[Deke]

Hi guys and gals, well my garage floor and driveway has only a 3 inch difference of elevation but the other day while backing out the bottom of the front end scraped the garage floor and created a hole in my radiator, I would imagine a really good radiator guy can braise this leak, and yes there is a very good radiator guy a mile or so from my home does this sound like the right thing to do. And yes I will be pouring a ramp saturday morning so this scraping is comming to an end.

[cribbj]

Deke, do you happen to have an early model 550 (pre-'99)? It would be helpful if you'd fill out your FLife profile so we could know a little more about you & your car

We've just been discussing the position of 550 radiator drain fittings in another thread Differences between the 550 and 575 and apparently the early 550's had the drain located in the bottom of the tank (let's call it six o'clock?), so it is one of the lowest points on the car. The later cars have the drain fitting located sort of in the side of the tank pointing to the rear (call it 3 o'clock) so it's not quite as exposed.

It would be interesting to know if it was the drain fitting that you damaged on your car? If so, perhaps your radiator guy could fix the damaged tank, plus relocate the drain to a safer location on the tank, as per the later cars.

These are aluminum radiators (at least my '99 is aluminum) so he'll probably need to be a decent TIG welder or know someone who is. There are a number of aluminum brazing products out there (aluminweld, HTS-735, etc.) but I've not had any luck with them, nor do I know anyone who has.....

[Deke]

Hi cribbj thank you for your response the car is 1995 456 GT and the radiator is located way up front and is leaking like a runny nose and when I drive it to the radiator shop I'm thinking I should add water or prestone any recommendations and thank you very much for any advice for this rookie.

[cribbj]

Deke, I think you have a different radiator than we do in our 550's, however it's possible you have the same problem we do with an exposed drain fitting that is easily damaged.

Home Depot and Lowes sell some marine epoxy which cures underwater, and you might be able to apply that externally to the radiator tank and stop the leak temporarily, which would allow you to get to the radiator shop safely (unless they're literally just a mile away as you said). I sure wouldn't use any "Stop Leak" or other internal products.

There are several active 456 owners here (Rik where are you?), and maybe one of them will chime in with some ideas. Plus, if you don't mind, I'm going to change the title of this thread to "456 Radiator Leak"?

[Brian]

The 456 and 550 have decidedly different radiators and quite frankly the 456 radiator is of such poor design it is destined to be a problem in every single car.

It is probably leaking on the right side near the hose fitting and can be very challenging to repair reliably. Do not attempt a temporary repair. It will only make the task of fixing it even more challenging than it already is. If it is leaking badly, that is the reason they make tow trucks.

[Deke]

Thanks Brian for the advice I'll be out of town for 2 weeks give or take and there is a foreign car place called Jaguar Alley that has been there a while, I will consult with them while I am gone and go with the pros i haven't had it on a hoist so I'm in a holding pattern for now, PS is prestone ok to use to keep it filled if I decide to drive it the 4 miles to the shop.

[tazandjan]

Deke- My techs just replaced the OEM radiator on an early 456 with a custom Ron Davis aluminum radiator and it was a thing of beauty and reasonably priced. Before you spend a ton of money on your old boat anchor, you might consider a much improved replacement. The fittings on 456 radiators varied during production, so the best idea might be to send your old radiator to them so you are guaranteed a perfect fit. They have 456 patterns, but some cars have detail differences that are easy to match during fabrication.

[Brian]

Originally Posted by tazandjan

Deke- My techs just replaced the OEM radiator on an early 456 with a custom Ron Davis aluminum radiator and it was a thing of beauty and reasonably priced. Before you spend a ton of money on your old boat anchor, you might consider a much improved replacement. The fittings on 456 radiators varied during production, so the best idea might be to send your old radiator to them so you are guaranteed a perfect fit. They have 456 patterns, but some cars have detail differences that are easy to match during fabrication.

Davis radiators are well made but I would be surprised if it had the cooling capacity of the OE. I would repair the OE if possible.

They are very small but very efficient. It has a great deal to do with the tube design and the ratio of surface area to internal volume. I have not found anyone who says they can replicate it. There is little space for increased capacity.

The problem with the originals is they are made of two types of materials and whatever sorcery was used in joining them was done at the area of greatest exposure to damage, the right lower tank/water neck area. Properly fixing damage or a leak there is difficult.

[tazandjan]

Brian- We need to get some reports on how the Ron Davis radiators are working because there have been several 456s fitted with them. I have not seen much on them afterwards, positive or negative, but the one I saw installed sure looked great.

I think many of the 456 radiators were damaged by the fact no coolant change was ever recommended in the owners manual or the workshop manual maintanance schedules.

[cribbj]

Last May I was in contact with Jagbuff from the other forum. He's a fellow Texan who had similar overheating issues with his 456 as I do with my 550, and he had Ron Davis build a radiator for his car in December 2008. It has the same frontal area, but is a 5 row unit instead of the stock 3 row. Three years and three summers later he has no complaints and no more overheating.

[tazandjan]

John- I remember Frenchie doing that now. Brian really likes to keep the cars original, but some things just make them much more pleasant to drive, like Steve's modern A/C compressor for his 330 GTC.

[Deke]

Nice day to run the horse.[/QUOTE]

[Deke]

Originally Posted by Deke

Hi guys and gals,

!!!!!

[Granucci]

Originally Posted by Deke

Nice day to run the horse.

[/QUOTE]

Originally Posted by Deke

!!!!!

More importantly, is how is that leak....

[Brian]

Originally Posted by tazandjan

John- I remember Frenchie doing that now. Brian really likes to keep the cars original, but some things just make them much more pleasant to drive, like Steve's modern A/C compressor for his 330 GTC.

It has nothing to do with originality. It is about making the cars work correctly and reliably. Over the years I have had literally thousands of people say "Oh yea, we can do that." Less than a handfull have ever come through and every time one doesn't it costs me money and reputation.

Sorry but the burden of proof is pretty high and few ever make the grade. I know many use and are happy with products I have tried and rejected. Does not bother me one bit. I know from a lot of expensive experience most have lower standards.

I have installed 1 Davis radiator. Nice workmanship but with very old technology and I will never put one in a Ferrari built later than TR or 348.

[cribbj]

Originally Posted by Brian

I have installed 1 Davis radiator. Nice workmanship but with very old technology and I will never put one in a Ferrari built later than TR or 348.

Brian, are there any aftermarket radiators that you would recommend for the later cars?

[Brian]

Originally Posted by cribbj

Brian, are there any aftermarket radiators that you would recommend for the later cars?

One problem is the radiator repair business is almost dead. The cost of cheap imported replacement radiators has killed it. Custom made radiator fabricators are limited to the basic materials (cores) that are supplied for and none of them seem to be bothered to make the expensive tube designs used in a very few radiators. I have seen some beautiful custom radiators but the looked like the same materials used on a 55 Chevy.

I showed one place a 456 radiator recently and told them it was for a 400+Hp motor. They were really shocked it was so small. I am quite certain they did not believe me. I have asked and asked and found no one who has been able to supply materials to make a radiator of that design. I would really have liked to have that radiator recored but they were doubtful it could be efficient enough to cool a 456 motor. My clients don't pay me to experiment and every time I do in an effort to save them money it cost me a hell of a lot. In the last few years I have a lot of time and money into a solution for the aging 456 and 550 radiators and have found none that I am happy with.

[Granucci]

Brian: