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Changing out heater hoses - Printable Version

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Changing out heater hoses - Longrod - 07-25-2019

I need to find out how to replace the heater hoses on my 94 Tracker 8v with 3 speed A/T. One is leaking (probably in the intake hose). I wish to replace both of them.  I'm sure the intake manifold support plate must come out. Does anything else need to be removed. How hard of a job is this? Any and all advice, tips and tricks will be greatly appreciated.


RE: Changing out heater hoses - fixkick - 07-26-2019

(07-25-2019, 03:54 PM)Longrod Wrote: I need to find out how to replace the heater hoses on my 94 Tracker 8v with 3 speed A/T. One is leaking (probably in the intake hose). I wish to replace both of them.  I'm sure the intake manifold support plate must come out. Does anything else need to be removed. How hard of a job is this? Any and all advice, tips and tricks will be greatly appreciated.

not sure what you ask here,  Gates hose  comp. sells great hose for this car.
sold in most stores, Gates is a top seller,
the job depends you your skills and tools, and how big you are or how agile you are?
the one trick is never yank the hose on the CORE firewall side, we cut it if gently with very sharp knife, so as to put ZERO stress on the core, or 15hours labor swap a core.
ok?
the rest is all just hose basics,  top down or bottom up.
my bottom up would need me to remove the front 4wd factory skid plate or you cant do that.
the top down can be aided with manifold stiffener out. and ore pulling generator (battery minus cable pulled first or BOOM)
obvious the easy path to get your arm in there varies,   . #16/#18 end.

removal.: lacking olive oil , or xmen rubber man arms.
pull intake, and damage lots of hoses, sure.
or


things to remove are , charcoal Canister, Alternator , brace. the with these out, you can to the pump suction manifold.< this man. is bolted to side of engine block.
sure buy hoses first. why wait?
other tricks (there are few) only tilting Alternator for over to passenger side, fender.
doing some things from below.





[Image: 91system1.JPG]






the factory hose P/N are here (on my page below)

https://fixkick.com/t-belt/hosed.html

gates still makes em. ( here they are )
https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/suzuki,1994,sidekick,1.6l+l4,1271427,heat+&+air+conditioning,heater+hose+/+pipe,6892



let me show the steps, ?
the front 2 clamps #18 at fire wall end ,both squeeze and slid back, then the end of hoses are cut with great care, then when cut,front to rear , I twist them to get them cracked free, and off those fragile core brass nipples.
that means we are 1/2 done, hose wise. (GO SLOW, here, even cut the hose 4 times to get it free of brass nipples, with no damage. (or 18+ hours  labor to replace a now bad core heater)
next the hard part. 
Canister out.
Alternator  out.
brace out. intake man below.
the last 2 #18 clamps are squeezed and slid  back.
the hard one obviously is hose 17 front.
the one you said hangs #16 in space is only the rear nipple of the main intake manifold take a flash light look at the hose, there, you see where it goes there in the back.
i even added a red dotted line showing the 8valve locations.  I made this drawing because no other books covers this, in detail. see all that  detail, even print it out?
the arrows show the direction so diagnosing problems gets more easy.
done,  with the pull,
not put back all new hoses,  and reverse your steps.
also bottom access helps get to the alternator below, to get it loosened up, for tilting or removal.  
jack stands work, no lift is needed.

this is 16valve engine G16B but access issue same.
the problem seen below clearly are this.
starter blocks bottom access. as does right engine mount
as does wide off set water pumpl
as does alternator and manifold base mount not seen below.
the nipple below left is TARGET hard #1
not withstanding intake manifold is the big hand arm blocker for sure.



[Image: 11sideviewl.jpg]


RE: Changing out heater hoses - Longrod - 07-28-2019

(07-26-2019, 04:01 AM)fixkick Wrote:
(07-25-2019, 03:54 PM)Longrod Wrote: I need to find out how to replace the heater hoses on my 94 Tracker 8v with 3 speed A/T. One is leaking (probably in the intake hose). I wish to replace both of them.  I'm sure the intake manifold support plate must come out. Does anything else need to be removed to gain access to the front/engine side hose clamps/ends?. How hard of a job is this? Any and all advice, tips and tricks will be greatly appreciated.

not sure what you ask here,  Gates hose  comp. sells great hose for this car.
sold in most stores, Gates is a top seller,

   [Thanks for the reply. I have hoses 16 and 17 ordered from Rockauto.  #17 is delayed/back ordered. One of the heater hoses is bad. Both turned green when dye added but can't tell which one. I assume the bad one is the inlet since it would get hotter but I'm replacing both. How hard is it to access the front (engine side) clamps?

the job depends you your skills and tools, and how big you are or how agile you are?
   [I'm skilled, big and I have many tools but arthritic and far from agile.]

the one trick is never yank the hose on the CORE firewall side, we cut it if gently with very sharp knife, so as to put ZERO stress on the core, or 15hours labor swap a core.

   [Good tip.]

ok?
the rest is all just hose basics,  top down or bottom up.

   [Which way is easier?]

my bottom up would need me to remove the front 4wd factory skid plate or you cant do that.
   
   [My Tracker is 2 wheel drive and no skid plate.]

the top down can be aided with manifold stiffener out.
   [Yep, I guess the triangular manifold support would need to come out. Just 3 bolts. I had to pull it in the past to get the new starter in. Sadly I didn't pay attention to the hoses under the manifold at that time.]

and ore pulling generator (battery minus cable pulled first or BOOM)
   
   [So the alternator must also come out after the negative battery cable comes off. I changed the alternator 10 years ago and to get to the wires I had to also pull the charcoal canister which was fairly easy.]

obvious the easy path to get your arm in there varies, 
  
   [That's what I was wondering about.]

by above 3 ways. (even all 3 ways (top, bottom and alt pulled ,as hose #17 and all 3, #18 clamps , the 1 hose #17 clamp is most hard to reach,... ) 

   [Is way number 1 removing the alternator and manifold support plate or just one or the other?  What is the bottom up way? Would this be a really easy job for a mechanic with a lift?
   Continued below:

[Image: 91system1.JPG]


[What does the front/engine end of hose #16 attach to???  In the illustration it's just hanging off in space. Is there someplace else under the intake manifold where coolant can leak out and run down the heater hoses? Is there another hose I should buy just in case? I guess my main worry is can the heater hoses be changed without removing the intake manifold?

   Thanks again!


the factory hose P/N are here

https://fixkick.com/t-belt/hosed.html

gates still makes em.
https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/suzuki,1994,sidekick,1.6l+l4,1271427,heat+&+air+conditioning,heater+hose+/+pipe,6892



RE: Changing out heater hoses - fixkick - 07-28-2019

way #2 is intake pulled, new intake gasket, and breaking hose 14
breaking VSV valve, and PCV hoses, and the like.
the coolant is under 12-14psi pressure so any leak causes huge spray.
you can just idle any engine and just look with fully hot engine, and any leaks stand out obvious. spray it will with 14psi pressure, (rad cap not bad)
NONE of these hoses last 20 years. nor 24 years, 1994 to now. 10 sure, 15 maybe but 24? EPDM rubber hoses are great hoses but do not last decades.


RE: Changing out heater hoses - fixkick - 07-28-2019

way 3.?
Mr. fantastic.

https://avengersalliance.fandom.com/wiki/Marvel_XP:_Dossiers/Mr._Fantastic

[Image: How-to-draw-mr.-fantastic-from-the-fanta...30x730.jpg]


RE: Changing out heater hoses - fixkick - 07-28-2019

Mr flat rate killer above, rubber arms.
4hr job and pay
1hr actual.

Quote:which way is easier has no answer working on  any old car.



Your skills
your size  and health or handycaps, if any. (missing fingers?) IDK?  (got arthritis like me? or fused spin like my old boss , oops , he got hit in Viet Nam, by mortar attack)
your tools.
your spare parts
how many bolts SNAP in half, after 24 year of rust, , RUST HAPPENS.
all I an tell you is GEN out , battery unplugged is the one way to avoid things that go SNAP, or crack and break. or more hose fail from stress doing this the more parts risky way.
the gen bottom swivel bolts confuse many,  use the right tools there, spanners and ratchets.
IMO its just my opinion,

collateral damage happens, working on ANY MACHINE< of any kind.   (but nothing ventured, is nothing gained)


RE: Changing out heater hoses - Longrod - 07-29-2019

(07-28-2019, 10:07 PM)fixkick Wrote: Mr flat rate killer above, rubber arms.
4hr job and pay
1hr actual.

Quote:which way is easier has no answer working on  any old car.
Thanks Jerry. I think I got it. Disconnect negative battery cable, pull alternator, pull manifold support bracket and cut hose ends before trying to twist and pull.  One last thing. Would you recommend new worm screw type hose clamps? The old pinch clamps look okay (very light surface rust), but I was wondering if screw clamps would tend to make the job harder (especially any future removal). The factory original clamps are just pinch and pull whereas with screw clamps I would need to get in there with a screw driver, nut driver, or a small wrench. I also want to make this easy for the next guy (which will hopefully be me) to replace hoses in the future.


Your skills
your size  and health or handycaps, if any. (missing fingers?) IDK?  (got arthritis like me? or fused spin like my old boss , oops , he got hit in Viet Nam, by mortar attack)
your tools.
your spare parts
how many bolts SNAP in half, after 24 year of rust, , RUST HAPPENS.
all I an tell you is GEN out , battery unplugged is the one way to avoid things that go SNAP, or crack and break. or more hose fail from stress doing this the more parts risky way.
the gen bottom swivel bolts confuse many,  use the right tools there, spanners and ratchets.
IMO its just my opinion,

collateral damage happens, working on ANY MACHINE< of any kind.   (but nothing ventured, is nothing gained)



RE: Changing out heater hoses - fixkick - 07-29-2019

yes, the worm gear clamps can work great.
just needs spin-tight tool to do that easy. hex driver.
the stock clamps there are not easy to remove at all. (down below)
the advantage of the factory clamps are easy install , in a factory,
and later if the hose shrinks (most good hoses dont) but if did, the worm gear clamp fails, (may)
There is nothing really wrong with the screw clamps if set at the right angle, and not so that Mr. rubber man only can reach it.
but both clamp types suffer for that problem. (just one spot there behind the pump, what angle there , you might think what is best for you.
good luck with your car !


RE: Changing out heater hoses - Longrod - 07-30-2019

(07-29-2019, 09:03 AM)fixkick Wrote: yes, the worm gear clamps can work great.
just needs spin-tight tool to do that easy.  hex driver.
the stock clamps there are not easy to remove at all. (down below)
the advantage of the factory clamps are easy install , in a factory,
and later if the hose shrinks (most good hoses dont) but if did, the worm gear clamp fails, (may)
There is nothing really wrong with the screw clamps if set at the right angle, and not so that Mr. rubber man only can reach it.
but both clamp types suffer for that problem. (just one spot there behind the pump,  what angle there , you might think what is best for you.
good luck with your car !

  [I just found out there is no clamp option. New worm screw clamps required due to a hose dimension change.  The old hoses were 1/2" ID and 1" OD with a 1/4" wall thickness. The new hoses, at least # 16 (first to arrive) has an ID of 1/2" but an OD of  only 3/4" with  a 1/8" wall thickness.  Why the thickness reduction? Maybe cheaper to make? Maybe the thinner ones are stronger or easier to replace? No way to know but the replacement I got is thinner and lighter so the original clamps won't work. No big deal but I do find this strange. Just a heads up for anyone else replacing any of the hoses to check the outer diameter of the original and the replacement.]


RE: Changing out heater hoses - fixkick - 07-30-2019

(07-30-2019, 04:59 AM)Longrod Wrote:
(07-29-2019, 09:03 AM)fixkick Wrote: yes, the worm gear clamps can work great.
just needs spin-tight tool to do that easy.  hex driver.
the stock clamps there are not easy to remove at all. (down below)
the advantage of the factory clamps are easy install , in a factory,
and later if the hose shrinks (most good hoses dont) but if did, the worm gear clamp fails, (may)
There is nothing really wrong with the screw clamps if set at the right angle, and not so that Mr. rubber man only can reach it.
but both clamp types suffer for that problem. (just one spot there behind the pump,  what angle there , you might think what is best for you.
good luck with your car !

  [I just found out there is no clamp option. New worm screw clamps required due to a hose dimension change.  The old hoses were 1/2" ID and 1" OD with a 1/4" wall thickness. The new hoses, at least # 16 (first to arrive) has an ID of 1/2" but an OD of  only 3/4" with  a 1/8" wall thickness.  Why the thickness reduction? Maybe cheaper to make? Maybe the thinner ones are stronger or easier to replace? No way to know but the replacement I got is thinner and lighter so the original clamps won't work. No big deal but I do find this strange. Just a heads up for anyone else replacing any of the hoses to check the outer diameter of the original and the replacement.]
this car is 100% metric (except lug bolts?) IIRC or rim diameters wheels in inches,  3000 parts all metric. (Like Ivory soap 99.99% pure)
the car is metric and so are the hoses.  that is why USA hoses (imperial inches) do not match.
sorry about that but USA is last place on earth with inches.