Radiator advice please

[tucsonjwt]

If the Champion radiator has a pressed in overflow tube I would not buy it. My neighbor has one and it leaked where it was attached to the radiator. He had to cobble up a threaded fitting and elbow to stop the leak.

For about $100 I would try the aluminum/plastic radiator. I don't know why a cold climate would cause a problem. Perhaps the coolant is not compatible with aluminum/plastic radiator. It gets below freezing in the winter here but not below zero, unless you are in the higher elevations. New vehicles all have plastic/aluminum radiators and I have not heard of a lot of them leaking in cold climates. My 2002 Cavalier beater needed a replacement of its original plastic/aluminum radiator last year after about 140,000 miles, and it was in Colorado Springs for much of its life.