I have a 1986 Reliant K Car. Last night while parked all the antifreeze started pouring out. I found the issue but don’t know what goes there or how to fix it
I am attaching a picture
Please note: I am homeless living in this car so the cheapest suggestions are the best but I am eventually going to need to fix this. Also please note I don’t know much about cars
I’ve owned 3 K-cars, but that photo isn’t clear enough for me to recognize anything. It appears that somebody has Mickey-Moused a transmission cooler line?
Are you saying the car was parked and suddenly lost major amounts of coolant? Was the engine running at the time?
CSA
Not knowing where you live…but many cities do have radiator repair shops. Should be cheaper then replacing. You can try the stop-leak solutions, but I give them a 50/50 chance of working correctly
It’s called a smart phone, and yes, homeless people have them because it’s almost impossible to get any sort of job without having access to the internet anymore.
Cars cost significantly less than houses or apartments, so it’s not terribly surprising that a homeless person would have one of those as well. If you lost your house, would you immediately abandon your car, or would you live in it because, hey, it keeps the rain off your head.
The movie stereotype of homeless people being drunk/mentally ill bums who sleep on park benches is neither accurate nor a full picture of homelessness. 33% of the US population is 1 missed paycheck away from being homeless. That’s not an indictment of homeless people (nor is having various necessary possessions and services that cost a lot less than a house) - it’s an indictment of our society.
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That’s a port on the radiator tank that isn’t used.
You can see it in this image on the lower left.
It’s the cap with hose clamp.
In your image, you can see the red hose with a bolt in the end that broke off sitting below the port.
The easiest way I can see to fix it where the car sits is, install an expansion plug in the hole.
These come in different diameters. Just get the correct size.
Tester
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I JB Weld fixed it for now. Hopefully it holds for a long time. Sorry Mustangman. I didn’t want to be homeless living in my car with an internet connection and a camera that I call my phone. I didn’t ask to be homeless after my mom got sick and passed it took a toll and I lost everything besides my car. Sorry that I am homeless but your sarcasm isn’t needed. Other than being homeless I am sure my IQ is higher than yours and I don’t insult people for their misfortunes.
Sorry for your troubles, thinking if wife decides to divorce me I will decide to be homeless, no shame. Luckily she puts up with me. Got a PO box you could PM me? I would like to send you a belated Christmas present.
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Sadly I don’t have a PO Box. I do plan to get one in the next month. Life has just been a little rough lately. My birthday is Friday and I’ll be bored sitting in my car. Thank you though
General delivery?
I have no way to receive mail right now sorry. Thank you though
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“there but by the grace…”
While I’m agnostic I do recognize that somehow I have on several occasions avoided the just deserts of various mistakes and for that I am grateful and it has occurred to me to throw out a hand to those who weren’t quite as lucky as me from time to time. As tough as things were in the mid 70s I think the current situation is worse for many…
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Good for you for getting the leak stopped. Hopefully it will stay fixed. No experience w/Reliant , but I had a leaky radiator on my Corolla a few years ago and the aftermarket replacement cost less than $100, so that could be your back-up plan.
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There are MANY homeless families living in NH and MA who’s parents have full time jobs. Unfortunately these are low paying WallMart jobs that don’t provide a living wage. My youngest son had a good friend in high-school who’s family was in that situation. He kept it secret for years. Son didn’t find out until after high-school.
If that were true, I doubt you’d be homeless. Good luck.
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Really? You’re going there? Unless you’ve been in their shoes then you have no idea their education or how they got in this situation.
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You have no idea what I’ve experienced either.
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@Mustangman And @common_sense_answer please lay off the commentary and judgment of the homeless.
We have enough commentary here about the poor judgment of people who take on debt and haven’t pulled themselves up by their bootstraps. The fact is, we don’t know anything about what Rick has come from, and no one knows what the future holds for him.This reminds me of the thread a few months ago of a woman who was living rent free with family after a bad divorce or husband’s death or something, and needed a car to commute, and she was told to exercise and move close to work. It’s a tough crowd here. We are not here to question anybody’s life choices. If you don’t have something to offer Rick, please don’t say anything. Thanks.
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I’m not the one making judgments
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I have owned and operated 3 K-cars, three Dodge Aries (sister ships to the Plymouth Reliant), an 82 (carb), an 86 (FI), and an 88 (FI). The first one caused me to buy the other two. They were terrific cars, all with a 2.2L engine.
When we were married in 1984, we decided to relocate 300 miles north. So, we quit our jobs and rolled the dice that we’d find employment in our new locale.
That first year, we had very low-paying jobs. My wife was a waitress and I worked evenings (closing up at 11:00 p.m.) at a convenience store/gas station. We didn’t earn a living wage, so we added more jobs, totalling 7 jobs in that one year (I remember our tax return), simultaneously, working all kinds of hours. One of my jobs, for example, was a self-taught real estate sales person. For the license I had to drive 100 miles for the exam.
We were recognized for hard work and applied for more meaningful employment which we both had by year two.
If it wasn’t for a very reliable old Dodge Aries and an old 76 Toronado, we would have never pulled off all the driving to get to and from 7 jobs in a very rural area with miles to travel in all kinds of weather.
Our local stores here go without employees because many folks pass on employment because it’s not a “living wage” job. Our local WalMart can’t get help. However I learned from my flight instructor that one has to do whatever it takes to get the job done, even if we had to have 7 jobs and drive an old Aries!
Those Chrysler K-cars (Reliant and Aries) and the 2.2L engine were great. If I had one I’d keep it going as long as possible.
In the situation of the O.P. I sure hope the radiator “fix” holds and the employment picture improves soon!
CSA
That was then…This is now - Wages have not kept up to inflation. Wages at the lower end for uneducated workers have fallen to inflation. Not even close. Wages for professionals have kept up. The higher paying jobs for the unskilled labor force has fallen, but there are more minimum wage jobs. More and more people are getting trapped in the minimum wage area with little or no chance of getting out.
Here in NH and MA there aren’t enough hours in the day to earn enough on low paying jobs for a family of 4. Maybe where you live.
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