Radiator on early van

[sciroccotune]

Hi guys,

In prep for my trip to France I have almost rebuilt the bloody van (love it really)

New shocks, joints, gearbox, new alarm, refurbish engine the works! Just got to check the front wheel bearings and I'm done or so I thought...

Popped the from grill off yesterday to fit my new alarm siren and found a few drips of pink coolant on the radiator!!

Now it's never over heated, in fact it takes ages to warm up being a diesel but it's got me worried for my trip.

I may try a bottle of k seal as I'm a bit low in time but if I decide to do the rad can some one answer this:

All the rads available seem to be of later spec at 44mm wide, will this be ok to fit to me early diesel van?

Cheers all

[billy739]

from memory they will fit , although your rubber hoses will need to be stretched over the radiator pipes as yours will be smaller.

you will do away with the pipe that drops down the side of the rad as that's built into the later ones

fan switch is the same , but been ages since I looked at one!

[sciroccotune]

from memory they will fit , although your rubber hoses will need to be stretched over the radiator pipes as yours will be smaller.

you will do away with the pipe that drops down the side of the rad as that's built into the later ones

fan switch is the same , but been ages since I looked at one!

Thanks Billy, good news then as I have seen said radiators for about 80 pounds.

Tell you what I would really like, a radiator with a filler cap on top!!

Going to give it a run with some k seal stuff and see if it will get me through (not my first choice but we leave in less than 2 weeks so worth a shot I guess)

Cheers

[billy739]

k seal may cause future problems , blockages ect so not always good if you intend keeping the van!

[billy739]

and no need for a filler cap . the system will bleed very easily if its in good condition .
biggest problem with the diesel is they don't get hot , so you may never here the fan cut in!

[sciroccotune]

and no need for a filler cap . the system will bleed very easily if its in good condition .
biggest problem with the diesel is they don't get hot , so you may never here the fan cut in!

Your right, I have had it years and will have it for years to come so it's worth doing right. I'm going to order a new radiator tomorrow.

Yes in the years I have had the van the fan has never come on! I run it manually every 6 months to make sure it's still alive!

[mcgill5]

double check your radiator before you order one. the very early diesels had a very different pipe work set up and slightly different mounting in the front panel. if you get the later radiator you will have to get the other hoses and sensor, the early ones had 2 thermoswitches for the fan on the top right hand corner as you look from the front. i bought one years ago for a customer but they never went ahead with sorting the van, it was a genuine one and very expensive. i saw bricky had them on his site a couple of years back and yes it was expensive but it was less than Mr VW. just giving a heads up! cheers mcgill

[sciroccotune]

double check your radiator before you order one. the very early diesels had a very different pipe work set up and slightly different mounting in the front panel. if you get the later radiator you will have to get the other hoses and sensor, the early ones had 2 thermoswitches for the fan on the top right hand corner as you look from the front. i bought one years ago for a customer but they never went ahead with sorting the van, it was a genuine one and very expensive. i saw bricky had them on his site a couple of years back and yes it was expensive but it was less than Mr VW. just giving a heads up! cheers mcgill

So is it just a case of fettling the fit or is it total no go? Eek!

[mcgill5]

i dont know for definate which radiator you have, billy is right in that the next ones which had metal front to back pipes had a narrower rubber joining pipe from the metal ones to radiator which can be forced on with a bit of effort,swearing and sore hands usually as the diamater is a bit bigger. you would have to get the other 2 bottom pipes and a 2 stage electric fan switch then wire the two seperate switches on the other side to plug into the one which sits further down the side column and may need wire lengthened? i take it from your concerns that it may well be the said earlier model? bricky has for £280.41 for a recored unit on his site. i do have an original NOS in the box here if you would rather have it the way it is? i am in scotland but travel from here to plymouth twice a week if you are en-route or can post if need be? call me 07732098577 if i can help and sort you out? cheers mcgill 07732098577

Zoom In
Availability: In stock

Brief Description:
Reconditioned item

£241.80
(Inc VAT)
Minus Plus


Email to a Friend

Product Description
Additional Information
Reviews

These items are avilable new but are very, very expensive and supply sketchy.
We have bought an old unit and had it re-cored, and it\'s sat on the shelf.
Radiator to be sold strictly on an exchange basis, because these items are not the easiest to find we must have your old item beck before we release the new one as we don\'t want to be left short or we don\'t want to be left with a radiator that is not suitable for reconditioning.
Core is made to the same size and design as the original and is pressure tested before they are release to us.

Replaces VW No. - 068 121 253 A

[sciroccotune]

i dont know for definate which radiator you have, billy is right in that the next ones which had metal front to back pipes had a narrower rubber joining pipe from the metal ones to radiator which can be forced on with a bit of effort,swearing and sore hands usually as the diamater is a bit bigger. you would have to get the other 2 bottom pipes and a 2 stage electric fan switch then wire the two seperate switches on the other side to plug into the one which sits further down the side column and may need wire lengthened? i take it from your concerns that it may well be the said earlier model? bricky has for £280.41 for a recored unit on his site. i do have an original NOS in the box here if you would rather have it the way it is? i am in scotland but travel from here to plymouth twice a week if you are en-route or can post if need be? call me 07732098577 if i can help and sort you out? cheers mcgill 07732098577

Zoom In
Availability: In stock

Brief Description:
Reconditioned item

£241.80
(Inc VAT)
Minus Plus


Email to a Friend

Product Description
Additional Information
Reviews

These items are avilable new but are very, very expensive and supply sketchy.
We have bought an old unit and had it re-cored, and it\'s sat on the shelf.
Radiator to be sold strictly on an exchange basis, because these items are not the easiest to find we must have your old item beck before we release the new one as we don\'t want to be left short or we don\'t want to be left with a radiator that is not suitable for reconditioning.
Core is made to the same size and design as the original and is pressure tested before they are release to us.

Replaces VW No. - 068 121 253 A

Thanks for the info, I had seen that, very expensive! You guessed it I have an early van and rad.

The fan switch I can deal with but I'm confused regarding additional pipe work, the inlet and outlet look to be in the same place on the newer style rad as what I have, but I have yet to see one in the flesh of course.

If I can't source one locally I will give you a shout as I really need to have it done by the end of the week

Cheers