Coolant crossover pipe rust hole

Pulled off the crossover to repaint, after sanding I found a rust hole. See the attached .

Can I fix this? Or should I replace, and if so where can I find one in North America.


Can I just JBweld it?

Can you try soldering it? I suppose the real question is how far gone is the rest of the pipe?

Agree with Robin. If you can’t find another, and if you can will it be any better? Brazing might be better than soldering.

Geoff …

This is a no brainer … Braze it ! Because of the heat of the coolant the pipe will expand and contract and JB weld (and silly putty :grinning:) will crack after it hardens.

If you need to take it to a garage to have it done then place a thin piece of metal over the hole and secure it with a hose clamp. It may leak a little but it will get you there. Make sure they use the correct braze if the pipe is steel or aluminum.

Geoff, go to the archives and search for two threads-
Cathouse Spares in Oz.
and Copper coolant crossover pipe conclusion.
That material should help.
You could patch the hole using a Mapp torch and flux coated bronze (and a patch) but my concern would be the overall condition of the rest of the cooling system, because of the rust shown in the fill tube.

Brazing is the only way to fix that properly.
Solder and iron don’t like each other very much.
JB Weld will eventually give due to the metal’s expansion and contraction.

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I took it into a rad shop, they say they will fix it with brazing.

I had the Rad recored, expansion tank replaced and all cooling hoses. Decided to assess the crossover pipe while I had everything off, its a good thing I did.

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They fixed my pipe, ordered another I found on the internet as backup as the rad shop says he wouldn’t trust it past 5 years. It did hold 20 PSI with no issue.

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