Can/ Should one buy radiators online?

Duke of Hazard wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@22g2000hsm.googlegroups.com:

Absolutely. There are many perfectly good aftermarket rads available from just about everywhere, and for less than half the OEM cost. You don't even need to buy "online", just go to your nearest NAPA outlet.

Ordinarily I swear by OEM, but the quality of OEM rads does not even come close to justifying their horrendous price.

Sure, it's easy to find. but radiators are big and heavy, and you may wind up paying more for shipping than you save by buying it locally from a good parts store.

And you should know that there are lots of companies making and rebuilding radiators. Some are good, and some are not.

--scott

You got that right. A good radiator shop can sometimes save an older radiator, recore it, or build you a new one.

I am a believer in brass radiators. Aluminum and plastic save weight, but I am not convinced that the long term durability is worth the weight saving.

Duke of Hazard wrote: ( 1991 Civic hatchback ) Can we buy a new radiator online instead of from a dealer to save money: I would think we would have to know the part number but I doubt we can find it out so easily, or can we? ________________________________________________

A good radiator shop can sometimes save an older radiator, recore it, or build you a new one. I am a believer in brass radiators. Aluminum and plastic save weight, but I am not convinced that the long term durability is worth the weight saving. HLS. _________________________________________________

You don't need the part number. The website of the retailer will have an area where you will select your car's make, model, engine size, etc. and the part number and price will appear.

Many cars have aluminum radiators with plastic tanks. I prefer brass radiators, after reading horror stories about plastic crimp joints leaking, plastic input tubes collapsing from hose clamps, and plastic tanks shattering under vibration or cold temperature. And aluminum fins smear, close up and look ugly if you touch them even lightly.

I bought a brass radiator for my 92 Buick Roadmaster online from RockautoDOTcom. They sent a plastic unit instead and when I complained they said their catalog mistakenly showed the brass part but that the plastic radiator was an exact replacement. After some stressful phone calls they took back their plastic radiator.

I finally bought a brass radiator from ArrowheadradiatorDOTcom. It is more substantial than a plastic one and still perfect after one year.

Good luck.

Rodan.

A few months ago, my 1978 Dodge van radiator had a small leak.I repaired it with Evercoat epoxy resin and fiberglass cloth I already had here.I have repaired and built a few other things before with epoxy resin and fiberglass cloth. cuhulin

You can but them on line, sure. But shipping costs for one radiator will likely eat up a lot of the svaings. Just go to a good local auto parts store. And see if a non-plastic radiator is available for that car.