I need one. The 1994 Saturn SL2 has a plastic topped radiator. There is a crack, which was plugged with plumbers epoxy, or I should says used to be plugged.
Now, in the old days I would assume some crusty WWII vet would just braze the hell out of any suspicious spot.
Any idea of what folks do to plastic ones?
Nils K. Hammer
Yes, they're thrown away. Don't bother trying a plastic weld.
Get a new one here for about $60 to your (US) door here:
1.9L DOHC Engine
They buy a new one. Because you can patch it with JB Weld, but when it starts cracking, it's cracking because the plastic material itself is deteriorating and you can patch it, but the material on the sides of the patch will just fail.
You can try scraping it very very clean to get as much of the crusty surface plastic off as possible, and then epoxying a flat piece of sheet metal across it. However, there will be shear force on that epoxy because the sheet metal will expand and contract differently with temperature than the underlying plastic, and it won't last forever.
--scott
You can plastic weld it BUT they usually crack because of changes in the chemistry in the plastic due to age, heat and exposure to the elements. So the welded are is only a temporary repair.
There are places that you can get the tanks replaced but I wouldn't do that unless it was a very special radiator. The cost is usually as much as a good replacement unit.
Best bet is a new radiator. GM part number is 52476876
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