How to: Change out the radiator for a Nissan Frontier.
Hello
Before delving into pictures, make a mental note of the few items listed below for a safer and more enjoyable repair experience: Firstly, before heading out to your favorite store, call to make sure that the radiator that fits your model car is available and in stock. Secondly, pick up a radiator flush kit to rid any residual coolant in the system and pick up a gallon of coolant for after the installation. Thirdly, be sure that the vehicle has been off for awhile and that all engine components are cool to the touch.
Note the three point of contact: inlet and outlet marked by the red cap, and the overflow connector at the neck of radiator cap.
The bottom hose connected to the radiator. NOTE: Drain radiator fluid before disconnecting. Otherwise, you’ll get coolant all over the place.
Remove the left-hand (facing vehicle) bracket for better access to the intake hose. This step needs to be done later in order to remove the radiator.
Fan box and radiator separation. There are two rounded rectangular pegs at the bottom of the fan box that is seated on a small plastic ledge with holes built into the radiator. After unscrewing the fan box, push the box towards the engine and lift the fan box off its seat.
Once the brackets on top are removed, the hoses disconnected, and the fan box separated, it’s simply a matter of carefully lifting the radiator from its slot.
Reverse the disassemble process to make whole your vehicle. Once everything is replaced, fill the new radiator with 50/50 water and antifreeze coolant. The aftermarket radiator that I purchased had a minor defect where the fan box was seated to the ledge. The distance of the rounded-rectangular cut out in the ledge where the pegs from the fan box were to have been inserted were off by 2mm. The 2 mm caused me an extra 20 minutes of improvised sawing to make the thing work. Best of luck with your radiator repair adventures. Feel free to drop a comment with further questions or concerns.
good job. great picks. no master mech. needed.
Do you have any video of that? I’d love to find out some additional information.
Unfortunately, I’ve not forayed into the field of video DIYing. All the best with your repair attempts, Friend.
Thanks for the information! The radiator in my car badly needs to be changed out for a new one, so these instructions will help me to remove it without damaging my car. It’s a good thing that you posted information about what to do before picking up a new radiator. Calling an auto store to see if they have the right radiator for your car in stock seems like a good way to make sure that the process of swapping car parts goes more smoothly. I haven’t picked up my new radiator yet, so I’ll be sure to call and make sure that the radiator for my car is in stock and ready to be picked up before I do any work on my car.
All the best with the radiator replacement, Deanna.