Okay, let the laughing and mocking begin

My DD is a 2014 Dodge Durango. It's fully loaded and has a lot of bells and whistles. Unfortunately, the radiator is leaking.

Okay, everyone can mock me for driving a Dodge. I know...crap reliability. But it is what it is.

Thinking about trying to tackle the job myself rather than paying $900 to someone else.

Anyone have experience with radiator replacements? Should I take this on? I just replaced all the brakes/rotors myself on this a few months ago, so I am somewhat capable. Just never replaced a radiator before.

 

I think you should trade it in

 

See if ther any YouTube vids on doing it or similar

 

Yup... You should do it.

Modern car engines fit together like lego bricks... The biggest pain in the ass is figuring out what bricks you have to remove to get the one you want.


Take it show and steady, take photos if needed to remind you of things and keep coolant away from anything you don't want to die.

 

Then come back here for advice on how to spend the $900 you saved!

 

You can do it. should be fairly easy change out

 

This oughta fix it! BAM....just saved you $880.01

 

Only radiator i replaced was my '87 Toyota pu....did it with my dad....want too hard but took some time. wouldn't think it would be to hard on a Dodge

 

I just saw a commercial for this 5 minutes ago!!!!!!!!

That shit looks incredible....I think I'm going to flextape my daughters mouth shut. If she gives too much grief I might include her nose too

 

Radiator on a Dodge? You just pull the pin, toss the grenade, duck and cover....Couldn't help myself. You can do it. Save yourself a ton of money.

 

you got this..you tube university

 

I would do it myself, typically it is not a difficult job. I changed out the radiator on a 1999 Dodge Ram 1500 in about 20 minutes. However on a PT-cruiser it took about 3 days, including the time it took for parts to arrive for the fuck-up that my 'coworker' (other votech kid) made. He broke the AC Condenser by ramming a pry bar through it... Fun stuff. To be fair, it was vert cramped, one of the most ridiculously engineered vehicles I have ever worked on. I imagine your vehicle might be cramped as well.

Just be careful, take it slow and take lots of pictures while removing the parts. Label the bolts and parts as well. There might even be a guide or Youtube video available somewhere.

 

Thanks for the encouragement everyone. I have not been able to find a youtube or diy instructions anywhere. I posted on a Durango website over the weekend and got Zero replies. Definitely not like Tundra guys. I still have not decided what to do.

 

Even without utube you should be able to do this are you planning to replace the existing one or take it to a shop for repair?
Do you have an alternative vehicle to drive for work if you're not done during the weekend?
If it were myself, I'd get the replacement radiator, radiator fluid, and new upper and lower hoses before I started taking it apart

 

i guess i should ask why you need a new radiator? is it an external leak or internal with contamination of trans fluid?

 

Can you see the leak? How bad is it? Have you tried any of the additive leak products yet? Sometimes on small leaks this can work.

 

I can see the leak. It is at the top of the radiator near the hose. It is not the hose, definitely the radiator itself. It is a small leak, losing a few table spoons of fluid a day.

 

I would attempt a radiator leak additive first before replacing the whole thing.

 

Drop it off to your local military base and watch eod blow it sky high

 

Piece of cake. Probably pretty easy to do yourself, especially if you did the brakes. Just take your time and make sure to undue only what you need to. Usually just the top crossbar, hoses and whatever else is holding it in. Good luck.

 

From a Grand Cherokee but should be similar procedures, the $900 might be worth it or if you can see the crack try some JB Waterweld.

Bad news is unless you have a way to discharge the A/C you'll have to pull the whole front fascia.
http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f309/2011-radiator-3-6l-replacement-2061353/

 

One last thought, if you're not too far mileage wise out of warranty you may want to try contacting Chrysler Corporate. Pre Fiat buyout they were pretty good about slightly out of warranty repairs, not sure if that is still the case but it can't hurt to ask.

 

FCA did not give 2 $hit$ about my leaking radiator. I found multiple people on a Durango forum that have experienced the exact same failure at the exact same spot of the radiator (drivers side, high up near the hose) as mine, all the same generation. Some people were covered under the 3/36 warranty. Everyone outside of it was SOL just like me.

I purchased a radiator from Spectra. They make some pretty good units. It looked way better constructed than the OEM one. It was heavier, the fins weren't as flimsy as the OEM. And it was $170 vs $320 OEM.

It took me about 4.5 hours start to finish. My wife helped me when I got down to the actual removal and reinstall of the radiator. The extra set of hands was really helpful. Overall, this was an incredible pain in the a$$.

It appears that I did this properly and without causing any damage to other components such as A/C cooler, transmission cooler and power steering cooler - all of which are attached to the radiator. Hopefully.