radiator - is it usable ?

[brownrock]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and experiences.
What did I learn from this?
That there are still companies out there that REALLY care about the quality of their products and service. Nissens proved it ‘above and beyond the call’. Well engineered, well made, sterling service. Other companies like the ones that make my OE water pump (viewtopic.php?p=608484#p608484) or brake rotors and pads have proven to me time and again that they do too, sometimes, and only on a very selective and limited basis!
In response to my question to Nissens: ‘Is this radiator useable as is?’ rather than ignore my email or pass the buck or answer in vague terms to skirt the issue entirely, they immediately acknowledged the problem, took ownership, erred on the side of caution and recommended that I get my hands on an undamaged unit (even though in all likelihood the damage seemed more cosmetic than structural).
Nissens could have left it at that but instead rather than leave me with my problem, they arranged for a replacement unit. What more could I hope or ask for?
When and where did the damage occur? Hard to tell. Your experience (which sounds similar to mine in many ways) suggests ‘upstream’, closer to the point of manufacturing, though it could also have happened during warehousing and handling. I very much doubt that it happened when it was with Fedex.
Then again, who knows that this unit wasn’t a factory reject that some unscrupulous parts dealer got a hold of and funneled back into the system unbeknownst to Nissens and Rock.
RockAuto is a logistics company and I think they did the best that they could. They replaced the damaged unit, no questions asked, no hassle, paid for S & H out of their pocket and in the end gave me a full refund including S & H.
I’m in Canada so S & H is a big deal (always a big part of the cost). I compare RockAuto's service to other parts suppliers out there who make a big to do about how wonderful they are but when I have to return a part one or more times they demand I pay for shipping out of my pocket even when it’s a quality problem beyond my control.