Changing radiator cap as PM

[mclasser]

I changed the cap on my Infiniti when doing the radiator at around 100K just for peace of mind; nothing was wrong with it. My Accord's cap is 15 yrs old and I'm thinking about changing it for, again, peace of mind. The dealer sells it for $14 which is not bad.

Do you guys change the cap when it reaches a certain age?

 

[46Harry]

I replace the caps on my cars every 5 years. I have a cap tester and I've found that some but not all caps start to go bad around that time. It's my opinion that pressure caps are not expensive, so I replace them

 

[901Memphis]

Yes I do them by age because of how cheap and critical they are to the system

 

[Chris142]

Originally Posted By: 901Memphis
Yes I do them by age because of how cheap and critical they are to the system
more critical tha most people know

 

[Tomioka]

I replace the cap every coolant change interval. It says so on the radiator cap when changing coolant.

 

[gathermewool]

What's the risk/consequence of not doing this?

 

[eljefino]

You can test them by cracking them open on a warm but not hot car. Listen for the whoosh.

I don't change them as PM.

I'm happy with parts store generic caps.

I've had some bad ones- particularly volvo and saturn/ GM.

 

[Trav]

I just test them, if its not holding the correct psi it gets replaced with an OE cap only, no aftermarket trash.

 

[mclasser]

Originally Posted By: gathermewool
What's the risk/consequence of not doing this?

Random overheating due to coolant loss. I legitimately have nightmares about overheating and HG gasket damage.

 

[crazyoildude]

i service a 2001 escape v6 that has absolutely no pressure build up at all anytime its crazy it runs great and has been like this for 80,000 miles.. There does not seem to be a leak anywhere and never any coolant lost

 

[Tomioka]

Originally Posted By: gathermewool
What's the risk/consequence of not doing this?


Lack of overheating/overboiling protection. A properly functioning 15psi cap will raise cooling system boiling point to ~267F in case of an overheating situation. On most vehicles that's where the temp gauge peaks so if the temp gauge climbs toward overheating you can shut off the engine to allow it to cool down.

 

[JamesBond]

I have tested them with the cap tester that they loan at advance auto, my ford caps always test bad, Honda ones test good. Get a replacement cap that is made in Japan.

 

[artificialist]

I replace them every 3 years. Although I read no documentation of it, I find that the antifreeze stays cleaner when the caps are changed regularly.

 

[zzyzzx]

I have never changed a radiator cap as PM, and have never had a car overheat.

 

[Nick1994]

I replace them too, then throw the old one in the glove box. Did that on my grandfather's Jeep and then 2 years later the radiator cap started leaking and it overheated while we were in the middle of the desert. I topped it off with bottled water and put the old cap from the glove box on, no leaks.

 

[Chris142]

Often the rubber seal swells.once it does that it becomes a cork and won't vent no matter how much pressure is behind it so something else gives. Radiator,heater,a hose etc. I'd say not venting is more common than not holding pressure

 

[Colt45ws]

Ive had more than a few cars start randomly overheating and replacing the cap fixes it. They stop holding pressure and cause overheating from what Ive found. My old Cavalier one day out of the blue started hitting 240F and spitting coolant every where...bad cap. Then Ive had a few friends and family, most recently a coworker fighting overheating on a Accord. He basically replaced everything you could think of trying to fix it overheating. He replaced the cap at my suggestion. It no longer overheats.
So, yeah, I replace them as PM. 3-5 years is normal for me.

 

[dishdude]

If it's more than a few years old, I change it when I do a drain and refill.

 

[KingCake]

Originally Posted By: dishdude
If it's more than a few years old, I change it when I do a drain and refill.


Yep I usually change it whenever I change a thermostat for PM (about every 100K). I get OEM caps though. Stant is garbage.

 

[cmhj]

I jack it up and change the car.