Radiator Leak..Hose or Radiator

Hey all,

Saw some coolant in the garage so I looked and noticed the lower hose was very clearly leaking. I spent the last bit reading up on how to replace the hose. I don't do a ton of work myself but I'm trying to change that.

Does this look like it's the hose itself, or could it be the radiator having a crack? Does the coolent on top of the hose say anything about how it's leaking? Truthfully Im just nervous to drain it and pull the hose off only to find the radiator cracked and not be able to get to a shop

Any input would be super appreciated. Thanks

 

I would pick up new hose,proper clamps, 2gal. Pink or red long llife 100% antifreeze, 6 gal. distilled water. 4 gal. low profile catch pan, 6" plastic funnel, brass wire brush before draining fluid from petcock into pan. Then pull hose, clean radiator at hose connection surface, install new hose. Put old pink coolant back in and run to check for leaks.
No leak= drain and flush with distilled water 2-3 times until clear. Fill with 1 gal. 100% coolant because approx 1 gal distilled water still in engine = 50% mix.
Mix full strength antifreeze and distilled water 50 50 to top up system. Fill radiator reservoir to 1st line on tank. Keep an eye on reservoir fluid level before and after road trips. Top line when engine hot. Bottom line engine cold.
WARNING
Antifreeze is poisonous. Pets want to drink it. Handle with Care and mop up spills. Store in closed containers.

 

To me it could go either way .

Hard to tell from the picture .

If you can change the Hose you can change the Radiator it is not that hard .

 

Got all the stuff and am draining it now. Once I got the skid plate off I noticed there was some wet spot slightly to the side of the hose. Is that a clue that it's radiator and not hose?

 

Try auto part store tool loan for radiator pressure hand pump to test it.
Looks like you may have other leaks.
What's the top look like?
Around cap?
Around Reservoir?
Theses plastic capped radiators are prone to cracking at top due to higher temps there.

 

Drained a ton of fluid so it hasn't been leaking long or fast.

Don't see a ton of other evidence. A couple splashes but also can't tell if its coolant

Any tips for getting the upper part of the hose off? It wont budge, pinching with channel locks.

And if its that hard to get off, how hard is it to get the new one on? Any tips there?

 

How many miles on your truck? You might want to go ahead and change the radiator while you're going through the trouble of a flush. My rad developed a pinhole leak at the top portion around 190k miles. Replacing it was fairly straightforward. I would give it a 2 out of 5 cuss words on the difficulty scale.

 

These hoses are a P.I.T.A to remove, especially if you are not replacing them.
If you are replacing the lower hose, I used a razor knife to gently slice away at the reinforced tubing.

It also depends on the age of the hoses:
- older ones are less piable and become stiffer
- newer ones are piable/flexible

 

150k. Thats my thoughts too, I will look into it next week. Kinda want to just get this hose on so I can at least have some answer. A small leak isn't a real issue short term right? But there's no telling when it could blow open bigger?

My last Tacoma I replaced the radiator with an OEM one, and a month later was rear ended and totaled. Wish I could have just pulled that out.

 

A careful cut beats cracked plastic radiator.
Split the hose from end with fresh one sided razor, fresh box cutter blade or exacto knife (CAREFULLY)
CLEAN the fitting WELL with brass wire brush or coarse scrubbie or ChoreBoy.
NO STEEL WOOL
New hose should slide on moistened with water relatively easy.
Don't use screw type hose clamps.

 

No, a small leak won't be an issue in my experience, but your results may vary. I had lost a half gallon of coolant before addressing the issue (about 4k miles of driving) with the pinhole leak that I had. Replacing the hose would be my first attempt at a fix as well. Just keep an eye on it and if you continue to see more pink splashy residue in your engine bay, then it is probably time to change the rad. Just clean your engine bay first so you know the old coolant residue is gone and anything you see afterwards will be new.

 

@cobes
Research how the reservoir functions and it's marking. Best indicator of cooling system is watching the hi and low coolant marks on side of reservoir.
These engines suck coolant in from reservoir as they cool. Blow coolant into reservoir when they reach operating temps.
If not
Bad cap, Coolant leak or worst case head gasket leak.
Edit: you missed this @cobes

 

Thanks everyone, seriously appreciate it. Im in this place where I'm a keyboard jockey working in software and I hate how little I work with my hands, and I'm trying to keep this truck on the road for another decade and thus I'm trying to do more work myself as well. So I really appreciate this forum a whole lot.

I was able to get the hose off, now I'm just trying to be ginger and chisel/brush it off while also avoiding the belt. I assume I want to get this as polished clean as possible right?

Another roadblock is that the new hose is a touch longer than old. Will this work? I dont have anything that could cut it seamlessly. IF I can install it in a way where theres no creases or kinks in the hose should it be kosher?

 

Gotta cut
Parts stores have big scissor like hose cutter.

 

construction x-acto knife would work, dosen't cost too much, and will get the job done.
dosent have to be 100% perfect, just not a total hack job

 

It honestly fits almost the same as the other. No contact or kinks. No harm in throwing it on to get fluids back in so I can test the leak and/or get to a shop if I need a new radiator eh?

 

I'd run that
YMMV

 

Make sure to get the clamps back on before you do

 

Amen brother haha. That was just the test fit. Got it up to running temp once and no leak. Not as good of a test as a 250mile roadtrip but should I be confident enough to just continue with a flush now?

 

maybe just the angle, but looks really close to the rad fan. I would at least trim the engine block side.