Coolant blow out !!

[Lurkio]

Are the cooling pipes for the Rad standard TVR or can I get them from somewhere else, just filled her up for a burn tomorrow and the bottom left hose to the Rad. has either split or the jubille clip has corroded to pieces, had all the coolant burst out, lucky I was near home, didn't realise how much coolant is in there (@12Litres), is it an easy repair or shall I take it to a dealer, many thanks, Chris.

[GreenV8S]

Lurkio said:

hose ... has either split or the jubille clip has corroded to pieces

Find out which. If it's a burst hose your best bet would be to replace the whole hose, but you need to know what shape the old one is to know whether you need a TVR-specific part or just a standard straight/bend. If it's a duff hose clip then they're readily available in any decent motorfactors and a five minute job to fit.

[jensena]

Easy'ish Repair. Only difficult part is removing the Rusty Jubilee clips, a screwdriver soon chews up the slot on a rusted clip, so loads of WD40 on it first, and a small mole wrench will come in handy.

Take the hose off and take it with you to a Motor Factor to get an as near as possible match, you may have to do a bit of trimming if you cant get an exact match, but obviously the internal Diameter must be the same.

[Lurkio]

Thanks for the chaps, when you re-fill the system, is it easy to bleed. Cheers Chris.

[longbow]

Depends how you do it. If you just pour coolant in via the header tank you will need to cycle the engine to remove airlocks, but if you use one of these www.justoffbase.co.uk/Fast-Fill-Cooling-System-Replenisher-Sealey-VS004?sc=9&category=126 takes minutes and no airlocks........... Check ebay though, got mine new for a £10 there!

Also, all the main coolant pipes are 35mm ID, try to upgrade with silicone ones when you replace them as they standard ones are naff, silicone will last much longer and won't crack. Good quality hose clips again will last a lot longer too.

Edited by longbow on Tuesday 22 August 06:55

[lurkio]

Thanks Longbow!

[jensena]

When you re-fill the system make sure you remove the brass bolt on the top RH side (Driver side) of the radiator. When water starts coming out of it, then replace it, and carry on topping up. Make sure you run the engine and bleed the sytem as it is not uncommon to get an air lock. If you get an airlock the fans might not cut in and the temp wll soon soar past the 110 mark, so be warned!