A2 GTI 8V Radiator and Tie Rod Ends

Two more questions for the wizards of the Watercooled VW newsgroup:

I've been needing to replace my radiator for a while, but have procrastinated until now. Now I am losing more coolant than I was before and actually had the dash coolant idiot light come on once recently while on the highway. Apparently there are two radiators that will work- the 253B has a metal tank and the 251C has a plastic tank. The 253B is used in the

2.0 16V A2 and the 251C is used in the 1.8 8V A2. And the 253 B is $45 more than the 251 C at Parts4VWs. Anyway, is there any benefit to installing the 191 121 253 B OEM Radiator instead of the 191 121 251 C OEM Radiator? And will it indeed work/fir? What else besides the radiator, hoses, thermostat, and thermoswitch should i replace at the same time?

When inspecting the underside of my car, I noticed that the boot going from the power steering rack to the tie rod end is split concentrically about half way down. Is this a huge deal? Can I just get a new boot and repair it? Or is there probably already damage done and I should replace the boot and the tie rod end? Or is it no big deal? Can I just wrap the boot with duct tape for now and deal with it in three years time? (I'm putting the car into storage while I transfer to Japan for three years and I really don't want to spend any more money than I really need to right now.)

Ciao, Craig Smith aka Kaji Shun

|2. When inspecting the underside of my car, I noticed that the boot going |from the power steering rack to the tie rod end is split concentrically |about half way down. Is this a huge deal? Can I just get a new boot and |repair it? Or is there probably already damage done and I should replace |the boot and the tie rod end? Or is it no big deal? Can I just wrap the |boot with duct tape for now and deal with it in three years time? (I'm |putting the car into storage while I transfer to Japan for three years and I |really don't want to spend any more money than I really need to right now.)

Replace the boot, cleaning out any grime that may have gotten inside. Spray some aerosol grease up into the tie rod socket in the race.

If you are going to store it and not drive it, no need to do it now, just don't neglect it when you start driving it again. Let it go too long and you will be buying a rack. Rex in Fort Worth