Hey guys my h3 has a pretty significant leak and I have one on order coming next week. Although in the meantime I need my car.. Would it be okay to throw in stop leak as a temporary fix. I don't. want it to do any long term damage to my car...

Any help would be greatly appreciated

 

I don't know anything about that stuff. Never used it, but when ours first got the crack I put plastic weld on the crack. I sanded the plastic and then applied it. It worked really well actually, but I checked it to make sure it wasn't leaking everyday until we got the new radiator installed.

 

Ergo
did that require you to remove the radiator. Im not to good at workin on cars, but would like possibly attempt it

 

NO. you just get it at advance or napa. it's in a tube, you just clean the area around the crack then hand sand it a little to scratch up the surface so it adheres good then apply the plastic weld. it's like a gel but hardens in just a couple minutes. It's not a permanent fix, but if done right it should get you by until you get your new radiator, but I would check it a lot just to make sure it is not leaking. Is the crack in a place you can easily do this?

 

Like egroegart stated, fix the crack externally for a temp repair. NEVER use a product that will stay in your system FOREVER, that could cause other problems down the road... GL

 

I think the "stop leak" type stuff plugs up the heater core. I have a jeep that gets real hot but the heater is no good. ill backflush in the spring!


if you do the patch use fiberglass mat or wire screen on the 2nd application layer. if you get it done right it will last a long time. I had it for years.

 

I can't actually find the crack yet. I don't know anything about the radiator. A shop told me it was cracked. I'm looking at it now and I see there is a bold on the top and one on each upper side... Would I remove that and then look underneath... The foam looks a bit wet between the radiator and the frame too.

 

Can you drive it for your daily distance without the radiator draining itself? If you have a crack but are only adding a quart or two a week it is driveable until you can get the new radiator in. If you have to add a quart or more per trip or day then don't drive it.

 

yeah, and don't add water huh.

 

Learn from my recent experience. If you have DexCool in your truck, air in the system will turn it into gunk. I wouldn't take chances. By the time all was said and done, it cost me $1100 to replace the radiator and get the gunk all cleaned out of everything. Just replacing a cracked radiator is a lot cheaper.