supercedar

Anyone ever use table pepper for radiator leaks in their 928?
Thomas

LUCKYJACKASS

Not in my 928. I've done it to my Jeep temporarily and some ****boxes I have owned over the years and it worked. I don't think I could bring myself to put pepper in either of my Porsches.

mark kibort

Ill say it again! use barrs stop leak. it works and has no down side. In fact, just last week, my friends big diesel turbo Ford was leaking out of the heads. we added it and drove it around for 30min and the leak is totally gone. he was losing about 2 quarts every 2 days or so.

S4ordie

Yes, but not too much or else it will ruin the taste of the antifreeze.

Like MK I have used Barr's Stop Leak but only on engines/radiators that were well worn. Not sure I would be brave enough to do it to a relatively young young car. Just seems like it has the potential to clog up small passages.

supercedar

I have used it a few times in various trucks. I only use a teaspoon. Thanks for the replies and I am skeptical of using the whole can of Bars Leak for a small radiator leak.

Schocki

I used Barrs in my 944 and 928 already and it always worked just fine. I have it in the GTS just to prevent leaks . Just make sure you put it directly in the radiator NOT in the expansion tank! I always pre mix the stuff with some coolant that I use in my cooling system.
I fixed a major radiator side tank leak last winter and there was no barrs anywhere to cause problems (no clogged radiator internal coolant passages). The car is driven on a regular basis on the Autobahn at speeds beyond 130 MPH. No problems at all.

Mongo

Spicy...

I agree with Barrs though.

LT Texan

A "palm full" stopped the radiator leak in my '69 Camaro.

I bet it's is no worse than Barrs.

But I wouldn't do it.

Mike Simard

Ginger root is what modern sealers are made from, Bars Leak, GM tablets etc.
The best sealer would be aluminum powder but you can't buy it anymore. You may see silver containers and sparkles but they add mica particles to make it appear like aluminum. The main ingredient in all of them is Ginger.

mark kibort

It has NO effect on small passages. Ive already taken the engine apart after a year of using the stuff. the radiator is only stained a little orange in color, but thats it. clean as a whistle. why would you use "pepper" in a porsche engine? Barrs is about $5. it works and causes no harm.

supercedar

The reason I would prefer pepper is that it seems more natural than a can of milk with rabbit turds(barrs). The pepper seems so soft compared to other methods.

mark kibort

you obviously have not seen Barrs stop leak. there are no "rabbit turds" or anything that is not visably desolved in the solution. You might be thinking of the cracked block formulas, or head gasket leak solutions that DO NOT WORK. (and have piles of copper, stuff and maybe rabbit turds) why dont you power your car with wesson oil, its more natural than Gasoline?
There is nothing in barrs to clog anything. its just chemicals that react to oxigen and have a clotting characteristic when the fluid sees air, and at the same time, is being forced through a small hole. otherwise, it is a very good pump lubricant, which is one of its purposes as well.

Now, you go ahead and toss some "pepper" in your radiator. I dont know what it does to other things in your system or how it will effect the water pump or gather up at the radiator base and clog openings, but it seems pretty stupid of an idea, based on knowing there is something that is available that is proven to work and not hurt your car .

WallyP

General Motors believes in Bar's Leak - their "cooling system supplement" is identical to the Bar's Leak tablets. It is installed at the factory, and the factory shop manual for the aluminum-engined GM cars calls for the tablets to be used at every coolant change, not just when the system leaks. (The Bar's Leak website says, "Bar's Leaks is factory installed in 3 out of 4 new cars made in USA by such as General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler...")

The Bar's Leak tablets and powder consists of ground ginger and walnut shell, coated with water-soluble oil. The company says that the tiny particles shrink 15% when saturated with water. When the particles are exposed to outside air while exiting a leak, they expand by 15%, helping to make a firm patch.

I have used it quite a few times, and didn't hesitate to use it in my 928s.

Edit: Fixing the radiator is the best option!

Rob Edwards

My vote would be to fix the radiator leak.

F451

Super,

Where exactly is the rad leaking?

I had good service from a rad guy in Redmond, he replaced my leaking side tank, was very knowledgeable about Behr radiators and the rad end tank replacement process - taking care not to break tabs, etc.

Ed