SS 1LE Aux Radiator Failure

Provoste · 01-02-2019, 07:22 PM

So I thought I’d give you guys a little heads up, I had my passenger side auxiliary radiator fail on road leaving me stranded. I had driven the SS to VIR from Indiana (750+ miles each way) without issue the previous day in terrible rain/sleet and it was FILTHY. I fired up the SS early Friday morning to go spray off the body and clean out the radiators before my first session on track. About 3 miles from VIR heading towards Danville, I get an “engine overheating reduce engine speed” warning. Mind you, it is 35f out and I haven’t rev’d the motor over 2500rpm. I immediately pull off the road, and ahead to of my passenger front wheel, coolant is pouring out. How our cars don’t have a low coolant sensor is kinda shocking?!?

GM roadside assistance towed it to the nearby Chevy dealer who diagnosed it late Friday with a punctured radiator. They won’t cover it under warranty, and the part is 3-4 days out. No thanks, I’ll fix it myself. Luckily I was with my dad and brother, and we had towed out the ZL1 1LE and the Porsche 964. We ended up just sharing those two on track over the weekend, and I picked up the SS Monday morning from the dealer and trailered it back to Indiana (ZL1 1LE drove home under its own power).

After the failed radiator was replaced, turns out the water pump was leaking now too. Apparently the ceramic bearing on the water pump is very delicate somehow it was damaged in this freak incident, luckily parts aren’t too costly.

Good news is the SS is fully healthy now, took a very long sporty drive with the ZL1 1LE over Christmas break through some of our fav Ohio River backroads. All is well.

A vendor might want to develope a radiator screen kit for your cars.

Boost Creep · 01-02-2019, 07:32 PM

This just happened to someone else recently, same side as well if I'm not mistaken.
There was also a link to an all aluminum replacement radiator.

Glad you're fixed up again.

And it's amazing how much dirt collects on the rear bumper from driving through rain/puddles.

Provoste · 01-02-2019, 07:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boost Creep

This just happened to someone else recently, same side as well if I'm not mistaken.
There was also a link to an all aluminum replacement radiator.

Glad you're fixed up again.

And it's amazing how much dirt collects on the rear bumper from driving through rain/puddles.

Yeah, did AC Delco parts off RockAuto, $120 for the rad, $200 for the water pump.

Boost Creep · 01-02-2019, 07:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Provoste

Yeah, did AC Delco parts off RockAuto, $120 for the rad, $200 for the water pump.

How many miles on the water pump?

Provoste · 01-02-2019, 07:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boost Creep

How many miles on the water pump?

19k. 7500-8000 track miles. I did a Tstat too while in there.

vtirocz · 01-02-2019, 07:56 PM

The water pump seal can definitely be damaged and fail from low coolant/pressure.

BradfordCamaro · 01-02-2019, 08:06 PM

My Rad in front of the Driver side wheel started leaking just over a year ago. It was replaced under warranty.
Which was amusing as the mechanics, service manager and the GM were all impressed with the Cam and headers i just had done.....

Mark114 · 01-02-2019, 08:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Provoste

A vendor might want to develope a radiator screen kit for your cars.

ZL1 Addons has a screen for the main radiator. Looks like a person could fabricate something similar for the side radiators too.

https://www.camaro6.com/forums/showthread.php?t=503438

JGiovando · 01-02-2019, 09:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boost Creep

This just happened to someone else recently, same side as well if I'm not mistaken.
There was also a link to an all aluminum replacement radiator.

Glad you're fixed up again.

And it's amazing how much dirt collects on the rear bumper from driving through rain/puddles.

I had a similar issue a few weeks ago with 1500 miles on mine. The dealer replaced it under warranty as a courtesy but didn't fill the coolant surge tank upper or lower reservoir properly, both nearly empty on receipt of my car....bunch of bone heads. Took em 3 tries, lol. Anyway, they initially said it wasn't a warrantable item but after finding numerous posts similar to ours, clearly it's a design flaw and should be covered, at least that my opinion. The screen seems like the best option atm.

JK001 · 01-03-2019, 04:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Provoste

Yeah, did AC Delco parts off RockAuto, $120 for the rad, $200 for the water pump.

Sorry to hear about the failure, but glad you got it taken care of on the fly!

Why wasn't this a warranty repair? Isn't the car under the 3 year/ 36k mile mark?

Ryephile · 01-03-2019, 04:16 PM

Bummer on the radiator and water pump leaks, but it's also good to hear you're back up and running again.

RUQWIKR · 01-03-2019, 09:55 PM

The screens that come on the ZL1's to protect the outboard coolers work on SS 1LE's. Put them in ages ago. Pulled the fascia to put them in since I was putting the Flow-Tie in at that time as well. The horizontal plastic air baffles have the holes for them to lock into.

kjchristopher · 01-04-2019, 07:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RUQWIKR

The screens that come on the ZL1's to protect the outboard coolers work on SS 1LE's. Put them in ages ago. Pulled the fascia to put them in. The horizontal plastic air baffles have the holes for them to lock into.

Do you have part numbers handy from your order?

NeverDie · 01-04-2019, 09:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mark114

ZL1 Addons has a screen for the main radiator. Looks like a person could fabricate something similar for the side radiators too.

https://www.camaro6.com/forums/showthread.php?t=503438

from plastic double-sided tape 'rock guards' to gutter screen mesh for the radiator, what will they think of next?

01-02-2019, 07:22 PM	#1
Provoste Drives: E46 S54 race car, 964C2 Join Date: Feb 2017 Location: Southern Indiana Posts: 912	SS 1LE Aux Radiator Failure So I thought I’d give you guys a little heads up, I had my passenger side auxiliary radiator fail on road leaving me stranded. I had driven the SS to VIR from Indiana (750+ miles each way) without issue the previous day in terrible rain/sleet and it was FILTHY. I fired up the SS early Friday morning to go spray off the body and clean out the radiators before my first session on track. About 3 miles from VIR heading towards Danville, I get an “engine overheating reduce engine speed” warning. Mind you, it is 35f out and I haven’t rev’d the motor over 2500rpm. I immediately pull off the road, and ahead to of my passenger front wheel, coolant is pouring out. How our cars don’t have a low coolant sensor is kinda shocking?!? GM roadside assistance towed it to the nearby Chevy dealer who diagnosed it late Friday with a punctured radiator. They won’t cover it under warranty, and the part is 3-4 days out. No thanks, I’ll fix it myself. Luckily I was with my dad and brother, and we had towed out the ZL1 1LE and the Porsche 964. We ended up just sharing those two on track over the weekend, and I picked up the SS Monday morning from the dealer and trailered it back to Indiana (ZL1 1LE drove home under its own power). After the failed radiator was replaced, turns out the water pump was leaking now too. Apparently the ceramic bearing on the water pump is very delicate somehow it was damaged in this freak incident, luckily parts aren’t too costly. Good news is the SS is fully healthy now, took a very long sporty drive with the ZL1 1LE over Christmas break through some of our fav Ohio River backroads. All is well. A vendor might want to develope a radiator screen kit for your cars. Attached Images

01-02-2019, 07:32 PM	#2
Boost Creep Drives: '18 1SS 1LE Join Date: Sep 2017 Location: Pennsyltucky Posts: 2,571	This just happened to someone else recently, same side as well if I'm not mistaken. There was also a link to an all aluminum replacement radiator. Glad you're fixed up again. And it's amazing how much dirt collects on the rear bumper from driving through rain/puddles. __________________ '18 1SS *1LE* Black, PDR

01-02-2019, 07:56 PM	#6
vtirocz Drives: 2017 Camaro 1SS M6 Join Date: Apr 2015 Location: Indy Posts: 2,460	The water pump seal can definitely be damaged and fail from low coolant/pressure. __________________ 2017 Camaro 1SS, M6, Hurst shifter, Hyper Blue, NPP, Gray Split Spoke Wheels Best 1/4 Mile: 12.24 @ 115.9 mph

01-02-2019, 08:06 PM	#7
BradfordCamaro SABIO Drives: 2016 CAMARO 1SS Join Date: Jul 2015 Location: Bradford, ON Posts: 5,012	My Rad in front of the Driver side wheel started leaking just over a year ago. It was replaced under warranty. Which was amusing as the mechanics, service manager and the GM were all impressed with the Cam and headers i just had done..... __________________

01-03-2019, 04:16 PM	#11
Ryephile Hot Dog Drives: '17 1SS 1LE Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: Metro Detroit Posts: 1,937	Bummer on the radiator and water pump leaks, but it's also good to hear you're back up and running again. __________________ 2017 "M1SS1LE" in Hyper Blue w/PDR

01-03-2019, 09:55 PM	#12
RUQWIKR Drives: 1LEs Join Date: May 2009 Location: DFW - Texas Posts: 1,319	The screens that come on the ZL1's to protect the outboard coolers work on SS 1LE's. Put them in ages ago. Pulled the fascia to put them in since I was putting the Flow-Tie in at that time as well. The horizontal plastic air baffles have the holes for them to lock into. Last edited by RUQWIKR; 02-18-2019 at 07:04 AM.

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