Replace radiator and heater hoses ? Options

[Pyrotechnic]

I have a 1998 GT Convertible with 109K on it. It's due for a cooling system flush and fill, and I noticed that all the coolant hoses look original to the car. Now the radiator hoses are no big deal, but it appears that there are bunch of smaller molded hoses for the heater core, oil cooler, throttle body etc. Adding this all up gets quite expensive. This is a lot tougher than other cars where you can just buy a few feet of bulk hose for a few dollars and cut it to fit. The cooling system appears to be in great shape and the car has never had overheating issues.

How long are these hoses good for? The hoses look good on the outside and are soft to the touch like new hose. My instinct tells me that 16 years is way overdue for replacement, but with the cost involved I want to make sure I don't spend a bunch of cash replacing hoses that are perfectly fine.

This post has been edited by Pyrotechnic: Feb 27, 2014 - 12:40 PM

[Smaay]

as long as they are not leaking and showing no signs of cracks, leave them in there.

[eMrock32]

I work on classic cars at work. Some still have hoses from 1950. They do not have a specific deadline. What smaaaay said; if they aren't cracked, leaking, or bloated, you can leave them alone.

[Galcobar]

That said, the act of replacing the radiator can stress hoses far beyond the usual vibration they'd encounter with running engine, so it's best to examine the hose before and after you replace the radiator to ensure you haven't introduced any new failure on hoses which you have to attach or detach.

[blockustomz]

That said, the act of replacing the radiator can stress hoses far beyond the usual vibration they'd encounter with running engine, so it's best to examine the hose before and after you replace the radiator to ensure you haven't introduced any new failure on hoses which you have to attach or detach.

call me crazy but i'd hate to put in a new rad and get stuck on the side of the road because of a hose.. i'd replace, cheap insurance. but you can get lucky like these guys do

[Pyrotechnic]

Thanks everyone. I do not plan to remove any hoses, and the radiator seems to be fine; the passages look clean and clear looking through the cap opening. I want to do a drain, flush, and fill to get the coolant of questionable age out and some fresh stuff back in.

I do have a problem with a stuck open thermostat however. Last night I was on the highway going about 65MPH and the outside temperature was around 35F. The whole time on the highway, the temperature gauge was BELOW the cold mark as if the engine wasn't even running. The heater was barely working, where normally it gets uncomfortably hot on the maximum setting. Once I got off the highway, the temperature started to climb and once I parked at home and sat still for a minute the temperature gauge read normal and I had heat again. The car also seems to take FOREVER to produce any heat when in cold whether.

I really would like to do preventive maintenance and replace every single coolant hose, but adding up a thermostat, radiator cap, gaskets, radiator hoses, heather hoses, misc coolant hoses, and good hose clamps it's going to cost me about $110 plus coolant, and that's rock auto pricing.

If I just buy the thermostat, gaskets, and radiator cap I am looking at $20 plus coolant. To make a long story short, money is really tight for me right now and the car is also needing rear tires. I'm thinking that if I fix the thermostat issue and get some fresh coolant in there, that would be at least one piece of the puzzle done and the car would be better off than it is today. When I have the money later on, I can drain the coolant, fit the new hoses, and pour the good coolant back in.

[richee3]

Use Toyota antifreeze, not Prestone or any other garbage. It up the price just a little but it's much higher quality and won't cause any gunk buildup.

[Special_Edy]

Good call on replacing the radiator cap.
I had a cheap autozone radiator fail, it caused the pressure to climb so high it split the top of my radiator in two.

To flush it just disconnect the upper radiator hose and stuff a garden hose into the radiator through this upper hose connection. Next turn on the garden hose and let the car run for 10-20 minutes with the heater on low. Once the thermostat opens the old coolant will start coming out

[Pyrotechnic]

Use Toyota antifreeze, not Prestone or any other garbage. It up the price just a little but it's much higher quality and won't cause any gunk buildup.

I was actually going to use Zerex G-05 antifreeze. Ford, Chrysler, and Mercedes successfully used it for a long time and I converted my truck to use it as well. It's a long life formula good for 5 years or 150K miles. It's leaps and bound better than the "universal" coolants from Walmart which are just Dexcool clones dyed a different color. The big thing for me is that I can keep one type of coolant around to service all the vehicles I care for, rather than keep gallons of different formulas around for each vehicle. I've read good reports from others who used G-05 in place of "asian formula" antifreeze with great results in the long run. Has anyone else here done the same?

[Special_Edy]

I think your toyota could care less. You could probably go a hundred-thousand miles with 2 gallons of Tabasco hot sauce as coolant and never have any cooling issues. The radiator and waterpump are aluminum so all that matters is having enough antifreeze to keep it from freezing and the cast iron block from rusting away.

[Galcobar]

A caveat to your Toyota not caring is certain anti-freezes do contain compounds such as Dex-Cool's 2-Ethylhexanoic Acid (aka 2-EHA) intended to soften plastics (or more accurately, prevent them from getting brittle). If your system isn't designed for these compounds -- which is to say it was built with non-silicone or non-nylon hoses and gaskets -- the potential for damage exists.

The other issue is silicates. Japanese long-life coolants do not contain silicates because they've found silicates to produce issues with water pump seals. North American conventional ethylene glycol anti-freeze use silicates and phosphates to prevent corrosion. European anti-freeze avoids phosphates because they react with hard water to form mineral scales, which insulate the engine, replacing the phosphates with neutralized carboxylic acids. Asian anti-freezes remove silicates, keeping the phosphates and replacing the silicates with neutralized carboxylic acids. An anti-freeze with nothing but neutralized carboxylic acids will satisfy both European and Asian requirements.

[Pyrotechnic]

G-05 uses organic acids and a very small amount of silicates. No phosphates and no 2-EHA. I'm thinking the small amount of silicates shouldn't hurt the water pump seal?

[Special_Edy]

I guess you better hope all your seals, hoses, o-rings, waterpump and radiator cap were manufactured in japan, cause if you bought them at the autoparts store like I did then 'Japanese coolant' will f your car up.

[BonzaiCelica]

so not to create a new thread. whats the name of this hose. i can't seem to find it here on this diagram. http://toyotamarket.ru/jp/252170/003/1/1603/1/





please help

[VavAlephVav]

That's the heater core Inlet hose. Idk if it has some more specific name by Toyota service manual/parts listing.