Overhauling my Cooling system - Thoughts on part list

Hey before I pulled the trigger on this order I wanted to get some feedback.
I have a 95 with 4.5" inch lift 33" tires auto transmission.
The radiator started leaking on the lower side passenger side.

So here is the list

Check your heater hoses. Are they hard? If you decide to change the heater hoses when removing them from the heater core at the dash do NOT just pull on them, this will break the necks.

No radiator cap on the list? Maybe consider an auxiliary transmission cooler while you have it all apart.

So are you having problems other than the leak? Sounds like that leak might be coming from the petcock...which can be repaired, if you want to save the $$ on the radiator.

If it were me, I'd buy the 97+ heater hoses and eliminate the heater valve (and cap the vac). That would assure you have good hoses and continuous flow through the core.

Doesn't seem like you could do much more. I know you'll get to the cap but suggest OEM dealer cap or a 16# Stant Super. I would not buy a lever cap, a thermometer cap or a 13# cap.

Any temp senders/sensors, use MOPAR, not autozone crap.

Coolant temp sensor, silicone heater hoses, water wetter, trans cooler, rad cap.

I would add a fan clutch to the list.

Mega Fattie said:

Coolant temp sensor, silicone heater hoses, water wetter, trans cooler, rad cap.

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Be careful with Water Wetter, there's many many people that claim to have had poor results with it. It doesn't mix well with certain types of coolants(straight from Redline, they will tell you it doesn't mix with certain coolants). It ends up causing some weird Gel and clogs things up really fast.

Of course it won't effect everyone and plenty of people have used it and love it, just saying do some research before using that. Most will say its best for a track car with straight water no coolant.

I'd ditch the thermostat for a Stant 45359. Drill a 3/16" hole in it at 6 and 12 to ease burping of air.

I'd also ditch the flowkooler for an OEM water pump. The flowkoolers have been known to start rubbing the wall of cylinder 1 of there is rust buildup, and building too much pressure popping thermostats open.

Its the solution to a problem that does not exist.

Cool,

Thanks for the feedback. The leak is weird sometimes it leaks sometimes it doesn't. it always has that "coolant" smell

Tbolt clamps for the radiator hoses, not just bling, but also prevents the worm drive clamps from damaging the hose, shortening life span or downright leaving you stuck.

xcm said:

Tbolt clamps for the radiator hoses, not just bling, but also prevents the worm drive clamps from damaging the hose, shortening life span or downright leaving you stuck.

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I read a compelling forum post years ago on another forum about the benefits of using the spring style clamps. I don't remember exactly but something about the spring clamps expanding with the hose and not digging into it plus with the right tools they are easy to work with.

iwannadie said:

plus with the right tools they are easy to work with.

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Main benefit right there, 7/16ths deep socket, same as the vbands on my exhaust.

They definately seal better, mine dont have springs though.

I tend to buy hoses, water pumps, and thermostats from the dealer. The parts fit perfectly and don't need to be warrantied. Recently I found that the upper radiator hose rolled to a new part that need to be cut at the radiator side to avoid contact with the battery hold down/battery. I use NAPA fan clutches. Hoses can degrade from the inside out and get "puffy". If they are old/original it is often cheaper to replace them than deal with a road side break down. I would not use Omix/Ada style parts for stuff that will leave you on the side of the road and the part numbering you've listed leads me to believe these are Omix/Ada parts. There is a Mopar HD radiator that is reportedly one of the best you can get. If you don't get that, I would go with the standard $100 Spectra radiators from AZ/NAPA etc. For thermostat housing, I have used both Mopar and NAPA. While the Mopar part looks nicer, the NAPA part seems to be just as functional at less than 1/2 the cost.