Leaking radiator suggestions

Hi!

I have been a proud owner of a diesel DDiS K9K 266 Jimny for about 3 months. Due to some unfortunate luck, I have ended up with a leaking spot in my radiator, about 1 cm in size. I have spent the whole day looking for options to buy a new radiator since almost all advice on the internet says it's pointless to try to patch it. The problem is that since this configuration of the Jimny is so rare, at least here in Northern Europe, the only radiators I have found are between €400-600. In contrast, ones fitting a petrol Jimny can be picked up for €30 used or €60 new.

Does anyone have experience with this problem? Is it worth it to look for a shop to try to fix the radiator? Does anyone have suggestions on either fixing or finding better value options? Maybe a radiator produced for another car can easily be fitted?

 

cheers

I'm a little surprised that a radiator for a Gen3 Jimny model is not available, but if you are really stuck then a specialist radiator shop -- one that does nothing but radiator work -- will be able to help.

In the past, when I have had the problem of a broken modern (aluminium & plastic) radiator that was NLA from the manufacturer or the aftermarket, the answer was one of two things:

1) a generic modern radiator that would fit. The rad shop has catalogs of them, organized by dimensions and inlet/outlet placement. They can apply mounting tabs as needed.

2) a bespoke all-aluminium radiator. This is probably not an economical option for a Jimny.


You are correct that home repair is not an option. I would say, take it in to a rad specialist and let them tell you what the alternatives look like.*

Good luck


*if you are 100% sure that no new Jimny-specific radiators are available 

There appear to be some on eBay, here is one

EBay item 126783394551

Although they might not ship to your country.

Only option I have found in "ok price range" is this one:

vitale-radiateurs.com/en/home/3346-radia...-84a00-su880084.html

Does anyone have experience with this brand?

Local dealership answered with an offer of 1000€ for the part. 

Thanks for suggestion.
With shipping it will be almost as expensive as other options and take up to 2 months to arrive. 

I wouldn't discount @DrRobin's suggestion so quickly.

Note that the eBay auction he posted is a "best offer" listing.  Further, if you look at Aliexpress -- where many Chinese manufacturers list -- the typical price for an aluminum radiator is lower than the eBay price.  Put that together and I say, no harm in making a lower offer.

For timing, you can ask them to ship more quickly if needed.  In my experience, things from coastal China arrive very quickly in general, and shipping can be very cheap.  (I am also on the Baltic.)

But of course it is easier to buy from an EU seller.

If it were me I might be tempted to spend a little more money/effort on the Chinese radiator, as it is all-aluminum and can be repaired -- and you don't want to have to go through this again if you get a stone chip on week after fitting the new rad.