I bought a used radiator on e-bay to have for a spare. This one was used from 2004 until recently. This one has the metal tanks, and is set up for the Automatic transmission cooling lines. The radiator has no damage. My question is this: Should I go ahead and have the radiator chemically cleaned, painted and sealed in a plastic bag, or should I wait until it is needed, and then have the unit cleaned? I am thinking that any ethylene glycol that remains in the core might solidify and cause problems dowm the road. Any idea's? Did I do well in getting the one with the metal tanks, or should I have gotten one with the plastic tanks? Sorry about the length of the post.

Bill

If you have a good radiator shop in mind, get it done over.

That way you can do an immediate repair if need be. Besides, what if the spare is defective?

Good shops go out of business all the time - retirement, death, changing environmental regs, etc.
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'96 855R,'64 PV544 driver, '67 P1800 basket case, '95 855, '95 854, the first three are mine, heh, heh, 435,000 miles put on 9 bricks

Consider flushing it out well with water - garden hose.
If storing where critters could get into the hose necks, close them off somehow.

I don't think I'd get it painted - paint would probably interfere with the cooling action.
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Sven: '89 245 NA, 951 ECU, expanded air dam, forward belly pan reaches oem belly pan, airbox heater upgraded, E-fan, 205/65-15 at 50 psi, IPD sways, no a/c-p/s belt, E-Codes, amber front corner reflectors, aero front face, quad horns, tach, small clock.

funny! i just picked up what appeared to be a new radiator at the junkyard and had some of the same questions. i went ahead and rinsed out the coolant portion of the system and have been drying it out about 8' away from a wood stove.

what is the recommended preparation for the ATF cooling system before storage? i tried rinsing it with water and got most of the fluid out, but there still appears to be a slight sludge of ATF fluid if i blow into one of the ports (using a PVC tube). is there any way to test the ATF cooling system as i understand if that part fails, your tranny will also fail.

anyways, as a few days have passed i have been wondering if its worth the gamble with a possibly bad ATF cooler? the radiator i picked up was an all metal nissens painted black. it was $30 and looks new. if i am only going to save $100, i am not sure if its worth worrying about the condition of the internal ATF cooling lines? doing some more research i see the oem blackstone's are very highly acclaimed. is only a blackstone worth buying from a junkyard? i don't want to ruin my tranny to save $100.

I'm glad that you are the one who answered the post. I have been following the brickboard, and find that you give the most well thought out answers on a routine basis. I appreciate everything that you take your precious time to help the rest of us with.

Bill