virtue4u

I have a small block 77 L48 with automatic transmission.


[Modified by virtue4u, 6:46 PM 1/18/2003]

jerryp58

There's a wide variety of opinions here about the best way to remove the radiator (e.g., remove the hood / don't remove the hood), so you may want to check the archives for threads.

FWIW, I replaced mine several years ago and the biggest problem I had was that I only have two hands. I think it's definitely one of those jobs that goes better with a second set of hands; especially when putting the new radiator in.

I left my hood on.
I removed the fan.
I disconnected the hoses and the trans lines (flare wrenches and small hands are helpful for this).
I loosened the fan shroud.
Then I removed the radiator.
I can't remember for sure if I had to pull the shroud at the same time.

Reinstall is of course the reverse.
I'm about 99.99% sure that, for reassembly, I put the shroud in loosely first then the radiator.
Putting the radiator in is when the second set of hands come in handy.
It's kind of a tricky fit to get it back down there without hitting the coils with anything.
After the first coil dent, I taped cardboard to the radiator to cover the coils and removed it after the radiator was in place.

It's a good time to change hoses and belts if needed.
It's also a good time to inspect the lower support for rust.
And, it's a good time to check the foam around the radiator (I replaced mine while-I-was-at-it).

I've probably left some stuff out but I'm sure others will fill in.

Good Luck.

virtue4u

To remove the radiator, I see only a couple of bolts holding the top brackets. Is the radiator held only by those top brackets and simply sitting on the lower support? Or is there something down low that is also holding the radiator?

Smokehouse69

On my 69 the only thing holding the radiator in was the top u-shaped mounts, it sat down in a couple other mounts down at the bottom.
As a previous poster said. Take off the hoses and tranny lines, take off fan and loosen the shroud as much as possible. Then with the shroud pulled back as far as possible (without binding it on the bottom of the radiator) rotate the radiator up to one side.
Here is the part I can't remember, I can't remember if I rotated the passenger side up past the A-Arm, or brought up the driverside first.
Seems like the hardest part was clearing the A-Arm on the passenger side.
Reinstall the same way. Rotate it down between the shroud and core-support.
Loosen up your A/C condensor so you don't bang into it when pulling the radiator or putting it back in.
I didn't remove my hood, and I pulled it by myself. But I'm a pretty big guy and was able to bend over and reach both sides of it and twist and yank. It is certainly a whole lot easier with two guys working on it. Removing the hood will make it easier too, but unless you have some help pulling it and putting back on, you are better off leaving it in place.
Good Luck!

bigbobbyb

Hi,

I recently replaced the radiator in my 78. I agree with the other responses, especially that there doesn't seem to be any need to remove the hood.

To answer your question, it's NOT VERY HARD to replace the radiator.

I would also plan on replacing the radiator hoses/clamps and maybe even the thermostat while you have everything drained and apart.

Good luck!

Larry B.

A lot depends on the year and shruod design. My 69 BB with A/C wasquite a challeng. Getting the shroud out of the way was the biggest problem. :banghead:

Tron79

I replaced the radiator on my 79 L48 last summer. It was very easy - just time consuming. Leave your hood on, loosen those two top brackets, take your fan off, (I took my shroud off to clean it up), then take off the upper & lower radiator hoses, and the upper & lower trans fluid lines. I had my wife grab one side and the radiator lifted right out.
The biggest pain in the neck was finding a new fitting to go into the new radiator for the upper trans fluid line. On mine it was a 5/16" inverted nipple with a 90 degree bend in it. The old one was in bad shape and I had an awful time finding a new one. The only local parts house that had one was Car Quest. NAPA, Schucks, several radiator shops, and a number of other parts houses didn't have it. I also found it at Ecklers, but couldn't bring myself to pay $14 for it, plus shipping.
Good luck - You'll be amazed at how simple it is once you dig in...
Marc

Crash Dummy

I started working on pulling my radiator this afternoon and I gotta agree that the shroud is a bit of a pain in the butt. If it wasn't indented around the lower radiator hose and the A-arm on the driver's side it would probably pop right in and out. It will be a couple of weeks before the DeWitt aluminum radiator shows up, so I just kind of checked everything out what was involved. I only noticed one tranny line at the bottom, but there's two lines headed that way so guessing the other one is where? That's a question by the way. :lol:

The cardboard over the aluminum fins sounds like a great idea.

virtue4u

FINISHED! That was so easy. I had the fan, shroud and radiator out in that order within an hour. If I had known it was going to be that easy I would have pulled the radiator out a long time ago just to paint the interior of the shroud. No messing with the hood. My wife helped lift one end of the radiator when it was freed.
I ordered POR 15 for the support bracket and am waiting for a new Dewitt Aluminum radiator. I also repainted the faces of some pulleys and other hard to reach areas. It was fun and easy.