Radiator
 

Happy Thanksgiving guys.

Quick question,

How weak is the radiator on the 4.8IS? Can all other cooling parts be replaced and not the radiator without failure down the road?

I'm not aware of an MTBF that would necessitate a preemptive replacement. It's a pretty easy job if it eventually fails.

As far as I know they're pretty strong as I also have 2005 4.8iS that has had zero cooling issues and I regularly drive with air temperatures in excess of 135f in the shade. But mine has the "gulf" package so that may be different.

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I say they last about 100k miles in North East climate. Mine started dripping at one point, swapped it out in like 30 min.

I would say radiator is not really a weak spot. Probably will eventually start leaking very slowly(as was mentioned) at the gaskets for the end tanks as they shrink a bit giving lots of warning.

I'm at 170k; mine gets replaced tomorrow, along with the trans cooler, thermostat, bracket and a bunch of hoses.

Unlike the E39, I’ve never heard this part to be a weak spot, that is why I’m asking. But I guess the smart thing to do is to replace it anyway since I’ll be in there. I’m just over 100k.

My original radiator was replaced at 186k miles recently, still working fine. Only thing not perfect about it was that the nipple for the upper radiator hose was a little crumbly. No leaks at all. 2001 3.0i.