Silicone coolant hoses

Morag · Post by **Morag** » Sun Dec 02, 2007 11:00 am

Can I also order a set of hoses, either blue or red, have also pm'd you Flippa.

flippa · Post by **flippa** » Sun Dec 02, 2007 6:03 pm

no problem morag.......reply sent

mikeonb4c · Post by **mikeonb4c** » Sun Dec 02, 2007 7:01 pm

flippa - do you have prices yet? For individual hoses and/or price for a full set (does it work out cheaper to buy a full set?). Money's a bit tight at present but at least I could start saving

bigdaddycain · Post by **bigdaddycain** » Mon Dec 03, 2007 2:28 pm

Put the kettle on peeps...this is gonna be a long un....

As one of the guinea pigs for the silicon hose set,it was suggested that a decent set of hose clips be sourced for the job.

Having taken delivery of my lovely blue set of hoses last week,priority number one was sourcing some decent (stainless steel originally) jubilee's...

At a close friend (and top mechanic's) suggestion, i tried a place called MANFLEX based in Sankey,Warrington.

They work very closely with local respected tuning companies such as DPmotorsport and the like. Manflex are an industry reknowned for their quality components.

After a chat with jason at manflex,he examined the hoses,and commented on them being "a nice looking bit of kit" he also added "the place that knocked these up certainly know there stuff" His technical terms know no bounds!

The conversation then progressed to jason offering to make up a dedicated kit for the bongo,having examined all the hoses,and offering up the best sized jubillee clips for the job.

I saw the clips they stock...there were litterally thousands of different styles and sizes!

We settled on a mild steel type clip(s)which have the british kite mark,and the bsau numbers etc...

There is a stainless steel equivalent,but these work out at three times the expense,and was a bit overkill for the intended purpose in Jason's opinion.

So if anybody in the future orders a set of the silicon hoses,and doesn't fancy doing the legwork of hunting the correct clip for each individual hose, give jason a ring at manflex on 01925 653215 and mention the kit for "bongo" or "freda" and he'll mail you a ready made kit out to ya!

The total cost of the mild steel clips were £14.69 including vat,excluding postage.

There is a stainless kit available too but this would be nearer the £35-£40 mark.

These are NOT the tat that you can buy at halfrauds....

Now then... the fitting.....

Kettles boiled!

I didn't fancy lying under the 2 ton bongo on axle stands for this job,so i commisioned mike at wheelquick to be the lucky man for the task.

(it was stu that actually did the job,cheers stu,top man!)

Job number one,deprive my bongo of her lifeblood

My poor bleeding bongo!

Up onto the ramp....

Let the dirty hands begin... (well, for stu anyway!

)

The following pipe near the alternator needs some carefull attention,as you can see from the pic below,the alternator belt has been removed,and the alternator slid as far back on its adjuster as possible,in the future,stu would remove the alternator completely to aid in access,the new silicon hose has the original rubber sleeve re-fitted (heat insulator)

This was the only hose which needed any kind of adjustment,one end of the inner part of the hose needed "reaming" out a smidgin.

I didn't have time to label each pic as i went along (stu was too quick for me)

It becomes obvious (even to me) which new hose goes where once the bongo is up in the air.

I've been lucky in my four years of ownership in having no issues with the coolant system, but how long was that lucky streak going to last? I'm a big believer in preventative maintenence,so it was natural for me to invest in this kit.

I'm not fully up to scratch with which hose feeds what,but i tried my best to learn as i went along...

More pics....

Whilst i was at wheelquick stu pointed out something a little unusual that he's not come across before,mike was summoned, he too had not seen one previously fitted to a bongo....

It appears to be some kind of electronic air flow regulator (a primitive mass air flow meter?) which was plumbed into the air intake system,the device was electronically linked to a little box attached to the top of the right hand side chassis rail.

This could be why i saw such an improvement when i fitted a K&N to my bongo?

After all the clips were checked,it was time for bleeding...

Wheelquick use a variation of the bigdaddycain hosepipe method,pink longlife coolant was used in my bongo,and before you all jump up and say,"its pointless using longlife coolant,it needs changing annually" It was At hand at the time,meets all the specs,and CAN be used in aluminium engines.

Here's a pic of mike and stu performing the bleeding "ritual"

(if you look really carefully,you can see dbo's head at the top of my bonnet

)

The follow up drive proved uneventful,no gurgling,heaters blowing hot constantly,temp gauge planted firmly at 11 o clock....

The usual "post coolant change" top up was neccessary this morning,(two cupfulls of coolant?) Then the 11 mile school run,in heavy standing traffic,again, no ill effects,no signs of airlocks.... no loss of coolant when checked after cooling down.

I'll be checking on the hoses on a regular basis,there is a pretty big trip planned for my bongo tomorrow,when i drive up to staffordshire to pick up my new windscreen,i'll be keeping a VERY close eye on things!

To sum up, thanks to flippa for the chance of trying out the kit, a MASSIVE thanks to stu (and mike) at wheelquick,and to jason at manflex.

Sorry to stu for the loss of blood when removing some of the hoses!

The following pic has nowt to do with bongo's,but i thought i'd post a pic of stu's lovely golf GTI (it's a credit to him

)

mikeonb4c · Post by **mikeonb4c** » Mon Dec 03, 2007 2:53 pm

Excellent report there BDC - very helpful indeed esp. the jubilee clip packs thing as that will save a lot of time and hassle.

I noticed one thing you said

,"its pointless using longlife coolant,it needs changing annually"

I had a mental note the coolant only needed changing every 2 years, but have I got that wrong?

Good luck with the new windscreen and send pics and report when done

bigdaddycain · Post by **bigdaddycain** » Mon Dec 03, 2007 3:32 pm

mikeonb4c wrote:

I noticed one thing you said
,"its pointless using longlife coolant,it needs changing annually"
I had a mental note the coolant only needed changing every 2 years, but have I got that wrong?

Thanks mike... I think you are correct mate, now i think about it,the last time i flushed the system, i made a mental note to self,to do it every year...

I have noticed quite a few bongo's that have expansion tanks so discoloured,that it's almost impossible to see the level of coolant,without removing the cap,to physically see the level of water inside.

I think i convinced myself that yearly coolant changes would mean that my expansion tank would remain transparent...

All the coolant on my last flush was crystal clear,i thought i'd make an effort to keep it that way

missfixit70 · Post by **missfixit70** » Mon Dec 03, 2007 4:59 pm

What condition were the removed hoses in? any likely imminent failures? & how long did it take?
Stick the old hoses on fleabay & you'll probly pay for the new ones

flippa · Post by **flippa** » Mon Dec 03, 2007 5:14 pm

nice one big d....glad you have em on at last

.....please take n ote of big d's advice ...re: the clips....the serrated band type jubilee are a big no-no....i have fitted a few of the original type clips ...the self tensioning ones and these are ideal to re-use........big -d ....i hope you gave em a little wipe(polish) after fitting....and i bet you have a bigger smile on your face

...welll done

bigdaddycain · Post by **bigdaddycain** » Mon Dec 03, 2007 5:15 pm

All the old hoses were in good nick kirsty...There were no signs of imminent failure,i've decided to keep hold of then for the time being.

You never know eh?

I'd think twice about passing on second hand expendible items, i wouldn't want them to fail on somebody else, as i'd feel responsible.

I'd give them away...but not sell em.

It took four hours to do from start to finish (including brews,nattering, taking pics etc)

The time taken can probably be shaved down a bit,but it's not really a job that can be rushed,stu was very careful to make sure all the clips were tightened twice,and some time was taken to check for any leaks.

missfixit70 · Post by **missfixit70** » Mon Dec 03, 2007 6:19 pm

bigdaddycain wrote:I'd think twice about passing on second hand expendible items, i wouldn't want them to fail on somebody else, as i'd feel responsible.

I'd give them away...but not sell em.

Didn't think you would for a minute, from your reputation on here

I'm the same, when I've sold on my old bangers in the past I worry for weeks afterwards, if I think of something I didn't tell em about the car

Good to know the hoses that came off were ok, I'd love to get mine replaced, but I just cannot afford it. Saving for my coolant alarm still

vanvliet · Post by **vanvliet** » Mon Dec 03, 2007 7:00 pm

Nice job I think that the coloured hose looks great. Did you fit all of the hoses in the kit? Some of the originals are nigh on impossible to get at.
Were any of the metal pipes corroded?

bigdaddycain · Post by **bigdaddycain** » Mon Dec 03, 2007 7:14 pm

flippa wrote:nice one big d....glad you have em on at last .....please take n ote of big d's advice ...re: the clips....the serrated band type jubilee are a big no-no....i have fitted a few of the original type clips ...the self tensioning ones and these are ideal to re-use........big -d ....i hope you gave em a little wipe(polish) after fitting....and i bet you have a bigger smile on your face ...welll done

I missed this post Flippa!

Indeed mate, i stressed to jason at manflex that i want whatever type of clip is more than up to the job...

I think he came through... They seem top notch

All polishing will start in earnest if it ever stops raining

I didn't even polish them secretly before the fitting! ( i must be slipping

)

I was itching to give the hoses a good wipe before everything was put back together too, but it was after 6pm before we.... sorry, STU finished. It was time for tea... (well, time for me to leave for work at least!)

Thanks for the opportunity of this kit flippa...it's very re-assuring to know that i have covered the main problem hoses on the bongo.

With my coolant loss alarm too,then the mason alarm...My coolant should feel like an alcatraz inmate

bigdaddycain · Post by **bigdaddycain** » Mon Dec 03, 2007 7:27 pm

vanvliet wrote:Nice job I think that the coloured hose looks great. Did you fit all of the hoses in the kit? Some of the originals are nigh on impossible to get at.
Were any of the metal pipes corroded?

Yip, all hoses fitted.

The only things in the box the new hoses came in are the original old rubber things,and some manky looking old clips!

All the pipes were like new on the inner flange van

BongoMTBer · Post by **BongoMTBer** » Wed Dec 05, 2007 7:26 pm

So how much for a full set then?

dandywarhol · Post by **dandywarhol** » Wed Dec 05, 2007 7:42 pm

Good stuff BDC - one curious observation though.............in the 4th pic (of more pics) it shows the hose under the driver's seat which goes from the cylinder head down to the radiator - this hose looks SWOLLEN like a faulty original one!

Did the manufacturer make the silicom ones as a direct copy of used originals??