Installing a radiator in your 2001 Pontiac Aztek is an involved process and you might find the prospect of doing the job yourself intimidating. The truth is, this is a repair job you can do in your garage. You will need to get fully prepared for the job though. Make sure you gather all the necessary tools and, above all, work in an organized fashion. This will not only help stretch your maintenance budget but also increase your Aztek maintenance know-how.
Take your Aztek to an automotive service station and have them discharge the air conditioning (A/C) system.
Go back to your garage and drain the coolant from the radiator into a large drain pan, disconnect the negative (black) battery cable with a wrench and remove the air cleaner assembly with a Phillips-head screwdriver.
Outline the hood latch on the top radiator mounting brace with a white marker for reference during the reassembling process and then remove the hood latch with a ratchet and socket.
Remove any necessary components from the top of the radiator for better access to the radiator.
Unplug the cooling fan electrical connector.
Slide the clamp away securing the upper radiator hose to the radiator fitting with a pair of slip joint pliers. Twist and remove the upper radiator hose from the radiator fitting.
Unfasten the remove the upper radiator mounts on each side with a ratchet and socket.
Detach the overflow hose from the radiator neck with the slip joint pliers.
Unfasten the upper cooler line from the radiator with a flare wrench and cover the line opening with a clean plastic sheet and a rubber band.
See that nothing else is attached to the cooling fan shroud and unfasten the shroud mounting bolts with the ratchet and socket and remove the cooling fan and shroud assembly from the vehicle.
Detach the lower radiator hose with the rib joint pliers.
Disconnect the two hoses and inlet tube from the condenser block located on the driver's side of the radiator with a flare wrench. Cover the hose openings with clean plastic sheets and rubber bands to keep dirt and grease off the system.
Verify that no other mounting bolts hold the radiator and condenser in place and remove both units as a single assembly from the vehicle. Place the assembly on a workbench and unfasten the radiator from the condenser with a ratchet and socket and separate the units.
Fasten the new radiator to the condenser with the ratchet and socket and install the assembly in the engine compartment.
Connect the two hoses and inlet tube to the condenser block using the flare wrench.
Attach the lower radiator hose with the rib joint pliers.
Replace the cooling fan and shroud assembly and fasten the bolts with the ratchet and socket.
Connect the upper cooler line to the radiator with the flare wrench.
Reattach the overflow hose to the radiator neck with the slip joint pliers.
Replace the upper radiator mounts on each side and fasten the bolts with the ratchet and socket.
Reattach the upper radiator hose to the radiator with the slip joint pliers.
Plug in the radiator fan electrical connector.
Replace any accessories and parts you had to remove to replace the radiator. Refill the radiator with coolant and take your Aztek to an automotive service station and have them recharge the A/C system.
