Pesky Coolant Tee, again so soon (1 Viewer)

[TsomosY]

I replaced the coolant tees 3 years ago, which was about 30,000 miles.

I was surprised to see one seeping yesterday. I poked around at it and the loser tee cracked. They go brittle so fast!

cheap to fix and good parts to keep on hand in the vehicle in my book.

when was the last time you changed your Coolant Tee?
I’ve done the job 4 times on 3 of my 100 series.

cheers

 

[Manhattan]

Don't use the plastic Ts. Search "heater t" - there are lots (!) of discussion of the topic.

 

[2001LC]

Have you been using OEM tees?

 

[TsomosY]

Don't use the plastic Ts. Search "heater t" - there are lots (!) of discussion of the topic.

Heard of people using brass tee but have heard that can be an issue too

maybe I need to do some further homework !

 

[TsomosY]

Have you been using OEM tees?

Yes. OEM

thankfully never had them fail in route. I changed them as part of the initial service on each cruiser I buy.

 

[Kabanstva]

Are you in a hotter climate? It’s crazy hearing these stories here constantly. We replaced my Ts at 125k miles and they still looked brand new. Original Ts.

 

[2001LC]

Yes. OEM

thankfully never had them fail in route. I changed them as part of the initial service on each cruiser I buy.

When coolant system has and air bubble. Air sits in Tees and radiator plastic top. This can cause early failure.

 

[flintknapper]

 

[daohaus]

View attachment 2785649

Is this the alternative??

 

[flintknapper]

Is this the alternative??

It was for me. I can't fathom why such a critical component would have been made from plastic to begin with. Except the 'bean counters' at Toyota were likely involved.

 

[nukegoat]

It was for me. I can't fathom why such a critical component would have been made from plastic to begin with. Except the 'bean counters' at Toyota were likely involved.

Its not that critical of a component and there are more than enough plastic interfaces in the cooling system that you aren't even aware of

 

[Boss Hog]

View attachment 2785649

Looks awesome. Any concern about rust or otherwise degradation of the metal with coolant flowing through it? Basically: is this metal specifically for using with coolant?

 

[flintknapper]

Its not that critical of a component and there are more than enough plastic interfaces in the cooling system that you aren't even aware of

If you have a heater Tee blow out (with no way to bypass it) it will leave you stranded (provided you stop) and if you don't...you'll overheat. I'd say that's pretty damn critical. 'Plastics' have their place and depending upon what type of plastic, the design of the part and consequences of failure, that is fine. IMO a heater Tee is NOT a good place for it.

And the plethora of failures and needed replacements seems to bear that out. Aside from the heater Tee's and radiator tops/bottoms I am not aware of any other plastic components that are troublesome, but perhaps you can share?

 

[nukegoat]

If you have a heater Tee blow out (with no way to bypass it) it will leave you stranded (provided you stop) and if you don't...you'll overheat. I'd say that's pretty damn critical. 'Plastics' have their place and depending upon what type of plastic, the design of the part and consequences of failure, that is fine. IMO a heater Tee is NOT a good place for it.

And the plethora of failures and needed replacements seems to bear that out. Aside from the heater Tee's and radiator tops/bottoms I am not aware of any other plastic components that are troublesome, but perhaps you can share?

I just don't think it's that critical because you can just bypass it in the bush

 

[Boss Hog]

Seem like a lot of trouble to go through just to ensure the dog is warm in the 3rd row. Maybe I should just delete it…

 

[e9999]

What metal (coating?) is that on those Omega Tees above?

I also think that this is a critical component. Seems likely that if breaks there would be a significant loss of coolant with the water pump running.

 

[flintknapper]

Looks awesome. Any concern about rust or otherwise degradation of the metal with coolant flowing through it? Basically: is this metal specifically for using with coolant?

It is a product designed to be Heater Tee's from the start. You can get them in different sizes. IF your hoses are still good and you intend to reuse them....I'd recommend you go with the size I used (3/4 x 3/4 x 5/8) for a tight fit. Because your hoses will have a slight amount of 'bell' at the ends and likely have lost the ability to retract fully when the old Tee's are removed. IF you plan on using new hoses then go with the smaller version (5/8 x 5/8 x 1/2). The OEM plastic Tee's are metric.

 

[Boss Hog]

Is there a way to swap the tees without draining all the radiator fluid and doing a flush?

 

[flintknapper]

Is there a way to swap the tees without draining all the radiator fluid and doing a flush?

You bet. In fact, most folks do it that way.

 

[medtro]

It was for me. I can't fathom why such a critical component would have been made from plastic to begin with. Except the 'bean counters' at Toyota were likely involved.

Same heater T is used in the 80 series but it is not a common problem in the 80 series though.