Need help...radiator
 

Alright here we go, Havent had a problem with the jeep till now. temperature dropped severely and i'm guessing my antifreeze wasnt concentrated enough to handle it...I was driving down the road and my temperature gauge went from normal to red in less than a minute...of course the car boiled and steam ensued...i stopped and luckily had a gallon of 50/50 in the car...got it home and ran it through to find the leak with no real clarity to where it was coming from. anyway i was wonder what complications i will run into removing the radiator to check it...its a 95 sport automatic 4.0...any advice would be appreciated..i'm not much of a mechanic

hows your rad cap look? fans kick on like they should? water pump weep hole showing coolant? thermostat stuck closed maybe?

is it leaking some where in the fins? end tanks?

mine cracked passenger side end tank, ran across frame rail and over the drag link which through me off a little. but end tank crack is a good possibility.

If you pull the radiator, it'll be a good time to check rubber bushings that the rad sits on also.

and replace the fan clutch wouldnt hurt.......

OP you said your not much of a mechanic but heres a link to rebuilding a fan clutch if you choose to do so

http://www.4crawler.com/4x4/Docs/FanClutch.pdf

That makes sense because when it was steaming it was coming from the passenger side but when i was looking for the leak it was dripping across on the drivers side so thats what was throwing me off...any advice on removing the radiator..i've done it before on an old datsun but the jeep has a bit less space to work with so i dont wanna get myself into something i cant handle..and yeah when i have it out i'll be checking out all the other possibilities but i'm pretty sure the radiator cracked

my 89 had a cover plate that was a few 10mm bolts and it was off and exposed the rad. then its a matter of hoses and sensors if equip to remove. but other members with newer xj might be able to help you more if there's differences

before you go through the trouble of pulling the rad out. you may want to do a pressure test to verify. it would suck to go through all that and find out you have a pin hole in a hose.

just a few days ago, I found my passenger side hose clamp loose which made it look like a cracked rad. just a thought..

if you're talkin about the top hose i know its not that because when it boiled it was coming from somewhere down below it...i was even thinkin it may be one of those transmission lines though i'd rather it be the radiator itself than those. but i think i'm gonna go ahead and replace all the hoses and then pressure test it just to be positive its not just a pinhole in the hose. those factory clamps are a little annoying though so i'm sure its not gonna be as simple as i would like...but a couple busted knuckles wont ruin my day so whatever

nothing wrong with new hoses. say if your rad is gone tho, maybe new water pump too? with the rad out it opens things up alot to get some decent work done.

Alright think i got it under control for the time being...replaced all hoses, new thermostat and gaskets, new water pump, repaired the radiator but gonna change it out when i find a good deal...though when i finished and started it up i was a little worried when it was kickin out white smoke and the heater still didnt work. but i drove it around the block and it ironed out...so i'm hoping there wont be any other problems...i appreciate all the help i got on here.

Ebay u can get an new radiator for $63. to ur door and there not too hard to change out.