vti-r radiator problem

[hondaracermd]

hi there, to my disappointment today i opened the hood to check my oil level and noticed a bit of spattering of coolant on the top of my radiator. it looks likes its coming from the top of the rad, where the plastic top tank joins metal. is it just a matter of replacing the top tank in this instance? ive heard its quite common. anyone know a good place in adelaide to get a quote from? i phoned honda themselves and they said 450-550. yikes.
thanks for any help.

[ginganggooly]

can't help you with locations. for indicative pricing though- i paid $250 to get my top tank replaced at a radiator specialist.

[Mattski_VTIR]

Its a rather common problem in the VTi-R for the top tank to leak, it happened in my brothers at about 150,000km. Cost was around 300 for top tank replacement and fittings. I would personally have a look around at some local shops, its a rather simple process from what i'm told!

[hondaracermd]

thanks for the info guys, at least it gives me a price range to aim for. if anyone has any adelaide specific info, would be great to hear from you, too :)

[T-onedc2]

I haven't had to do this myself but which part of Adelaide are you in?

[hondaracermd]

im in southern adel, yourself?

[T-onedc2]

Northern so guess I'm not much help then. However I've heard that Motorossi in the city are pretty good.

[hondaracermd]

thanks mate, ill give them a call. do you do alot of work on your car? i had a 92 integra and loved mucking around with it.

[T-onedc2]

Yeh I prefer to do most of the work myself. I've done all the suspension work, muffler etc myself plus I do my own oil changes and fluid level checks but I leave the rest to professionals.

[TypeLess]

Yeah i had the same problem, feaked me out so went to a honda dealer and got ripped off $500 smackos to replace the whole radiator... :mad:

[Jon_51]

I paid about $500 or so to have the top tank replaced, system checked etc.
I wasn't complaining because my car was only off the road half a day.

[aStRooo]

happened to my cousins dc2 aswell, if your in adel the cheapest place to get the full radiator replaced (short of second hand/non oem) that we got quoted was a radiator specialist on Research Rd, Pooraka. Probe Auto gave a decent quote also. the Honda dealerships only act as a middleman and dont actually replace it for you themselves. getting the top tank replaced requires them to bend the clips holding it in place, and rebending them once the new top tank is in. not really the nicest thing to do to a radiator, if the mechanic isnt careful they will snap them. hence we opted to get a full replacement.

[hondaracermd]

thanks everyone. i ended up getting the top tank replaced for 300. alot of places i called wanted 450. hopefully it will last :)
cheers

[destrukshn]

ums.. shit that's expensive?
you get get a brand new, aftermarket radiator for that kind of money or less even.
lol.
i could of supplied a brand new radiatior genine for about $450.

[26ounce]

Another top tank victim reporting in. Yeah, it cost about $300 to fix.

My tip for other vtir owners is if you smell a slight coolant smell everytime you park your car your top tank is on the way out. Leave it long enough and you will end up on the side of the road with an angry temperature gauge.

I cop this after making fun of my mate when he bought an "unreliable" MGF.