Coolant Loss from Overflow Hose - Solution? (1 Viewer)

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On bumpy rides my coolant (which is always at the correct level - never over-filled) is splashing up to the top of the overflow bottle and is being lost from the end of the overflow hose. Not the bottle cap which I know is prone to leaking and which has been modified, from the overflow.

Is there an established and tested solution for this?
 
Take a piece of sponge and cut two pieces to the rough shape of half the overflow bottle's oval. The idea is to have one floating on each side of the rubber hose about a half inch thick. Jam them in there and it will saturate and sit atop the coolant where it will dramatically reduce splashing. When you reinsert the cap/hose, obviously jiggle until you get the hose between the pieces.

We developed this years ago while testing the Fiero in the 80s. It had a tendancy to splash windshield washer fluid onto the w/s at speeds and cornering forces where you didn't really want a distraction and this stopped it.

Don't use the cellulose sponges - I don't know how they'll react to coolant. Use the all plastic ones that are uniform sponge rubber with uniform tiny holes. No natural stuff. For reference, this is the stuff they make foam engine air filters from, and those kids toys where a dinosaur is compressed into a pellet you put in water and it expands.

DougM
 
So Dough, shall I just put one of thoses dinosaurs in the bottle?
 
IdahoDoug said:
We developed this years ago while testing the Fiero in the 80s.

That was a vehicle that had potential if GM had only built a high quality version. The end product was a POS. Sad.

-B-
 
Michael,

Dinosaurs would work well - I recommend the Triceratops for its high ratio of external surface area to volume. Heh.

Beo - I was the Product Planner for the Fiero from '85 to '88 when it was killed with a phone call from the VP's office - Stemple I think. With only two model years to work on it, the 88 was the finest/last and it had several significant improvements. We exchanged the GM X car 4 speed manual crap box for a nice German Getrag 5 speed, the fuel tank was enlarged from pitiful to adequate, the brakes were hugely upgraded, the suspension was completely retuned, the 2.8 V6 went to 3.1, blah, blah. Then a few of the older models out on the road for years caught fire due to a wiring glitch and cooling glitch and the legal staff got the better of Stemple and he did what GM usually does - panic and shove your head in the sand. Too bad because the 1988s rolling off the line when that happened were really nice cars. I think I got the years right.

You would not believe the drop dead absolutely freakin gorgeous body on the model we had approved for the new version. It was a true work of art done by a guy in our studio who poured his heart into it and designed a stunner with little management interference. The Corvette guys (I was also responsible for the Vette/Camaro/Firebird programs) were nervous about it. Think Ferrari GTO meets Lamborqhini Muira. Powertrain wise, it was going to have a forced induction option on the V6 (I drove a prototype of this powertrain hidden under a lightly modified '88 body and made my girlfriend pee her pants..) and would have been quite the mid engine machine.

So, if you're a Fiero fan, it's heartbreaking to know the next one was a serious contender.

DougM
 
I bought a Fiero for my wife back in the late 80's. It had a chassis alignment problem that could not be fixed. Got to about 60mph then started snaking like a sidewinder! She got the POS in a divorce settlement - He, He, He!
 
MH_Stevens said:
On bumpy rides my coolant (which is always at the correct level - never over-filled) is splashing up to the top of the overflow bottle and is being lost from the end of the overflow hose. Not the bottle cap which I know is prone to leaking and which has been modified, from the overflow.

Is there an established and tested solution for this?


There are two lines in my overflow bottle. I hope by full you mean filling the bottle only up to the lower line. When my engine is at operating temperature on a very hot day is the only time my water and coolant reach the higher line.


Kalawang
 
Mine also sloshed a bit out until I got a fresh one from Cdan for about $10. Came with a fresh hose, cap, cap seal, and little 90 degree hoselet.

DougM
 

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