Radiator replacement

[zedhead]

Having got fed up of continually topping up the coolant, allied to the fact that the leak was getting worse, I bought myself a replacement radiator and set to to change them...
Easy enough, or so you'd think... A bit of a faff getting some bits out of the way, but the stumbling block came when I tried to get the lower right hose off... It just isn't coming off! The manual says that it's a 'bayonet' fitting, and I've got the wire clip off, but the hose isn't coming loose. Are there any secrets to getting the hose removed?

[polar]

Ive had to cut them off before then cut a slot in the rad neck that is left on the hose so you can open it up with a screwdriver.

They can be a bit of a pig.

[berlingo2002]

Having got fed up of continually topping up the coolant, allied to the fact that the leak was getting worse, I bought myself a replacement radiator and set to to change them...
Easy enough, or so you'd think... A bit of a faff getting some bits out of the way, but the stumbling block came when I tried to get the lower right hose off... It just isn't coming off! The manual says that it's a 'bayonet' fitting, and I've got the wire clip off, but the hose isn't coming loose. Are there any secrets to getting the hose removed?

Just did mine, same as you but I slide a flat head stumpy screw driver between the radiator and bottom hose and twisted slow to separate.
The bottom rubber hose has a metal pipe with a flange that you can slide the screw driver between and twist.

[zedhead]

Fnurk... you said 'flange'...
Gonna give it another go today, gave up when it got dark yesterday. Thanks for the advice, it'll be awkward to get any kind of cutting device onto the rad stub, barely room for a junior hacksaw, but I'll give both methods a go and see what happens! Thanks!

[berlingo2002]

Fnurk... you said 'flange'...
Gonna give it another go today, gave up when it got dark yesterday. Thanks for the advice, it'll be awkward to get any kind of cutting device onto the rad stub, barely room for a junior hacksaw, but I'll give both methods a go and see what happens! Thanks!

No problem, its really hard to see but the flange is right up against the hose,
Btw there is a rubber seal on the metal tube at the end of the hose .it usually needs replacing when you separate the radiator.

[zedhead]

Yay! I got the rad off! I used a junior hacksaw to cut into the rad stub, and then a stubby screwdriver peels a slice of rad off and it came loose, with a celebratory gush of cold coolant straight into my gob...
Now it's a case of fitting the new one without any leaks... The rubber seal on the end of the hose looks ropey, but there wasn't a new one with the new rad, and I'm right out in the sticks with no other transport, so it'll either be a case of hoping it'll be okay, siliconing it to death and hoping it'll be okay, finding a rubber o-ring in my box of o-rings that'll fit (although it looks like it has a double lip on the seal) or ordering one off t'interwebs and waiting...

[zedhead]

... actually, rather than have to spend even more time in the bitter wind taking it all apart again after a bodge, I've ordered a seal off ebay ;-)

[Silverberlingo]

:0 its always a pain when you do a job and no gaskets or seals come with anything new. Knowing that when you do the job you will require them!! Better to do it right first time instead of twice !!!

[zedhead]

SO, I got the new o-ring in the post today and it's a conventional round cross section o-ring, whereas the one fitted had a H kind of section... Whatever, I swapped them and tied to reassemble with the new rad. Not easy. Not easy at all. Not convinced that it's gone back together okay as the steel stub thing isn't sitting flush against the rad stab, but it ain't budging any further!

[zedhead]

And... it didn't work! I got no more than five miles before the bottom hose decided that it didn't want to stay in the radiator stub.
Any ideas?...