Lower radiator hose - no hose clamp?

[BrandonB]

Yes you can use a regular clamp. The replacement hose for mine i've been looking at from Autozone is just a standard hose with no "quick disconnect".

The trick to getting them off is to lift the little tab, and twist 45 degrees and pulling back. Sounds great but mine wouldn't budge. I had to cut the ring and slice the hose a bit to get it off. Hoping I have enough extra hose to cut the part I sliced off and put it on with a worm gear clamp.

 

[nsperf]

in 98 or 99 they did go to the heat shrink hose clamp. One person asked why. There are actually 2 main reasons. The steel wire and and squeeze band type clamps we most associate have a tendency to loose their tension over time. This inherently can cause a leak. Since these are expected to go 150K without coolant service you need to ensure coolant does not escape. The heat shrink ones do seem to loose tension especially under the extreme changes in temperature they may see.

second reason is cost. Plastic heat shrink is cheaper and the installation of said clamp is cheaper. for most we see this as a few cents but for a 100,000 plus units it all adds up.

 

[chucks97expy]

I replaced it! The lower hose was a pain in the A$$ to get off but I did as some of you guys had said and carefully cut through the plastic clamp. I was able to get the twist lock part off as well. Don't know if I should have reused the twist lock part or not but I did. Put it back on separately and then slid the hose back over the twist lock and used a screw clamp. I also used some Black RTV, just in case I appreciate all the info!! many thanks

 

[Mark Smith]

hit this problem today... printed instructions on the lower rad hose say "... to remove bend back rotate hose pull apart..." WOW, I sure miss the "Better Idea" days!! My other Ford is a 57 Fairlane, so I thought "no big deal...remove the radiator, check for any leaks, replace..." Not so, grasshopper... no clamp on the lower hose...!!! This idea must have come from a young engineer... who has never worked on a real car and probably owns no hand tools that are made in the USA, not China!! Where's my box cutter!!

Mark

 

[RonB1964]

The lower hose has an alignment mark on the hose that indexes to a mark on the radiator. 1st disconnect the hose from the coolant tank and engine block, then rotate the hose 45 degrees in one direction or the other, then pull straight out. It's easiest to do with the radiator removed imho, which only takes about 10 minutes to remove. Once the lower hose is removed, you will see an indexed spring clip and 2 orings.