Leaking Radiator - 205td

Hi,

That's a pity.

IMO, new radiator needed, as Radweld doesn't make miracles. I guess you really shagged your rad, and runaway is too important.

I've heard TD rads were specific. It could explain that.

No need of ratio as long as you take "ready to use" coolant. I guess no one uses distilled or tap water with antifreeze additive since 15 years. Capacity of the cooling circuit : approx. 8.3l.

True.

Regards, G.T snipped-for-privacy@worldonline.fr

205 Diesel & turbo-Diesel :

Do NOT use Radweld - when I tried it, it didn't stop the leak but did=20 block the radiator to the point that I had to replace it anyway.

FWIW, I use one of two techniques with radiators:

1. Barrs Leaks seems to work well with small leaks; I used it several=20 times without any problems, even leaving it in the coolant for months.
2. For larger leaks, no chemical sealant seems to work. If you want to=20 go to the trouble; remove the radiator, dry it off & lay it flat. Find=20 the exact position of the leak, and put masking tape underneath the leak=20 for several inches around. Pour resin around the leak to make a solid=20 block about 4-5 cm across the full depth of the radiator. I've done that=20 with no more leaks and no noticeable loss of cooling effect. OTOH, it's=20 a lot of work to do it properly, and unless you really want to save=20 money I'd get either an exchange unit or one from a scrappy. I've used=20
   formatting link
   they seem fairly reasonable.Dave

I remember that being a bit of a sod to get out. It looked like it ought to come out downwards but it won't go past the sump and radiator, so you have to swing the power steering reservoir out of the way and take it out upwards.

A temporary fix would be chewing gum :-) I once drove from Birmingham to London with a pack of Wrigleys bunging a major hole. I topped up with plain water as soon as the coolant level warning came on and refilled the 5l container of water in the boot at the first opportunity after each fill. I think I only had to top up twice. At this time of year you can get away with plain water but don't use it too long as the antifreeze contains anti-corrosives and plain water will contain solutes that could damage your engine.

IIRC there are bleed screws in all the appropriate places.

The reason why TD radiators are expensive, is because they are so big in comparison to other 205's. I had an XAD before and built in a turbodiesel engine. It was cooled by a radiator from a GTI, which is slightly smaller.

The one on the left is of a Dturbo. I tried to swap them because the Dturbo was leaking water. But the mounting holes on the underside didn't match, so that's different from other 205's as well. I couldn't find another radiator and a new one was way too expensive, so I had mine fixed by a professional radiator company. This costed only ?60,-. A new radiator was about ?150,-.

Maybe that's an option for you too.

Good luck anyway.

Greets, Jon.