Radiator fluid leak

Maybe the crud in your system was clogging the leak ;-) First of all, where is it leaking from? It could be a hose, the radiator, the heater core, or a number of other places. I would start by inspecting the hoses (anyway) and isolating where the leak is. Radiator Stop Leak probably won't stop a leak in a hose but may stop a radiator/heater core leak. Many people hate the stuff because it can supposedly clog coolant passages. At best I consider it a temporary fix. I would use it in an instant to get me home in an emergency but would not rely upon it long term. Many coolant leaks are not difficult or expensive to repair.

I would guess that's it's unlikely that the radiator flush service was the actual cause of the leak. And it would probably be difficult to prove they did it unless you have a leaking freeze plug or something.

We are all well aware that year, make model, engine size, mileage, service history and other mundane information isn't required... doesn't mean a damned thing...

The dealership told you that your coolant looked "awful"..... Any cooling system that has awful looking coolant must be in great shape....

Here's my take on the subject.... the cooling system was neglected long enough to compromise it's integrity. During the flushing process, a caustic solution is used to remove calcium and lime deposits. In a well maintained cooling system, these chemicals would have negligible effect.... if a system is neglected, corrosion and electrolysis will take their toll. Flushing the cooling system didn't make the system leak, it simply revealed the weakest areas in a system that may well have many more "next weakest areas"..

Chemical stop leak products are not a repair.... they are a stop gap measure that may or may not work long enough to allow us to drive to a facility and have the system repaired properly.

I am intrigued by the nearly universal notion that all our auto problems, be they caused by lack of proper maintenance, misuse or happenstance are usually viewed as the fault of the last person paid to work on the vehicle. FWIW, things made of metal are not the indestructible, immoveable, inflexible objects many think they are.

In my case, that person would most likely be me. Since I bought my 1994 new, it's been in the shop twice: once for fuel pump replacement and another time for radius arm bushings. Oops--there was a third time when I took it to Jiffy Lube and had the AFT 100% replaced with synthetic, which I provided. With the help of Haynes and a code reader, I've done everything else myself: 3,000-mile oil changes, brake work, radiator replacement, bad relay replacement, installing Warn manual lockers, etc. At 175,000 miles, she runs good and stops good.

I'm not a professional mechanic and have no objection to leaving the jobs that require more tools and knowledge than I have to those who do, but there's no doubt in my mind that anyone with a modicum of mechanical aptitude can handle most maintenance items on the Explorer. I take my hat off to the professionals, but I believe most people could and should know more about their vehicles than the number of the nearest garage. It's the same as taking care of yourself physically rather than blaming doctors for not being able to completely fix the result of years of smoking, excessive alcohol, overeating, and not exercising.

Dan

Here, here!!! New tire installation. That's just about all I pay for. I enjoy working on my truck. It builds character.

I'm not saying anything different.... Too many times we see DIYers wandering from one breakdown to the next, continually cursing the automotive trades or the vehicle they feel is a piece of crap because scheduled maintenance is "too costly". When the car will no longer move, there are so many things that have been affected by the original failure that any repair estimate will be sky high.

All an owner has to do for his car, is read the owners manual (I believe I have called it the worlds most expensive unread book on many occasions). Just as many times, I have tried to make people see that strange noises or behaviour and warning lights are the very few ways these machines have of alerting us that something is amiss... and neglecting prompt action is NOT going to reduce the cost.

For the original posters complaint, he appears to be trying to visit his neglect on to the service facility... I've seen it many times... I've had it happen to me, on occasion. Age and experience have given me the wisdom to see most of the opportunities of this happening...

Interestingly, there is a post on another NG..... The writer has, apparently, a concern with the release bearing in his car..... Instead of taking this opportunity to at least clean and inspect the clutch and hardware, he is intent on pulling the trans back far enough to replace the noisey bearing.... it matters not if the clutch is worn to a point near failure or not.... IF, and only IF, this guy decides to go to a shop and insists that the release bearing and only the release bearing is serviced, you can bet that it will be the shops fault that the clutch went....

Yes, there are under-qualified, under-motivated and inept techs to be found... there are also many good ones - all a consumer needs to do is look for them, follow their advice (part of my job, believe it or not, is to help customers get the biggest bang for their automotive buck..... my concern is long term cost per mile). I like making good money, I refuse to sacrifice my integrity to earn it....

Jim, I agree 100 pct. I am one of those inept folks, I stick to things like flushing the radiator, changing plugs, and brakes. I do most of my preventive maintenance, but for any mechanical issue I can not figure out readily (asking here for instance), I take it in. Being military, I move quite a bit so I rely on dealerships since it is hard to find a good independant right off the bat. I have found that the dealerships SEEM to take advantage of the name..... or use the service department to make up for less profit on new vehicles. I had a 93 Mustang running like crap. Took it in, 109.00 for diagnostics, 174.00 for a new MAF sensor, and 85.00 for installation... this consisted of 2 hose clamps and a plug. The part at NAPA would have cost less than 100.00. I could have just paid the 109.00, and bought the part and installed it myself, but if there had been an underlying additional problem, I would have had to pay for another diagnostic. I elected not to risk it. I have no problem paying for good service, but I can see others points in trying to save a buck or two. For some folks, the

200.00 I spent over fixing it myself might mean feeding their kids hot dogs and macaroni for a week.

I also agree that when they try to save a buck though, they need to take personal responsibility for that and NOT blame the mechanic that did what they wanted and got them out for cheap, when more work should have been accomplished.

I wish that every mechanic had the integrity of you and 95 pct of your counterparts.... perhaps folks would not hesitate to get their stuff fixed right the first time.

gp