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Stock JK TechBulletin board forum regarding issues with OE (original equipment) components of the Jeep JK Wrangler (Rubicon, Sahara, Unlimited and X) such as factory suspension parts, engine, transmission, body parts, interior fixtures and the on-board computer.
Hello All,
I bought my 2013 JKU and have had to replace the radiator 4 times. It first occurred around 60,000 miles and has been re-occurring about every 22,000 miles like clock work. The repair shop has tried different brands of non-OE units and replaced them under warranty but this latest will be the last one they do for free. I can't hardly blame them but they and I are stumped on what is causing this. They fully pressurize and test the block and it has no issues. The water pump and thermostat were replaced 2 radiators ago as well as the heater core. The coolant has been replaced or tested to be fine.
The leak is always on the driver side, near top of the radiator with the seal between tank and radiator core. They feel it fails from excessive internal pressure but have no clue as to what is causing it. We discussed getting an all metal unit but I have read many posts with those leaking eventually too and not worth the extra cost. I have suspected this is part of the casting sand debacle that was settled out of court but have no real proof other than 4 bad radiators. I am thinking of adding the coolant filter system just as a hunch. This rig has been part of our family for over 10 years and would like to keep
hi,
i had the same problem for years, went through at least 4 rads with my 2007 jku with 6.4 hemi. i now have the mishimoto v2 which has extruded tubes with internal struts for increased strength. its been in now for a couple years with no leaks and i have completely flexed out the jeep. i believe the flexing of the jeep offroad,maybe even onroad cracks the core.
I installed a Griffin 5-00512 almost exactly 4 years ago. granted, only 30k miles on the jeep since then but no issues. At the time it wasn't much more than a factory radiator. The only thing I don't like about it is the cap, which is not factory, and does not come with the unit. I did have to replace that cap one time due to a small leak.
I agree that flexing in the frame is likely the case of these things. I use blue loctite on those top screws and just don't crank them down all the way so that the radiator has tiny room to move.
Multiple Radiator Failures
