on the way home from school today my radiator blew a hole right in the driver side of it and shor coolant out on the hood and under the car. it was not pretty but what would have caused it? my serpentine belt flew off but i don't know if that happened before or after the radiator blew.

 

anybody have any ideas?

 

Last time I saw a cooling systyem component besides a hose blow there was A cracked head and compression was getting into the cooling system. How did it run before and after? Check all your belt pulleys make sure one of them isn't locked up. Not many other reasons for a serp belt to come off. They rarely break.

 

it was running fine before and after, and none of the pulleys are siezed or anything. i can't understand how it would have happened. but i think the rad was original to the car would an 18 yr old raidator blow?

 

The way the original rad is, the side tanks are plastic and they are just crimped to the core with a rubber gasket so hopefully that's all it was. Maybe a piece of the tank took the belt with it. As long as it was running good odds are good that the motor is ok. Just to be safe when you get it put together get a radiator pressure tester, you can get one from autozone, put the tester on the radiator but do not pump it up just let the car idle for a while and make sure the pressure doesn't build up fast. By fast I mean 10-15 psi or more in just a few minutes. That will tell you if compression is leaking into the cooling system. Pressure will normally build but it should take quite a while.
Just to over state the obvious be careful taking the tester off, hot coolant and all that safety disclaimer stuff.

GL

 

the plastic tank actually blew open it didn't pull away from the core. what could have caused compression to leak into the coolant system?

 

You probably don't really want to know, possible blown head gasket, cracked head, or even way less likely a crack in the block. Head gasket most common but usually noticed by the engine feeling like it has a miss in it.

 

About a year ago one of the side tanks on the radiator in my car split open just as you described. I doubt that you have a blown head gasket. Things like this happen as these cars get older.

 

I agree since it was running good before that's most likely all it is. Just for your peace of mind check it the way I described earlier. You will probably be fine but an extra half hour or so will sure make you feel better.

Use a new rad cap

 

My radiator did the same thing as a result of old coolant and a rusty block. Basically the system got so clogged up that the pressure blew the tank on the old stock radiator. I would guess that replacing the radiator and the hoses and flushing the system might do the trick.

 

that makes me feel a lot better now, i have another engine that i was going to rebuild but that wasn't gonmna happen until the fall when i have the money for it, and i don't think i mentioned before but my coolant is a really ugly rusty color. is there a way i can flush out the coolant passages in the block without having the radiator or water pump or anything hooked up?