I won the plastic radiator lottery and now get to install a new radiator! I wonder what is the easiest, least "try it and see" way to swap it out? I saw a few threads that mention that I have to remove the AC condenser and fan. Not having looked too far into it, I imagine the dealership would have a time saving/profit making way to avoid some of that and I want to avoid having to vacuum and recharge the AC as well as buy special tools to get the fan off. Has anybody done this yet? I'm probably going to have to do it at night by flashlight/droplight unless I get a weekend free so any help before hand will be appreciated.

 

I looked at it a little tonight, it looks like the radiator is held in place with 3 bolts and 2 locator pins/bushings at the lower corners. If the radiator shroud splits in half horizontally then I should be able to get the space I need without removing the fan and the radiator should? clear the a/c lines to the condenser in front of the radiator right? Did I miss something? I hear this job is supposed to be moderately difficult.

 

book says u remove fan but not disconnect air,,just move back,WITH CARE!

lots of steps but most are as u see them.
i dont know how the tran lines unhook, a quik connect?

obviously messing with plastic is scary,dont break new one!!

 

Don't forget to put about 3qts of transmission fluid back in after the swap. The dealer forgot to do that when I had mine replaced last week. It was 3qt low. No, it wasn't low when I took it in.

 

I'm curious if GM redesigned the radiators to eliminate the failure mode in question. Can we get some kind of survey as to the vehicle years anyone has experienced this fracturing. Seems like I've seen a few '06's & '07's. Can't recall if anyone posted for an '08 or later.

 

Thanks for the reminder about the tranny fluid, I'll have that on hand before tearing it down. Until the new radiator comes in I'm going to try to JBWeld it. That should hold long enough for the new one to arrive. Shephard has one for $140 on their website versus the $400 or so from GM.

The radiator is the same for all years so I bet we start having more 2008/2009 complaints show up in the new year.

 

if the crack is in a workable place,,i once sand blasted a probe rad, crack 3 -4 in long,a layer of epoxy,then a fresh layer with wire screen. then a coupl more layers.

it was in the probe a few yrs ,sold it.

that plastic got a white look to it when sanded, the epoxy stuck good.

sand blast is best,then air blow it clean

 

so my 06 h3 with 51,000 miles (coincidentally) decided to crack in the same exact place as everyone else describes, the top right side. it sprung a nice leak and the fan sprayed it all over my engine compartment. im not sure how far i drove on practically zero coolant because the truck never even got hot, i didnt notice anything till i got home and my friend said he smelled burnt coolant and tranny fluid...popped the hood and saw the spray, and the reservoir was practically empty. Took it to the local hummer dealership which i know too well and they told me that not only is the radiator done but also the water pump and serpentine belt and that'll be $1200 thank you. So since i've had my truck in and out of this dealer(not the dealer i bought it from)for maintenance andrepairs i have a raport with the service manager who is very helpful, so i asked if she might talk to GM for me since my truck is barely out of warranty and she said she would do what she can for me. Long story short...GM actually ended up footing half of the bill for me, which is great but $600 two weeks before christmas kinda stings. As in those are my christmas presents...and i took the old parts to make christmas dinner out of. haha.
by the way, it is the gm replacement and it is a different design...they added a bracket in the middle to hold the radiator securely away from the frame..plus it just looks like a different radiator. ill get some pics if anyone wants to see.
As for a recall, doesnt there have to be a safety issue involved in order for a recall? Which is ridiculous since there seems to be many design flaws with the 06's...but somehow i still love my h3 more than any other car i've owned. go figure.
quick question, the gm radiator, water pump, and belt cost about $700...and it was $500 for labor...does that seem like an excessive amount of labor? 4-5 hours? Good luck with your rads fellas.

 

ahhh, tranny fluid? if the rad cracked on top,,,how come tranny fluid?

they say coollant leaking into tranny wrecks it pretty quik! seals-clutches etc. did they service trans? if not you may be looking at a "unhappy new year"

if there was tranny fluid, that was a separate issue. sumthin fishey

 

That would be great! One other member had this problem a while back, and promised to post pic's, but never did.