Radiator on a 2006 Mercury Mountaineer. Has anyone replaced one and how difficult was

[somay1992]

Our 2006 Mercury Mountaineer needs a new radiator according to the dealership that changed our oil yesterday. The tank seals have apparantly hardened and leak. Nobody that I have talked to thinks that replacing the seals is the solution because the problem will just occur again and they talked like this is a common occurance. If so shouldn't Ford step up to the plate and help you out - warranty or not? Anyway the dealer quoted a price of $640 for installation of a new radiator. I think it sounds outrageous. I know they are no doubt quoting OEM parts and aftermarket parts may change that quote quite a bit but even so it seems really high. I think they said it would be $200 to $250 for labor alone. How difficult are they to change out? I am no mechanic by any means but am not a dummy either. Can a person do this without special tools? I guess if I could get this done for around $300 I would not bother messing with it so if any mechanics out there seeing this price as a possibility please also let me know.
Thanks.

 

[Flag Gibby]

The question is: do you see coolant under the vehicle before you use it or after you use it or do you see some puddled inside the engine compartment? I have never heard of someone saying that the tank seals on the radiator have hardened and leak on these vehicles. Usually what happens is that the high pressure of the system causes something to completely crack. As far as the pricing goes, it seems about right since they will be using only OEM parts and the transmission cooler is integrated into the radiator. For a first time job I would not recommend trying to do it since you will be filling the coolant system and topping off the transmission once the new one is in.

 

[NORDFORD]

This is a huge pain in the rear. I did this in my old 2007 explorer. I'm experienced and it took 4 hours start to finish. And I had about $300 in parts, coolant, etc

 

[Tech By Trade]

Easy job, all you need are a few wrenches, a small screw driver to open the transmission cooler connections a bucket to catch the antifreeze, and a couple hours of time. Get the OEM rad, the transmission cooler connections on the aftermarket will leak. There is a real good guide in forums. Don't forget to burp the air out of the system when you are done.

 

[Explorer_PL]

I did it on my 06 v8 at 150k miles. I got an aftermarket one for $ 190 plus new hoses and coolant. It takes about 4 hours to do it on the driveway, and I have all the tools. It's not complicated but getting the old one out and putting a new one in takes most of the few hours. You also need to dissemble the intake, and the coolant reservoir.

$ 670 from the dealer sounds like a good price, I heard quotes around $ 1000 from the dealers. somehow my year OEM radiator is about $ 700. If you can get a shop do it for $ 400, than no questions.

 

[drags1955]

Radiator

I bought an after market rad because they offered a life time warranty (O Riley's )