Just replaced the radiator in my 78 Estate Wagon and the upper tranny cooler line is leaking at the radiator with a steady drip. It’s not cross threaded and it’s as tight as I want to turn it. I don’t normally use a thread sealant but is that recommended and if so what type? The bottom fitting seems to have sealed like I would expect. Ive walked away from it today so I don’t do something I regret! Any thoughts?
Also the (double) flared end has to find it place up against its mate. If it's forced off center it might pinch and not seal... Taking it off and inspecting the flare with some magnification is probably a good place to start...
Thanks guys. I’ll take another closer look and see. You might be right and it may be off center a bit so not sealing well, but I don’t think that it was cracked. It was a bit frozen on so took a bit of careful coaxing to get it off, but it screwed back in clean. I’ll get back to it shortly but I had to walk away today as I probably would have FUBAR’d it if I kept going.
My advice is to loosen the fitting, wiggle the line around a bit and try to snug it back up while wiggling it to ensure it’s seated properly.
All of the above. The flare seals up against the seat, the threads have nothing to do with it. Loosen it back up and ensure the flare is seated straight. Bend the line a bit so that it is, then re tighten.
Thanks for the reassurance guys. I removed the line, carefully adjusted the line back straight (it was bent only very slightly) and reattached. No leaks. Cheers!
I have repaired a lot of tiny leaks (car and house) after apparent good assembly (and probably caused by a tiny flaw), with a bit of that blue form-a gasket. One was a trans cooling tube to an Asian radiator. Bruce Roe
