Coolant works by coursing through the engine, absorbing it’s heat, returning to the radiator where that heat is released into the outside air.  The coolant is then sent back to the engine where it picks up more heat and heads back to the radiator to be cooled, fanned and prepared for another run.  This is why we refer to radiators and fan assemblies as part of a car’s heat transfer system.  Coolant transfers immense amounts of heat away from the car’s engine, and in the process the fluid is heated to scalding hot temperatures.

This increase in heat leads to a build up of pressure in the system.  This is because heat is energy, and molecules that are full of energy/heat bounce around more than molecules that are not full of energy (cooler ones).  The extra movement of the molecules in hot coolant means that the coolant takes up more room.  In a closed system, this means more pressure.  When this pressure is released through say, the sudden removal of a radiator cap, the result can be a veritable gyser of burning hot radiator fluid.  This is a recipe for injury to the eyes and face.

After reading story after story about people who don’t let their engine cool and are subsequently burned, I feel strongly for the safety of my readers.  It is a simple, easy, and safe thing to remove a radiator,  but make sure to read up on our car care articles and speak with a mechanic before embarking on a radiator removal or installation.  And whatever you do, for goodness sake, LET YOUR ENGINE COOL DOWN FIRST!

-Emily

The service you provide is TOP NOTCH and the BEST service I have ever received!!!!! The order had not even been placed for two hours and it was delivered to my door. I can’t thank you enough.

Kevin F.

Yep, that’s right.  Kevin gave us not one, but five exclamation points and he even sent a couple kind words in all caps.  In email terms this means high praise.  On behalf of all of us here at Radiator.com I’d like to say thank you Kevin!  It was our pleasure.

Our awesome delivery service is made possible by the network of warehouses we share with our mother company, 1-800 Radiator, by the service-oriented franchisees who own and operate these warehouses, and by the delivery cars that help get these cars to your doorstep.  Radiator.com delivery vehicles range from simple white trucks and vans to cars that are decked out in Radiator.com and 1-800 Radiator decals and car wraps.  Below we have an example of one of our cooler delivery vehicles:

This picture of franchise owner John Czaplicki and his custom PT Cruiser shows how creative our franchisees can get with their delivery cars.  John operates two of our Illinois warehouses, and if you are lucky enough to be one of his customers your part might be dropped off at your doorstep by this fantastically awesome car.  With a car as hot as this one it sure is a good thing that John has a full stock of Chrysler radiators on hand (heehee!  Radiator humor never gets old).

 -Emily

So, what can you do to avoid overheating your engine? Well, Anything that can interfere with your cooling system’s ability to transfer and discharge heat can cause your car to overheat. Make sure your hoses are not brittle or cracked, and that you have no coolant leaks (if your car is leaving any mysterious stains on the driveway it is a good idea to check them out before going on a road trip). Check to make sure the car’s fan is operable, that there are no signs of corrosion on the radiator. Make sure that your radiator cap fits tightly, a loose cap can lead to lost coolant and a loss of pressure in the system. Check to make sure the coolant levels are correct and inspect the coolant for oil, sediment, or muck. Dirty coolant can indicate corrosion of the radiator, or that you are in need of a radiator flush. Failure to take care of either problem could lead to an overheated engine.

According to the U.S. Department of transportation, cooling system failures are the number one cause of roadside breakdowns. So before you go on your road trip make sure to check out your radiator, fan assembly and hoses. It might save you from a breakdown, or prevent the engine damage that can be the result of a cooling system failure.

-Emily

“Just wanted to thank you for the excellent service you provided.  I ordered my radiator on Monday, received it on Tuesday, and installed it on Wednesday.  It was a perfect replacement and worked perfectly.  The delivery time was incredible, the driver called to let me know he in the area and the courtesy he displayed was incredible.  If every company I  had to deal with was like yours, I would never have any complaints.  Thank you again, it was a pleasure doing business with you and I will recommend you to all of my friends.”

-From Tim in Bristol, Tennessee

Why, thank you Tim in Bristol!  What a sweetie you are to say such nice things!

It is always wonderful to get positive feedback from our customers.  We all work pretty hard to take care of them and it makes us feel good to know that people notice.  Emails like Tim’s always make my week. 

-Emily

Unfortunately it was not to be.  Shortly into the race Bill Lester’s radiator failed, his car overheated, and despite a speedy replacement by the pit crew, he was not able to make up the lost laps. 

Nine years ago Watkins Glen was where Bill Lester became the first African American to participate in a Busch Series race.  He is known as one of the most influential and trailblazing African-Americans in Nascar.  We congratulate him for finishing last weekends race even after suffering a radiator disaster.  Additionally we wish him much better luck in the Rolex Series’ future stops! 

The rest of us might not have as much riding on our radiators as a professional racecar driver like Lester, but it is still comforting to remember that Radiator.com can help us get back on the road without losing valuable time.

Bill Lester Blogs on the Watkins Glen Race

-Emily

I started working at Radiator.com five years ago.  I was in high school, it was my first summer job.  I spent June, July and August packaging Radiator.com t-shirts, notepads and stickers and mailing these goody filled envelopes out to loyal customers.   I enjoyed the responsibilities and challenges of a full-time workweek.  I learned valuable lessons from my bosses about taking care of the customer, basic job skills, and I got a little more familiar with how my car worked under the hood.  When I returned to school in September I was more mature, better at managing my schoolwork and interacting with my teachers, much more financially responsible and when my car started overheating I knew what to do.  I returned to the company the next summer and I’ve worked year-round at Radiator.com ever since, it’s where I learned to work, and it’s where I grew up.

I never left Radiator.com, but my job description has changed quite a bit since that first summer.  After spending some time honing my writing skills in college I started writing  press releases for the company.  After learning a bit about graphics editing programs I started designing ads and coupons for our customers.  Now (after spending countless hours whining in my LiveJournal)  I have the privilege of contributing to the Radiator.com blog.

I’m looking forward to sharing my excitement about the company and thoughts on the automotive industry with you in my next entries.   Thanks all for reading and it’s great to meet you!

-Emily

Have you ever wondered:  what is an auto radiator?  If so, this is a technical but very understandable video about what a radiator does and how an automobile radiator is put together in the factory.  I was thrilled that at last there is a female narrator for a radiator video!  Unfortunately, I was quickly put off by the way she mispronounced the very basic and important word, “radiator.”  She said rad-iator (as in “rad” when it refers to something that is really cool, or “rad” as in radish.)  I’ve never heard it pronounced this way so even though she had a nice voice, after she did this eight times, I was led to believe she was reading a script and didn’t have a clue about what she was saying regarding manufacturing radiators.  Oh well – progress of sorts, I suppose.

As to the video itself, if you want a simple explanation about how your car’s cooling system is put together and works, this video will probably do the trick for you.  It shows what a radiator manufacturer does in order to produce quality radiators from start to finish, all with great up-close shots that make what the narrator-gal says easy to follow.  Explaining the problem of engine-generated heat and the use of radiator fluids composed of a mixture of water and anti-freeze to deal with the heating problem, we are taken along a journey through the many automated (producing shapes, thicknesses, etc.)  and manual processes (welding, hammering) done in order to produce radiator tubes from paper thin brass and cooling fins, which are stacked together to make up the radiator’s body.  The materials used throughout a radiator are described, along with why they work for each particular need.  For instance, even the final coat of paint is a heat-resistant blend.  Great background material and this video also gives you an appreciation of the thought and complexity that go into making a radiator and I am going to appreciate mine a whole lot more, as a result.

- Susie

Have you ever wondered what it takes to make a radiator like the one in your car? Well, car radiators don’t drop out of the skies or grow on trees, as this video about how to manufacture radiator pieces makes perfectly obvious.

When I think of a new radiator, I think of the finished products stacked in a radiator warehouse like discount dealer Radiator.com. Neat little rectangular things made to slip into their precise places near the engine in order to keep it cool.

This video takes us back a little earlier in the lifecycle of a Radiator to a plant where four workmen are busy cutting, twirling things, measuring pieces and machining a bunch of what look like giant sections of Radiators, hopefully soon to become more recognizable auto car radiators like the ones that I am familiar with. No plastic radiators here. These guys are busy with the makings of a metal radiator, if the forklift is any indication of the tremendous weight of these pieces.

And then there is the two-times taller than the men who are working height of the finished products. This working warehouse is huge, busy and efficient looking. The guys seem to be taking great pains to turn out precise products and the music (there are no words in this video) has a sort of driving, no-nonsense quality that makes you want to say, “Yeah, guys! You go to it!” Thanks for this video and music interlude. It will help me to appreciate the little (by comparison) radiator under my Eclipse’s hood.

– Ciao, Susie

How many of you have looked under an engine hood and swallowed hard at the tangled mess before you?  I am going to assume for the sake of argument that it is most of you.  If you dream of doing your own car restoration, car repair, or you just want to do your own car care, this video will help you to breathe easier.  This video makes the initial peek under-the-hood  manageable and it does so in a way that is so simple I should have thought of it myself!

The main objective of this particular video is a do it yourself remove radiator session, which will include radiator draining to get the auto car radiator fluid out so you can remove the empty radiator and get to the engine.  (And following the video’s simple directions will help you when it is time to install radiator again later.)

The video demonstrates some of pre-work that needs to be done before pulling the radiator out in order to work on the engine.  The radiator, and lots of its neighbors and buddies, need to get out of the way before you do the engine work.  First, we see how to start draining the radiator and while that is taking place, we are advised to get out the car’s repair manual – that thing in the glove compartment that I have long had a lack of appreciation for.

We are warned that the engine schematic is NOT likely to match the actual “real world mess” under the hood, but we are told that all we need to do is to find one hose, wire or piece at a time.  Disconnect it, and label it clearly with a piece of tape, noting what it is, where it is in the repair manual drawing  and what it has been disconnected from.  Other great suggestions?  Video tape as you go along for when you need to reassemble.  Take photos for the same reason.

– Best of luck, Susie