With a long California stretching out in front of me my mind has been turning increasingly to thoughts of grand adventure and fun. I want to go camping, to visit relatives and friends in every corner of the state and maybe even cruise on down the coast and spend a couple days lounging on a warm beach or goofing around at Disneyland. Before embarking on any adventure though, it is important to make sure your car is in good working order. In the hot summer we have to be especially careful to avoid overheating our cars. The last thing anyone wants is to be stranded at the side of a road far from home in the blazing sun. An overheated engine is not only bad for your car, but terrifically inconvenient. In summer, when heat exposure can cause illness and discomfort, a roadside breakdown can even be hazardous to your health.

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

Hello video watchers!

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

Hello brave and fearless video fans (and happy tax day).

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

Blog readers,

Be sure to watch this clip if you want to see a vivid demonstration of why a radiator is so important in a car rally. Besides that, the racing shots in this video are really fun to watch! Red Bull rally team director, Armin, doesn’t mince words as he demonstrates this point and he does it with an endearing Swedish accent. He makes it clear that if you want to get your rally car out into the elements – dirt, snow, whatever – and win the race, the main thing you need to avoid is an overheating radiator because it is the most important thing under the hood for stopping an overheating engine.

It is the radiator based cooling system that lets you plow through snow banks and up dirt mountains, just as his team car does in a few choice video shots. Armin does more than tell the viewer to avoid a hot engine. He holds an aluminum radiator close enough to the camera so we can see it and he explains the role of the radiator fins in the cooling process that takes in the hot water in one side of the radiator and cools it before it exits out the other side, which guarantees a cool engine for the race.

Even a little hole in radiator can ruin the chances for victory and out in the rally, when there is no time to replace radiator parts, he recommends plugging a radiator hole with anything that happens to be available, even a piece of chewing gum, so you can finish the race. Now, that is my kind of temporary fix!

- Susie

Greetings repair buddies.

It’s time to learn another car part repair technique and today we will watch a radiator repair known as the refill radiator task. Yes, it’s time to flush the radiator out, readers, and the man in this video has such a calm voice I didn’t even feel a twinge of panic when he talked about things like air bubbles and floor heaters. After all, it’s just your average radiator maintenance task, right? Nothing dangerous- just a radiator flush. The whole thing looked a little weird to me but he was taking it in stride and I decided to do the same. I mean, after all. How much do you think they would charge you to do this at an auto shop? I can handle it!

Step one, start the engine. I can do that.

Step 2, put the floor heater on (the floor heater ONLY , he warns, and I tremble to imagine why!) and then you can take the lids off the radiator. (Does he mean radiator caps?)

Step 3 (remember, I am paraphrasing all of this and you should watch it at least once for yourself before attempting a flush) use a funnel and run water into the radiator.

That is pretty much it. Could probably save me $75 if I did this myself, which means I can pick up the cute strappy pair of sandles I saw at Macy’s a few days ago. Oh yes, we aren’t quite done yet. The guy says he ran water for about 10 minutes but the air bubbles in radiator still seemed to still be burping (my word.) That is a bad thing and he warns to keep the flush going until the water in radiator routine gets all the bubbles out and we’re off to a clean start.

Welcome back, readers and video watchers!

I have a simple question for you: What are friends for? Giving you good advice for one thing, but if your friends suggest using Radiator sealant, run the other way! This is a very short (and angry) video but if you’ve ever thought about using a radiator sealant, you should pay attention to it. Seeing what sealant did to this radiator should stop you dead in your tracks. Why would you consider using this kind of product when the dangers of using a radiator sealant far outweigh the benefits?

I suppose that a sealant could sound appealing if you have a radiator, block or cylinder head leak and you want to delay a radiator repair, or buying a used radiator or a new radiator to handle the problem. At a time like this, a sealant has just the kind of properties that you think you need. When you apply a sealant, it changes state and becomes hard, plugging up the nasty little crack or leak that is making your life miserable.

In other words, it closes that small opening and stops the radiator coolant leak, which meets your immediate goal. The problem comes when the sealant does more than you bargained for and works its ways through your radiator, resulting in the kind of completely clogged radiator that you see in this video. Sealant can even make its way to your heater core and ruin your auto’s heating system. Yes, it seals that leak, but it can do a lot of other damage, too, as this video graphically illustrates.

The bottom line? Unless you want your radiator clogged for good, pull out that leaky radiator and get it replaced or repaired the right way. With the lowest cost radiators on the market and a lifetime guarantee, a visit to radiator.com can prove to be far more cost effective than this foolish, temporary solution.

- Susie

Goodness gracious auto repair lovers! Here’s a radiator video that you can do without. Its only redeeming factor is that it sends a clear message that some people just shouldn’t own cars – even clunkers like this car. The two guys in the video don’t have half a brain between them. I’m not sure who they are, but someone should take away their video camera along with their wreck of a car. As a viewer, you already have a suspicion that the car is in the shape it is in thanks to their idiocy. They certainly aren’t doing a radiator repair. I doubt that they could even find the radiator under the hood.

It starts out with the driver (a loose description of the guy sitting at the steering wheel) gunning the engine so hard, it stops turning over at all. Then, we have to watch him repeatedly jam the key in the ignition as the whole frame convulses in its death-throes. He has no idea what he is doing to his auto car radiator but the next things we see is the passenger who has the hood open. He is banging at the radiator with some kind of pliers, hopping back at each swing from the radiator smoking. If it isn’t clear already, he ought to know by now that he needs a new radiator. He succeeds in knocking off the radiator cap without burning himself which is pretty amazing with the engine smoking at this point. Boiling water spurts out and he jumps back, laughing like a maniac.

So there it is – everything not to do when you have car trouble. And besides that, if you ever see one of these guys walking down the street (they couldn’t possibly be driving) move to the other side of the street because they could be dangerous!

- Susie

Greetings to you music and radiator lovers,
This radiator video might best be described as of giant thank-you card from the folks at Garden Grove to all of their loyal (and yet to be discovered) customers in Southern California. It was enough to make me want to jump in my car and drive the 600 miles to shake hands with the people who have such a nice way of looking at the world of the automobile radiator and car parts business. What better way to say ‘thank you’ than to bring to life a well-used disc jockey phrase - “more rock, less talk.” The video assumes that when you want to thank someone, you aren’t trying to sell them a product or educate them about a radiator flush or the workings of a plastic radiator. In fact, this video isn’t just less talk. It is no talk at all! Click “play” and you get treated to an upbeat light rock music background that provides a well-deserved break in your busy day. The music is accompanied by some fast and even classic car racing images. The shots will take you back to your own past with a little background music and lots of room to dream and reminisce. Thanks a bunch, Garden Grove ! I loved it and hope others will drop in and watch this quick and very pleasant video!

Susie

If you’re in the market for car parts for your Acura, you have come to the right place. I suppose you could consider radiator.com as the Acura Radiator specialist.

We do have auto radiators for all makes and models of Acura, including Acura MDX Radiators, Acura Integra, Acura Legend, and the CL Series. When your radiator begins to show signs of wear, you have several options in terms of repair vs. replacement. Call us to discuss your situation so we can give you the information you need to help you choose which is best for you. If you plan on driving your Acura for a while, our life time warranty and discount pricing should be an attractive alternative to refurbishing your existing radiator, which could cost almost as much as new a one.

One of the reasons you probably chose to purchase an Acura in the first place was because of its great track record for reliability. Proper maintenance, including replacing your radiator about once every five or six years will help insure many more years of dependable driving from your Acura.

Radiator.com’s expert technicians are available 24/7 to answer your questions. Give us a call on our toll free number; you’ll get the best price around on a new Acura radiator and we’ll throw in a free life time warranty! Don’t let that rusty leaky radiator cause your Acura engine to overheat. This could cost you lots of money in repairs. Call us now and you’ll have a new radiator as soon as tomorrow!

Welcome back to the video reviews,

This week, basic car care and maintenance. If you were like me, you were indoctrinated into a fear of hot things under the car hood from an early age. With me, it followed an innocent question about why somebody’s car was pulled off to the side of the road with flames shooting out from the hood. My father mumbled something about how he hoped that the fool didn’t try to open the hood when it was so hot. So, this video reminder that I should use a towel or glove to remove the radiator cap – and ONLY after things were cooled down and I had done a touch-check of the hoses – was fine with me. And although we have all heard that warning, and it is printed right on the radiator cap, I didn’t mind hearing it again.

However, from the female point of view, what I liked best in this video is that I can now walk into an auto shop and buy coolant without looking like a fool. Neither my mother, nor my father thought that it was important for me to know that coolant comes in both diluted or non-diluted solutions before I moved out of the house. I guess they just didn’t think it was a critical piece of life information. Unfortunately, I was taught how to check coolant level so I was one of those “little bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing” people. I’ve made auto supplies purchases many times based on the teensy-weensy bit of auto knowledge that I have picked up along the way. Sometimes, I actually pull off a purchase without looking dumb. At least I can now feel confident in one more auto products aisle – radiator coolant.

And by the way, based on this video, give me a good 50-50 radiator coolant any day. It suits my lifestyle. I have no idea if it suites yours, but thanks to this video we can both understand the choice!

Susie