Your car’s radiator is a very important part of the engine. It keeps the engine cool and it is responsible for part of the process of making sure that your car can pump coolant through the engine to keep parts from wearing out or breaking under heat stress.
The radiator includes a fan or metal fins that help disperse heat as you are operating your vehicle.
The cost to replace a radiator in a Nissan Altima is $750-$900. The labor accounts for $500-$650 of the job. If there are other parts that have been damaged due to your engine running too hot, this might add to your overall costs.
If you are ready to learn more about the cost of replacing the radiator in your Nissan Altima, you need to read on for more information.
How Much Does it Cost to Replace a Nissan Altima’s Radiator?
The cost related to this service can vary based on the year of your Nissan Altima. Your location might also have some bearing on the cost of this service, but you should not experience a huge variance in cost related to your area.
Large cities and locations without many repair shops might charge more for the labor that is related to the replacement.
| Year | Total Cost | Labor Cost |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 Nissan Altima | $450-$900 | $250-$500 |
| 2007 Nissan Altima | $750-$800 | $250-$300 |
| 2009 Nissan Altima | $800-$1,000 | $300-$500 |
| 2012 Nissan Altima | $800-$1,000 | $300-$500 |
| 2014 Nissan Altima | $900-$1,000 | $300-$500 |
| 2018 Nissan Altima | $900-$1,000 | $300-$500 |
| 2020 Nissan Altima | $1,200-$1,300 | $400-$600 |
Part of the process of working on this repair can be more complicated if you have a newer Altima and that is why the overall cost for newer years can be more than the cost of older Altimas.
There are additional costs that might be associated with diagnosing this issue as well that you should be aware of. The parts themselves are slightly more expensive than other similar vehicles, making the labor a smaller portion of the total cost than with some other vehicles.
What Other Costs Might be Associated With Replacing Your Radiator?
There are some costs that might be charged to you as part of the labor and fees for replacing your Nissan Altima’s radiator. These services can add to your overall costs.
Inspection for other leaks
This process can be essential if there is suspicion that high temperatures have led to other failures in the system related to the radiator.
This can take some hours of labor and might add $100-$400 to your overall charges for the labor on the job. Hoses might need to be replaced as well which can also lead to another $100 or so of cost.
Pressure testing the cooling system
This can be essential to make sure that the fix has worked and that the radiator is functioning perfectly. This process requires simple tools and is not very expensive as far as labor is.
This might add anywhere from $75-$200 to your cost to replace your radiator.
Testing for other engine problems
If the radiator replacement does not improve the way that your car is running, a mechanic will have to do other tests and look at other engine parts to try and diagnose the rest of the problems that might be going on.
This can be an easy process but it might add up to a lot of additional charged labor hours if there are issues going on that are tough to detect. This might be as much as another $500 in labor fees if the problem is hard to track down.
Engine replacement parts are far more expensive than any part related to your radiator, and you want to be sure that you have other potential issues looked into right away.
Replacement engines can be as much as $2,500-$4,000, and taking care of issues with your engine before this is necessary can save you all of that money and more.
How Much Does Labor Cost in Different Parts of the US?
Labor costs can vary across the United States. There are places that will charge more for services of all kinds for auto repair. These might be large city locations or areas with limited access to mechanics and dealerships.
You might also need to travel to another location to get access to the repair services that you need for your Nissan Altima.
The average cost for labor on car services in the United States is $60 per hour. This cost can increase to $80 an hour in some areas or it might be as low as $40 per hour in others.
The total labor for this replacement process is about 3-4 hours total. This includes the removal of the parts that need to be replaced.
If there are additional services that need to be completed related to your radiator being damaged or going bad, you should plan on an average cost of $40-$60 for these hours of work.
Diagnosis labor can sometimes be lower in cost than that of work services. This is not common to all mechanic shops or dealerships, but you can ask if there is a different charge for these services than repairs.
How Much Do Regular Maintenance Processes Cost?
If you want to try to prevent this kind of replacement process and save yourself money, you should make sure to take care of your vehicle correctly.
Annual maintenance should make it easy to save yourself lots of costs for repairs of all kinds that could have been avoided.
The cost to service your radiator and keep your coolant clear is about $100-$200 each year. You might not even have to complete this service more frequently than every other year.
Anytime that you have any indications that the performance of your vehicle is not as it should be or if you think that your vehicle is running hotter than normal, you should consider having a mechanic look at your vehicle.
Paying for a few hours of labor in inspections that look for damage to the engine can help save you hundreds of dollars later. This is one of the areas that people neglect to consider when they are dealing with small issues with their car.
It can seem like a lot of money to have to pay for a suspected problem, but waiting until it is easy to diagnose an issue can lead to a lot of added problems that can cost a lot of money to fix.
Can I Replace my Nissan Altima Radiator Myself?
The answer to this might be yes. If you have the right tools on hand and the skill to replace your radiator, you can potentially save a lot of money by doing this process yourself.
There are some costs associated with the radiator itself, and you might need to buy a kit to make sure that you have all the parts that you need for the replacement process.
The parts that you will need for your radiator replacement can vary in cost depending on your location and you might have to pay the shipping to get these parts sent to you if you are not in a location that has access to the parts that you need.
You should try to make sure that you place as few orders as possible to save you money on shipping.
| Part | Cost |
|---|---|
| Radiator | $800-$1,000 |
| Coolant | $100-$140 |
| Hoses | $50-$70 |
| Seals | $10-$20 |
| Radiator cap | $10 |
| Coolant tanks | $5-$40 |
| Radiator Fan | $40-$70 |
The other item that you will probably need to get is a cooling system test kit. This kit will allow you to test the pressure of the radiator system once the repair has been completed. You might also need to get a few tools that will help with your repair process. Most of the tools are simple tools that are easy to get anywhere.
This tool will cost you about $100-$125. This is a useful item that you need to have in your arsenal to be sure that you are going to be able to replace your radiator and check for other leaks in the system.
This is a small cost for peace of mind and you should not skip buying this tool for your replacement process.
Replacing Your Nissan Altima Radiator is Not Always Expensive
The process to replace your Nissan Altima’s radiator does not always have to be pricey. Simple replacement services are not often very expensive.
The key factor related to the cost of your Nissan Altima replacement is whether or not there have been other damage to your vehicle related to its damaged radiator.
If your vehicle was driven with a damaged radiator for a long time, you might be facing an expensive repair process. In some instances, you might find that a simple radiator replacement can lead to many costs that you did not expect.
This is why it is important to make sure to provide the proper maintenance for your vehicle and to have issues investigated immediately.
Taking care of your vehicle can help you to avoid expensive repairs in the future.