Heater hose routing

[crashman]

This may be old news , but I didn't see anything off a quick search, so here goes.. I picked up an '01 XLS on Friday (love it so far) but noticed today the coolant reservoir was empty. No coolant in the driveway, no smoke, and only a minor smell under the hood. I started at the pump and worked my way back to the heater core and found one of the heater hoses had rubbed through against the evap box. There was a shield on the hose but it too was pushed too far against the firewall to be effective. It looks like it was installed slightly off, as its pre-bent and should clear the box. I think it only leaked when fully hot and driving , but wasn't far from failing completely. Anyways, something to look for next time the hood is open.

P.s. great forum- lots of good info

cheers
Steve

 

[BrooklynBay]

Welcome to this forum! It's a good idea to leak test the system with a cooling system pressure tester. Replace any dried out hoses which look like they might cause a problem. Check my product review on the Stant tester: http://www.explorerforum.com/reviewpost/showproduct.php/product/231/cat/500

 

[crashman]

Here are a couple pics if anyones interested.

this is where the hose is rubbing

this is the old hose

this is the new hose - notice the space between it and the evap box, using straight bulk 5/8 heater hose

Steve