Removing radiator trouble

volvo850955555 · Post by **volvo850955555** » 19 May 2011, 17:49

My car was in an accident and I need a new radiator. I was working on it and got both big coolant lines off. There is a line on each side on the bottom of the radiator that I cannot get off that are made of metal. It looks like I need to use an allen wrench to remove them but I cannot get it to move. How do I get these off?

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 19 May 2011, 18:39

Those are spring clips, just spread them out and then slip the respective oil lines out. You will lose oil in the process so be prepared to catch the stuff that leaks out and also be prepared to re-fill both the engine and the transmission with oil and fluid respectively. If you have a turbo and an automatic there are actually 4 such connections to deal with.

I have found that pliers that you would use to spread a snap ring work pretty well but I have also found that they are often rusted to the point where you really should replace them rather than re-use them. If nothing else put a zip tie around them if you use the old stuff over again.

...Lee

volvo850955555 · Post by **volvo850955555** » 19 May 2011, 18:58

Thats the problem I dont see any spring clips are they near the radiator? I can take a pic tommorow.

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 19 May 2011, 19:06

The radiator may have been replaced before and the oil line spring clips might have been backed up with some kind of hose clamp. Pictures would help for sure since there is nothing that I recall on the radiator that took an Allen wrench.

...Lee

volvo850955555 · Post by **volvo850955555** » 20 May 2011, 11:48

Here are the pics (both are upsidedown)

Post by **jblackburn** » 20 May 2011, 11:55

Thatttt looks like where the oil cooler or lines were leaking and someone "modded" it to fit.

I think you're probably in for a set of new cooler lines to mate up with the new radiator too...

Normally, they look like this

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 20 May 2011, 12:08

What you have pictured is the condenser coil for the air conditioner - it unbolts from the radiator.

...Lee

Post by **jblackburn** » 20 May 2011, 12:09

Yes, they separate. The condenser stays in the car while the intercooler and radiator drop down as a whole unit and then are separated once they come down. Use a bungee cord or something to hold the condenser up so you don't stress the lines.

volvo850955555 · Post by **volvo850955555** » 20 May 2011, 12:23

so do I just cut it off since I need a new radiator?

Post by **jblackburn** » 20 May 2011, 12:29

No; undo those two bolts you see in your pictures at the bottom.

Then there's a bolt behind each headlight that will separate the radiator and intercooler assembly from the condenser. They're a real pain to get to.

I think you should probably read this:
http://volvospeed.com/volvo_repairs_how ... ement.html