My radiator decided to bite the dust today (crack formed in the plastic) so it looks like i'll be replacing it with a stock one. The car is an A4 so it has a radiator with the oil cooler. It also has an aftermarket external radiator hooked up in series to it.

Should i just get an A4 stock replacement radiator with the oil cooler in it or should i get the M6 version with no cooler and just use the external oil cooler I have?

 

I have the stock and an aux cooler. The way I see it is that's double the cooling.

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I've heard people say it is hard to even find the M6 version. Anyway, I think there are some old threads around here (in the drivetrain forum) that recommend you always want to route through the stock cooler even if you have an auxiliary cooler.

 

Thanks guys, yup sounds like using the cooler in there is the logical choice. I did some looking around last night and it seems the oil-cooler is the norm on most stock replacement radiators. Now to see if i can do a ghetto plastic weld temp fix that will hold until till i get the part in

 

most of the plastic tanks can be replaced(had it done a few times on my truck). Same day status and about 1/3 the cost of replacement.


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Depending on how big your external cooler is you may want to consider just running it instead of the radiator with the built in unit. I had one crack years back that forced water through the transmission.

 

Thanks for the feedback! This is the trans cooler I have:
B&M 70264 B&M SuperCooler Transmission Coolers
Think the trans cooler is sufficient? (I don't like the idea of sitting in traffic....)

I just received the new Radiator and it appears to be ... wrong....


There are no hookups for the trans fluid, and there is no mounting point for the Temp Sensor... Finally there appears to be an extra port at the top right (or is that the heater hose inlet?)... I was under the assumption this would be an OEM replacement / equivalent.

 

The very top right leads to the reservoir, the one directly beneath it is the heater hose.

That looks identical to the radiator I put in my M6, but not sure if it is the same on an automatic.

However these are a universal fit for quite a few GM cars, which in that case I had to hack saw a bunch of extra tabs that weren't allowing the radiator to sit flat or stable.

 

Yeah, that looks wrong in that there is no port for the low coolant sensor, no trans oil cooler and no port bottom driver's side for the oil cooler bypass hose.

 

That should be fine as long as you're not running some ridiculous stall converter in the car (like above 3k). If that's the case then a fan or running two coolers in series may be required.

 

Yes I am stalled above 3k I think I will opt for the stock radiator cooler + B&M in that case. Time to sort out this radiator mess.. Thanks for the pic Shoebox - replacing a radiator looks straight forward from what i can tell- However I do have A/C in this car and it appears to be in the way.

Is the AC something that can be worked around when replacing the Radiator or do I need to remove the condenser?

 

You remove the fans, then the radiator. The condenser and radiator hook together with the radiator on top. No need to do anything with the condenser.

 

Awesome! Should be straight forward then(assuming these guys get me the right part lol)!

 

The new radiator finally arrived. The hoses are off, trans-lines disconnected, fans are out!

I'm having difficulty unhooking the lower passenger side condensor from the slot on the Radiator. Also is the radiator easier removed from the bottom or top? Seems like bottom might have some clearance issues... any tips are much appreciated

The job got a bit more complicated when i found out my trans cooler was zip tied through the AC condesor and then behind the radiator :S

 

Update: got the !#@!er out Removed the battery to get a bit more control holding it (as well as some wiggle room near the top). Radiator was best removed from the top.

Going to bed and will continue tomorrow. Need to mount this darn tranny cooler the right way now.

Update 2: Job's done. Some must have tips for people attempting this who have A/C and/or an external tranny cooler:
- Get a 1/2" Flare nut wrench for your trans lines. Do not attempt this with a crescent wrench, your asking for nothing but trouble! You can also safely torque the flare nuts in. Be extra careful to thread these in by hand first before going to town on them.
- Use 2 wide buckets for coolant, not that all that much drops out but it does spill from the hose connections on either side.. and keeps draining for a while.
- The 2nd hardest part was removing the AC condenser from the Radiator, I think it may have been more difficult for me because i had some tubing from my trans cooler interfering with unhooking it properly.
- The Hardest part was pacing the AC condenser back in! My biggest tip: This is a two person job! I struggled for longer than im willing to admit on it. I got the wife out eventually to help, we had it in in 5 minutes. One person on top one person below, line up the two bottom tabs first by ensuring the Radiators seated fully down in the grommet, and push/pull up on the AC condenser. The person pushing below can use one hand to push the lower part of the condenser toward the radiator lower clips. Once the bottom clips are lined up, the top of the radiator can be pushed towards the condenser.
- Flush the radiator AND coolant reservoir! (Couldn't believe how dirty my overflow was, i rinsed it 10+ times and it was still full of muddy looking fluid!

Anyhow, hope this helps!