Bongo Fury

Rad is blown, so all advice is welcome. I have seen prices from £68 to £450, and obviously genuine Mazda is more expensive, if you can find one.

Personal recommendations very welcome!

Thanks

Derek

I paid £259 for a genuine one from Magna Mazda in Southampton. Order before 11 am and they get it in next day.

Russell.

Thanks, but..

sounds expensive. Is it really worth the extra for a genuine Mazda part?

Derek

Mazdabongoshop is a place which do them.... made by the suppliers of Mazda... http://www.mazdabongoshop.co.uk/Shop/Co ... iator.html

I got an aftermarket rad from the bongo shop and it made my Bongo run loads hotter. Put the Mazda genuine rad on and the gauge never goes above 12 o'clock. IMHO the genuine one is well worth the peace of mind.

You pays your money you takes your choice.

Russell.

I bought a replacement rad from Euro Car Parts last year. Exact match to the original, 2 yr warantee and the van runs fine. A lot cheeper than the Mazda rad.
Tim

I'm not yet a bongo owner, just biding my time doing some research before I wade in with my size 12's and buy the first one that looks shiny

I keep seeing references to coolant alarms and the like, and also blown head gaskets, and am assuming that they are related. Is the cooling system a general weak point on these cars? Scope for upgrades, or is possibly due to cheaper, less efficient parts being fitted sometime in the past?

I'm a great believer in using OEM parts wherever possible, but I am thinking that using an engine meant for a pickup truck, in an application like a bongo, with ancilliaries such as hard-working aircon and possibly an uprated alternator (guessing now) that the standard cooling system might not be quite up to the job. Possibly scope for a better fan, rad and waterpump?

Dr Fingers wrote:Rad is blown, so all advice is welcome. I have seen prices from £68 to £450, and obviously genuine Mazda is more expensive, if you can find one.

Personal recommendations very welcome!

Thanks

Derek

Hi this is from Julian 321away,


"quote" i've fitted lots of different rads from various sources and have never had any problems with the ebay versions, some of the ebay types are all metal construction

I trust his recommendations.

I bought one off Ebay a couple of months ago for about £65 and so far so good! I've had a couple of long runs in the van with no problems.

Well, the upshot is that my dealer quoted me £150 for a new rad, fitted. Plus £25 for a genuine Mazda thermostat, and £200 for new hoses all round: they're old, so might as well do it properly while we're at it.

Sounds like a reasonable price to me..?


Derek

That sounds good. You won't even have to get your own hands dirty. Replacing hoses and the stat is great for peace of mind.

Remember to check the metal tubes in the cooling system too. They go as often as the rubber bits!