My car is a 93 ford escortIt has a hole in the radiatorThe side facing the motorIts not a huge holeBut its big enough to have a constant flow of waterIs there a way to fix this?
I'll try and explainThe radiator contains two tanks on each end or top and bottom (ends I believe in your Escort)Those tanks are connected via flat tubes or sometimes called flutesThere are thin veins connected on those to help remove heat from the water that flows through themThere will be two or more rows of those stacked which make up the thickness of the radiatorIf one or two of those tubes has split, it is possible to block off that (or those) tubesOn a brass radiator, that means simply soldering it shutYou have aluminum tubes which can be blocked as wellI have had success doing thisFirst, locate the leak, then using a knife blade cut the fins away from the tube to expose about two or three inches of the tubeCut the tube at the leak and open them a tad bit with a tool of some sort and put some Permatex Form-a-Gasket or even RTV inside the tube, not a whole lot, just a tadThen using needle nose pliers, crimp (flatten) the tube endsThe radiator has to be empty to do this, and it lowers the cooling capacity, but one or two tubes won't even be noticed.
