Tees

[Mike6158]

Do these look like they have been replaced? I think the previous owner told me that they had and since the clamps don't appear to be factory my guess is that they have been replaced. But I'd like someone else to confirm it

Also - Is there a specific reason for the plastic intake cover panel, like improve air flow, or can it be left off? I think it looks better on but I can see the engine area better without it.

 

[aljollano]

The clamps are not OEM for sure.
You can leave the cover off. That's how the PO of my 100 had it. I doesn't cause any issues.

 

[Justin Alderson]

I replaced the alternator in my 1999 UZJ100 and while I had some working room, I looked at some of the other stuff I need to check. I looked around where I expected them to be and couldn't find them. I was losing light so I put it back together, thinking I would do a little more research and look again when I change the timing belt in the next month or two.

Short of pulling them and inspecting, how would you test the integrity of those Tees?

@Mike6158: Can you provide a wider area pic to show where I need to look? Even a finger painting at this point would help me.

Thanks!

 

[Mike6158]

What you are seeing is the firewall of the LC looking at it from the radiator. The silver part that is in the bottom of the frame is the intake manifold. NOT the cover with the engine size on it. The brake master cylinder and booster is to the right of the hoses in this pic, just a little out of frame. The tees are between the clamps

You probably can't see the tees because the intake manifold cover is installed. I had to look in from the drivers side, around the hood hinge, when I first checked them.

Since the previous owner told me they had been changed (pretty sure of that but when he told me I didn't know what he was talking about), mine have new hose clamps, and the heater hose looks pretty good I am assuming that they have been changed. My LC has about 170,000 on it.

I don't know how you test integrity. I guess by taking the hose off. If the tee breaks they are bad. Or if they break and leave you stranded they are bad. Sounds like a smart ass remark but I don't mean it that way. That's how I understand the "tee thing".

 

[Justin Alderson]

OK. That makes much more sense now. For the alternator, I only removed that front skid plate, not the plate behind it. Next time I have an hour or so to burn I'll go pull it and see how it looks.

That was exactly how I read into testing as well. I guess if you had the capability to connect the Tees to a pressure system (h2o or air), kinda like pressure testing a sprinkler system... but it would just be easier and cheaper to keep a couple of Tees back by the jack just in case.

Thanks for the quick reply!

 

[Sandroad]

If you look closely at the heater hose T's that are visible, I think there are 3 OEM clamps and 6 non-OEM clamps. I don't think you can tell from the outside if the T's have actually been replaced and the hoses don't look "newish". It's possible the PO just had new clamps installed on some of the fittings that may have been leaking. Given the low cost and maybe an hour's work, I think it seems prudent to R&R the T's and check the hoses unless you're certain they have been replaced. I don't know what year your LC is, but it's possible the T's fail by age as well as by miles.

 

[Mike6158]

It's a 2000 LC. The previous owner and I spent about 2 hours in the LC because I had to drive him back home after closing the deal. I remember him telling me that the tees are done in case I see something mentioned online (he pointed me to this forum). He also said I wouldn't know what he meant until I had seen the online discussions.

On the other hand, he probably had them done at least 70k miles ago and he used plastic, possibly OEM, possibly not. So... it might be worth taking the time to replace them. Idk.

 

[SmoothLC]

Plastic = OEM

 

[Justin Alderson]

That forum thread haunted me for a few days after reading it... every time I pulled out of the driveway or went over a speed bump, thinking it was going to disintegrate.

I have a 1999 w/189K. It seems like a good rig, but needs some "TLC". I do a little here and a little there each month... working my confidence up to the tackle the timing belt. I really appreciate how active & helpful this forum is.

 

[Mike6158]

The FAQ Thred a great resource to use and a lot of people don't read it->

https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/100-series-lc-lx-faq-and-featured-trucks.30754/

Tees

https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/diy-replacing-heater-hose-pipe-ts-important.610334/

Be sure to check out the diff fluid change, transfer case fluid change, etc articles. They are a great resource to us