So I've got a coolant leak from behind the engine. It's dripping down the passenger side of where the engine meets the gearbox. I've got another engine sitting in my shed so I've had a look at that and think it may be a coolant line that's no longer used. Possible with a bolt plugging the hose? Seems to only leak in the hot weather or after I've turned the engine off and the water in the engine heats up. Any thoughts about all this cause I'm thinking the only way to get near these coolant lines at the back is to pull the plenium to give me room[/IMG][/IMG]
What's the bastard hose? The hose with the bolt in it what would that have been for? Yer it's a shit time of year to be spending all day in the shed working on the Zx. Had the plenum off not long ago so can't wait to do that again
The bastard hose is a series of soft and hard hoses that runs from the circled hoses in your pic below down to the passenger side turbo. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to run a new hose from the pipe on the heater line all the way to the turbo. Forget trying to change the individual hoses in the chain, just run a new hose to bypass the lot. This can be done plenum on, the hardest part of the job (in my opinion) lies at the turbo end. Some long needle-nose pliers are essential, and if you have an aftermarket exhaust it may help drop the front pipes to give yourself a better angle to work with. A few of us have done it, it's not nice but it's certainly doable. As Graham said pressure test it first to determine the source of the leak.
Combination of- * Most being at least 20 years old now, yet driven like a new sports car * Previous/current owners cutting corners (or ignoring) major services, and preventative maintenance. The parts for which often add up to the purchase price of some. That's not having a go at you, I'm the idiot (amongst others) who've sunk obscene amounts of money into 300zx's with SFA chance of any return. Sink a few grand into preventative maintenance (that's DIY labour), and they're generally a pretty reliable car again. The "bastard hose" isn't that hard to replace, just requires a bit of skin sacrificing, select tools (loooong nose needle nose pliers will assist greatly). Pull the battery and passenger cowel panel for easier access, and run a new, single piece hose directly from the hardpipe at the back of the engine to the turbo. Replacing turbo coolant lines should be an inclusion in the plenum pull, just as important as new fuel lines. What's weeping at the moment can pretty quickly turn into a leak that empties the coolant system as fast as you can fill it.
yer. seems like i need to do a complete restoration on it. i remember the first service and rad flush i did on it. lumpy oil and muddy coolant. i love the car but the old owner was a dick. should have bought through the forum i guess
So I'm trying to fix the leak today cause it's gotten worse. There was already a bypass to the turbo using one of the pipes that would of fed the throttle body's so I'm guessing there's going to be a bolt in the end of the bastard hose and that's what's leaking. However it isn't up the top so it's being a real bastard. Still contemplating pulling the plenum but would rather not. Still not sure how I'm going to get the first bastard hose off that's right under another hose. Maybe I should of bought a supra
Trade it in on a Supra, but you won't get much for it. So you might as well fix it. The problem you are facing is called maintenance. From what you have written, the previous owner was lacking in this regard. The leakage has occurred due to dodgy work, age of the hose or possibly corrosion of a pipe. It could prove quite disheartening, if you repair this leak & another develops elsewhere in the near future. Perhaps serious consideration should be given to replacing all the "hard to get at hoses", even if it means a plenum pull. Overheat the engine & a plenum pull will appear minor compared to an engine replacement. If you do decide to pull the plenum, that would be the time to service the injectors & fuel lines. Have fun! :zlove:
Can someone give me a link to some kind of diagram of where the bastard hose runs? After it rounds the corner of the head I loose it. Need to know where on the turbo it ends up
Told ya on the phone -there's a coolant pipe on the inside of the passenger side turbo. That's the one you're chasing
just remove the hose from the heater pipe and run it to the turbo remove the old hoses when u swap the motor
I'm ****ing over this shit. I can't get the top hose off the ****ing heater core pipe and I can't get the ****ing clip off the bottom hose. I'm gonna ****ing burn this ****
Got it done. Couldn't get the clamps to go back on properly so I'll have to pick something up from autobahn.
