147 COOLANT HOSES

[Mike Mck]

HI ALL

JUST SPENT THE DAY TRYING TO LOCATE A LOWER BYPASS COOLANT HOSE FOR 147 TS RUNS FROM BOTTOM OF THERMOSAT TO FRONT ENGINE BLOCK. NO ONE CARRIES THEM. WENT TO SUPERCHEAP WITH OLD HOSE. FOR $18 WALKED AWAY WITH HOLDEN HEATER HOSE WITH WHEN CUT RIGHT OF STICKER IS BASICALLY THE SAME HOSE SEE PHOTOS FOR CODE AND SHAPE

MIKE MCK

[johnl]

I do much the same thing. Hoses can sometimes (often) be quite expensive for what they are (especially relatively obscure ones). Sometimes a new hose is not in stock and you need to order it and wait, with the car off the road in the meantime. So, when I need a hose my first port of call is somewhere like Super Cheap et al, dead hose in hand to see how close I can find off the shelf of assorted cheap Holden, Ford, Toyota etc hoses. Often I have found something very close (enough), for much less money. 

I've found new random hoses that were the right shape / size on one end but not the other. If the hose I need to replace is dead on one end (say oil damaged) but still OK at the other end, I've cut the dead end off the original hose and joined half another new hose from some other application (using an appropriately sized steel tube and clamps to join together, this kind of connection has never failed me).

To replace completely dead hoses I've used two new hoses that each were the shape / size to match one half of the original hose, so that the two new joined halves matched near enough the overall shape of the old dead hose (again joined using a steel tube). I've 'replicated' quite complex overall hose shapes by joining portions of different new random hoses together. Note that hoses stretch to some degree, so can fit over a spigot that in theory is just a bit too big, and can be compressed (by the clamp), so can be fitted to a spigot that's just a bit too small (within reason).

I've used part of what may well be the very same cheap Holden (long) heater hose somewhere on my old Honda Accord (or was it the BMW, or maybe the Cressida...?), and on my racing kart, cutting off the unneeded length. The lower radiator hose on my 147 TS was oil damaged  (swelled, gooey) at the engine end but otherwise fine, so is now now partially the original hose and half of a hose from some other car I can't recall.

Regards,
John.