by "Urambo Tauro" (urambotauro)
Published 11/07/2017 at 12:00
by "Urambo Tauro" (urambotauro)
Published 11/07/2017 at 12:00
Tags: cooling
; wrenching
; maintenance
STARS: 2
Looked under the Mustang’s hood the other day, only to find the upper radiator hose about to pop. Yikes!
Apologies for not thinking to take pics until after the engine had cooled... You might be able to still pick up a little of the swelling here though. What you’re missing out on is that it had inflated to about 2.5-3" (original hose size is 1.5", which yields an OD of about 1.8"). Obviously, the above pic doesn’t do it justice.
I’ve never caught one in the act before, only after bursting. Lucky! Might as well go ahead and replace the lower one, too. They’re both 22 years old at this point.
I was planning to change both of the hoses when the time came for a new radiator, but that day hasn’t come yet. I did, however, notice a bit of seepage from the seal where the plastic end tank meets the aluminum core.
So rather than replace the radiator, or install a new end tank gasket, I just took some pliers and pinched the metal finger a little tighter. No more leaky!
BTW, I strained and re-used my old coolant, as it had less than 5,000 miles on it. PROTIP: fold a paper towel in half twice, open it between the folds, and it’ll fit a 45 ° funnel perfectly. Instant filter!
Oh, and if you’re looking at buying a catch-pan like this, DON’T. As you go to pour the liquid out, the design of the spout makes it want to spill. When fluid reaches the wide, rounded spout, it floods that edge, pouring over like a waterfall instead of a nice, concentrated stream. Worst catch-pan EVAR.
"crowmolly" (crowmolly)
11/07/2017 at 12:03, STARS: 2
FYI if you want you can get cheapo paint strainers from Harbor Freight for filtering coolant, etc. I don’t like ‘em for paint but for funneling they work well.
"Urambo Tauro" (urambotauro)
11/07/2017 at 12:24, STARS: 1
Yeah this paper towel setup works, but if you’re trying to filter something especially dirty, it has a tendency to clog up as the dime-sized tip gets loaded up with contaminants. In which case, I’ll lift the towel away from the funnel a little bit so that there’s more filter surface area to run the fluid through.
"RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht" (ramblininexile)
11/07/2017 at 12:26, STARS: 1
Radiator tank finger pinching works up until it doesn’t. I’ve seen it work for almost no time at all, but I’ve also seen it work for years and years up until a failure out of the blue.
"PartyPooper2012" (PartyPooper2012)
11/07/2017 at 12:26, STARS: 0
So I took my GX470 to a dealership. He says radiator has a leak. I say ok. Go ahead and replace it. I said.. might as well replace the hoses while everything is open and accessible.
They say - no. Japanese hoses don’t go bad like american hoses do.
I hesitantly said.... ooook and left it at that. I don’t know what the japanese hoses are made out of, but maybe you should get you some of that...
"Urambo Tauro" (urambotauro)
11/07/2017 at 12:30, STARS: 0
I wonder what the difference is. Are they silicone? My new hoses are EPDM rubber, not sure what the OEM material back in 1995 was.
"PartyPooper2012" (PartyPooper2012)
11/07/2017 at 12:54, STARS: 1
I don’t know.
Back in early driving days, I was driving a 1975 Ford Maverick in February when a hose burst... Steam all over. couldn’t see shit. Somehow pulled over without killing anyone.
Glad you caught it before it was too late.
"Kiltedpadre" (kiltedpadre)
11/07/2017 at 14:52, STARS: 1
I had to replace a radiator hose in my truck right after doing a coolant flush and shared your thought that I wasn’t replacing all the fluid that only had a month of use. Thankfully the coffee maker at work used those cone shaped filters. After trimming the excess length it fit perfectly. I even used a couple binder clips on the funnel lip to hold it in place.
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
11/07/2017 at 21:53, STARS: 1
Good thing you caught it!
"Urambo Tauro" (urambotauro)
11/07/2017 at 22:22, STARS: 1
I can’t believe my luck haha. That thing was gonna blow any mile now.
"shop-teacher" (shop-teacher)
11/08/2017 at 03:44, STARS: 1
Sometimes it’s better to be lucky, than good!