Radiator issue

[4x4pair]

Hi all. I was hoping for some opinions on what to do. The radiator in my '03 E350 with the 7.3 sprung a leak. Should I just go with a regular replacement? Or should I look for something more durable? How well do the radiators normally hold up to off-road abuse?
Thanks in advance!

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[villageidiot327]

how old is the radiator thats in there? how are the rubber blocks top and bottom?

they seem to me to be able to move around a bit, so depending on your definition of "off road abuse"......

also, u-joint sells a front crossmember thing to sandwich behind a stock bumper, should take a bit of twist out of the front frame horns, might not allow it to twist as much, if that was what your failure was caused by.

 

[4x4pair]

The radiator is probably stock...about 230k miles on the van. I'll take a look at the rubber blocks tomorrow but doubtfully they're in great shape..lol. I'm just wondering if going with a full aluminum radiator would be wise since the stockers have plastic tanks. Then again, if nobody ever has issues with the stock ones I could save some money going that route.

 

[Bbasso]

I'd pin point the leak and see if it can be fixed, next would be a stock OE replacement. I wouldn't bother with an upgraded one even in the heat of Florida's summer...

 

[villageidiot327]

yeah, i mean, it lasted 230k miles.

but i would make sure my rubber blocks were decent top and bottom.

 

[4x4pair]

It lasted 230k but 220k of that was before it was converted to 4x4...lol. I'm good with the OEM if it will last. The van never gets hot even towing in the Las Vegas heat...so it's more of an off-road durability issue for me. I'll keep you guys posted with what I find. Thanks for the replies!

 

[Bikersmurf]

The Rad is mounted to the body. The lower mounts attach to a crossmember that is secured to the body using 12 bolts. The upper is held by mounts across the top of the grill. Given mine has 16,000 hours, and about 200k miles... the crossmember had been broken into 3 pieces, and it has generally seen a rougher than average life, I'd go ahead and go with a quality OEM replacement and call it a day. As far as I know, despite all this, It's still the OE Rad.

No rad lasts forever though.

 

[Saline]

I just replaced my radiator in my 7.3 at 320k. It wasn't leaking but the engine was running hot on long climbs. I looked around for an improved aftermarket radiator but had no luck. I ended up putting in a Napa radiator for $189.
I took the ends off of the old one and found 6 channels clogged with most likely years of goop and sediment.

 

[4x4pair]

I did recently put a coolant filter on it. Maybe it cleaned up all the gunk that was keeping the holes plugged...haha!

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[Bbasso]

After having a antifreeze filtering system on my current rig, I'd strongly suggest one... my ELC looks brand new after a year and 15000 miles.

 

[stormlover]

Not sure if it will fit but I've got a 6.0 radiator you can have for free. It's been flushed and has 45K on it and coolant was changed at least twice when it was Ford Gold and then swapped to an ELC.

 

[4x4pair]

Not sure if it will fit but I've got a 6.0 radiator you can have for free. It's been flushed and has 45K on it and coolant was changed at least twice when it was Ford Gold and then swapped to an ELC.

Thank you very much for the offer but I went ahead and bought a stock 7.3 radiator to put in it. I hope that turns out to be a good decision

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