.

 

[Regcabguy]

These trucks run cool all the time and are easy on radiators. I'd take that truck to a reputable radiator shop for a second opinion. If it needs it a Mopar replacement is available from TradeMotion for $413 for yours. Retail is $613 or close to that. Tubes coming off the heat exchanger weap sometimes from loose clamps.