How do you change a radiator 1997 gmc?

Answer 1

Unbolt and remove the top cover, or metal shroud. This will give you access to the radiator. Remove the rad. hoses and trans. lines. Unplug and/or remove the two fans ( I left them on the radiator when I removed the radiator) then unbolt the radiator and lift out of the car. It will be somewhat heavy if you do not have the fluids drained from it.

I assume you need to get the tanks repaired due to leaking.

Answer 2

Disconnect the upper and lower radiator hoses and transmission lines from the radiator. This will cause all the water and very little Transmission Fluid to leak out. Unplug the radiator fans (two connectors). Be sure and disconnect the fan wiring from the radiator. Take the two nuts off the top brackets holding the radiator in place and then just pull it out. Simply remove the fans from the old radiator and put on the new one. Once I put the radiator back in I replaced the hoses before I put the top brackets back on so I had a little flexability.

Answer 3

This is not a hard job, though if it is your first mechanical repair, take your time. You will need a small tool set that includes some sockets and screw drivers and a drain pan. This is a messy job so you may want to lay newspapers or old towels under the front of the vehicle to help minimize your mess. Also a caution: Coolant is deadly to animals and humans if it is consumed, and animals love the taste of it. Clean up any mess ASAP, and do not allow any drained coolant to sit around. It is against the law to dump coolant down the drain or on the ground. Dispose of it at a recycling center immediately. Ask your local auto parts store where to take it. They should know. You will also need a gallon of new antifreeze/coolant and you should have a quart of Chrysler transmission fluid if you have an automatic transmission. There are two water hoses that attach to the radiator each with a clamp that loosens with a flat screwdriver. One hose is at the top tank of the radiator and another hose is at the bottom tank. When accessing the bottom hose, it may be easier if you remove the cooling fan (attached to the engine side face of the radiator) first. OK, place the drain pan under the radiator area of the car, and be prepared to move it to catch the coolant as it begins to drain, once you start taking hoses loose. Now, take the top hose clamp loose and disconnect the hose from the radiator. The hose is probably stuck really tight to the plastic of the radiator. Tricks to getting a stuck hose loose include using a big pair of pliers to grasp the hose and twist it to break it free, or working a screwdriver under the rubber of the hose to get it loose, whatever works, but try not to damage the hose, or that is another thing you will have to replace. The radiator cooling fan is held on with two bolts that could either be 10mm or 8 mm in size. There are only two bolts at the top of the fan, the bottom of the fan is held in place with tabs that stick out of the fan and slide out of their holders when you pull the fan up and out. Also there is an electrical connector and wire to the fan you will have to disconnect and move out of your way. So remove those bolts, and remove the fan. It may be a little tricky to get it past any A/C lines running across the area. Once you do this, you can probably reach down from the top and remove the lower hose using the same technique as the top hose. When you do, you will have a waterfall of coolant underneath. Move the drain pan around to catch as much coolant as you can. Now, if you have an automatic transmission, there will also be two other small hoses, clamped onto the bottom tank. These are transmission cooler lines. Remove them. There will be red fluid coming out. Try to minimize the fluid loss. I usually lay the hoses out of the way with the ends pointing upward. The radiator is now ready to come out. It is held in place with two brackets at the top which are held in 10 mm bolts. Remove the bolts and brackets, pull the radiator out, while observing how the radiator fits into it's proper place. Get you new radiator out and transfer any rubber grommets or any clips that are necessary. Slide your new radiator in, the same way the old one came out. Especially make sure the bottom pegs of the radiator are all the way down into their positions, into the rubber grommets on the car's radiator support. These grommets may have remained stuck to the old radiator, may have stayed in the car's radiator support, or may have fallen out below the car. Make sure the rubber grommets are where they supposed to be. They are important. They protect the radiator from damage that results from rubbing against the radiator support. Reinstall everything as it was when you disassembled it. When you tighten your hose clamps, do not over tighten them. You don't want to strip out the gear of the clamp, but you want to tighten it just enough that it seals and will hold the hose on under pressure, and then add just a slight bit extra torque to the screw. After you are done with this, you want to fill the radiator with equal parts of coolant and tap water, for a 50/50 mix. The radiator cap on this car may be on the radiator, or it may be over by the engine on a water outlet housing. After the radiator is full, leave the cap off, and start the car. There is now a lot of air in the system that must be "burped" out. Let the engine run a few seconds, and you start to see the coolant gurgling and convulsing. There may be some coolant push out. There is air in the system, and getting it out can be messy. Try to work with it, add more 50/50 mix as needed, to keep the system full. You may have to quickly stick the cap on to keep from squirting coolant all over, but don't tighten it. You don't want to build pressure as you are trying to burp the system. After a few minutes of working with this, and you are confident that you have all the air out, put the cap all the way on, take the car on a short trip, like around the block. Come back, shut the car off, and let the engine cool completely off. Open the cap and see if it's still full. If needed, add more 50/50 mix. Warm the car back up, drive around the block again, and repeat the process over and over, until you do not have to add coolant anymore. Fill the auxiliary coolant jug (if there is one) to the mark. Another thing is, if you have an automatic transmission, at some point during all this, you will need to check and adjust the fluid level of the transmission.

Answer 4

Caution:On models equipped with Delco-Loc 2 or Theftlock audio systems make sure you have activation code * Disconnect the negative battery cable * Drain the cooling system * Disable the airbag system.Disconnect the forward discriminating sensor harness from the front fenderwell.It may be necessary to remove the hood latch mechanism in conjunction with the airbag sensor and secure them together and out of the way during the radiator removal * Remove the cooling fan assembly * Disconnect the upper and lower radiator hoses from the radiator then disconnect the coolant recovery hoses at the radiator neck * Remove the automatic transaxle cooler lines if equipped from the left tank of the radiator * Remove the hood latch support from the upper tie bar on the front of the engine compartment * Remove the right and left headlight assemblies from the vehicle * Remove the condensar mounting bolts from the radiator assembly * Remove the tie bar (crossbeam) from the engine compartment * The radiator can be removed from the top with some wiggling to clear various components

Answer 5

Caution:On models equipped with Delco-Loc 2 or Theftlock audio systems make sure you have activation code * Disconnect the negative battery cable * Drain the cooling system * Disable the airbag system.Disconnect the forward discriminating sensor harness from the front fenderwell.It may be necessary to remove the hood latch mechanism in conjunction with the airbag sensor and secure them together and out of the way during the radiator removal * Remove the cooling fan assembly * Disconnect the upper and lower radiator hoses from the radiator then disconnect the coolant recovery hoses at the radiator neck * Remove the automatic transaxle cooler lines if equipped from the left tank of the radiator * Remove the hood latch support from the upper tie bar on the front of the engine compartment * Remove the right and left headlight assemblies from the vehicle * Remove the condensar mounting bolts from the radiator assembly * Remove the tie bar (crossbeam) from the engine compartment * The radiator can be removed from the top with some wiggling to clear various components