juschillins4

Im trying To Drain my coolant and as im sure u guys already kno the lower radiator Hose is not moving. How fragile is this thing? i dont wanna Break anything. Can i wiggle it off with Chanel locks and kinda twist it? any advice would be appreciated. thanx.

Timtheguru

I would not use channel locks.

Mine wasn't fragile, just put on some gloves to give you a better grip and twist, up down left right and pull it out.. it can take a few minutes to free it up, the O ring on it is very tight. Putting it back in is a bitch too.. Don't forget to pull out the retainer clip and be careful putting it back in too.

Faulk

Did you take the retainer clip out? After pulling that clip, a good strong tug straight back should disconnect it.

juschillins4

im just nervous about messing the sensor up if i pull to hard & far. when it stops raining im gonna give it another try. Is the sensor locked in real tight or do i risk popping it out when removing the hose??

Faulk

I would take the sensor out before you start yanking on that lower radiator hose. It's a little bit of a pain in the butt to get out but just be gentle with it. There is a little plastic clip that you have to pull GENTLY off in order to get the sensor out. FYI, I would order a new plastic clip (or 2) while its raining. They are like $0.57 from JHM (I think). I broke mine taking it off and bought two extras just in case my meaty hands broke it again. Also, make sure you grab the o-ring when you take the sensor out. You don't want to lose that.

bingS4

Don't twist it. There's a tab in there that makes it come off straight. Get a very broad screwdriver if you must and pry at it very tenderly, followed by lots of pulling with your hands and swearing and grunting. Yes, it's a pain. Yes, it will finally give up and come off.

juschillins4

so i just Finished flushing my coolant and replacing the expansion tank/hose.Heat Works great. I ended up getting the lower radiator Hose off with a big flat head. It worked great , Popped right Off. Just Wanted to say thanks For The Help offered by you guys. I really appreciate it!!!

o_a_ravi

Just a noob question. To get to the lower radiator hose for replacement., do we need to remove the bumper and the front end to the service position ?

Or can it be accessed from the top/bottom without moving the carrier ? I am due for a new hose and wanted to know if this could be done easily.

Bill S4-01

Good luck if you can get if off without removing the bumper. I could not.

But my alternator crapped out on me around the same time as I was planning to change my hoses so I had to remove everything to get that out and replaced all the hoses I could see just in case.

Getting to that is next to impossible, I wish you luck.

Having said that, the front end isn't so hard to get off, it's just a "pain in the %%" and the way I look at it is, it's good practice for the next time you have to take it off.

Timeing belts, alternator, cam seals... long list of why we all need the practice

Kgoodman82

How do I reinstall the lower radiator hose (the one with the metal end)? I have the front end all put back together but I can get the thing to pop in. I tried to thread the screw in but all it did was make the hose go in at an angle. So I pryed on it trying to get it to pop in and it didn't work. So I took the screw back out and pryed on it and just can't figure out how to do it. There must be an easier way.