Metal Water Pipe..... Why And How ?

[bondyshambles 23 1 Cars]

Hi there....I have just bought myself a shiny new Nissens radiator and a shiny new metal water pipe (fitted to the inner wing on the drivers side). I can find threads on how to change the radiator over but i have a question reguarding the metal water pipe. 1) What's its purpose?. 2) How the hell do i get it off?. It looks like 2 screws or bolts judging by the new part i have however, i cannot see what they are or how to get to them. I have limited tools and limited knowledge. Do i get them off from the top or from underneath the car? Also when refitting is it best to mount the pipe and then put the hoses on or, put the hoses on and then relocate the pipe?. Tell me its a simple job...please.

 

Cheers in advance.

[farmer 327 1 Cars]

The bolts are a nightmare, i drilled and re-tapped mine.

 

Once thats done its a simple bolt on again.

 

I bolted the metal pipe on first, then fitted the hoses i was a tight fit but can be done, especially if the hoses are new.

 

Everthing can be done with the wheel of.

 

Take your time clean the area and it should explain itself.

[bondyshambles 23 1 Cars]

So you are saying that i take the wheel off and get to the bolts from the wheel arch as appose to going from under the bonnet?

[farmer 327 1 Cars]

Yes. The bolts are usually star heads if they are original I think. Certainly mine were. If its the metal water pipe I think your talking about, then yes drivers wheel off.

Edited February 9, 2013 by farmer

[BlueBolt 156]

Yes, drivers wheel off.

Due to the location of the pipe then the screws holding it in ry filled with crud quite quickly and as already mention, sometimes become a bit of a pain in the backside to get off. I didn't drill and tap mine, I used a pair of mile grips and then just cleared the thread after, new bolts/screws after obviously.

It is a preference thing with the order. I found it easier to put the rubber hoses on then attach it. Doesn't make any difference, just what you prefer I guess

[dcc 855]

its very simple and if the bolts wont undo use a bit of heat

[allye 530 3 Cars]

good idea to replace with stainless screws or bolts with decent amount of copper grease to avoid the same happening in the future.

 

Purpose? I guess its more secure than a long stretch of hose and less prone to splits etc.

[bondyshambles 23 1 Cars]

Thanks for the input guys

[sensualt101 31 1 Cars]

its very simple and if the bolts wont undo use a bit of heat

 

i cant do that on mine as i still have the original plastic panel fitted inside the wheel arch lol!

[ORB 227 1 Cars]

Take it off....

[TooMany2cvs 65]

Faced with bolts like these sound, I'd be reaching straight for my box of bolt extractors, designed for use with rounded heads etc - I've used 'em for getting some seriously rusty hex-head and even an allen bolt with the ball end of a key broken off in... They taper internally, so as they start to bite and you pile on the torque, they just dig in harder. Because of the way they work, if you try one and it still doesn't play, just go down a size. 3/8" socket drive, plus a big hex on the outside, so they're good in restricted spaces.

 

http://www.irwin.com/tools/screw-bolt-extractors/bolt-extractors

 

There's two sets of five - IIRC, mine came off eBay, both sets in one purchase. The case which comes with one set has space for the second set.

Edited February 10, 2013 by TooMany2cvs

[bondyshambles 23 1 Cars]

Top man....i have ordered a set. They will come in handy at some stage.

[Liquid_106 97 1 Cars]

Wouldn't bother with an extractor, most likely thing to happen is the bolt will shear before the nut loosens.

[farmer 327 1 Cars]

Wouldn't bother with an extractor, most likely thing to happen is the bolt will shear before the nut loosens.

 

Exactly what happened to me.

[DamirGTI 325]

I just weld on an nut on top of the bolt and undo it that way as a matter of second .. don't mind the old bolt with nut welded on i always replace the bolts .

 

.. any kind of bolt/nut problem - weld on a nut or bolt or what have you with an MIG welder (if you have one ) and it'll loosen the hardest frozen bolt/nut fittings ..

 

D

[TooMany2cvs 65]

Wouldn't bother with an extractor, most likely thing to happen is the bolt will shear before the nut loosens.

Is it a loose nut and bolt, a captive on the shell, or a welded stud on the shell?

[Tom Fenton 1,525]

The standard fixings are a pan head PH3 set screw, the same as the ones that hold on the grille etc.

 

The irwin nut grips are a great tool, I have a full set, but they won't help you here.

 

What you need is a proper PH3 large screwdriver. Failing that an impact driver. Failing that a drill.

[chipstick 382 1 Cars]

I drilled mine out as they sheared. Then replaced it with a longer setscrew drilled through to the otherside of the leg with a nut on the back.

[ALEX 98 1 Cars]

You can buy the rivnuts from a fixing supplier quite cheaply.

The tool for fitting them is about £15.

[welshpug 1,622]

Most Rivnut tools even come with a couple of rivnuts

[Tonyvid 0]

It sounds like I was luck with mine after reading this! I changed it this weekend as it was gently oozing - there were 2 bolts(11mm & 8mm) in the front wheel arch that came out easily, the pipes took some waggling to get off so I undid the radiator hose first. I did have to get 2 new pipe clips as the originals were single use items that had to be prised apart to release them. I did most of it from underneath(drive up ramps).

 

If your new one is not stainless steel it might be an idea to paint the outside first with something like hammerite - the inside of mine was lovely and clean, just the outside that looked like an oyster!

[bondyshambles 23 1 Cars]

Ok i tackled this job today. I had been soaking the 2 screws for the waterpipe with WD40 for 2 days. This made no difference as they were stuck solid. They were the PH3 Phillips head that Tom mentioned earlier in the thread. I was always gonna change the radiator because it leaked so it was just good practice to change the metal water pipe. Good job i did though.

 

The radiator looked like this...God knows how the whole system just didn't explode !!!

 

 

 

And the waterpipe looked like this. I think the hole came about from yanking the pipe a bit, but it just goes to show that it wasn't leaking but it was clearly foobarred.

 

 

So i fitted the brand new Nissens radiator that dropped straight in. I did have to strip the top rubbers, the clip for the fan sensor ( I think) and the temperature guage sensor ( I think) off the old rad and put them on the new one.

 

 

I thought i could get away with getting the bottom hose off without replacing it. It looked good but like the rad and pipe it fell apart too. I like to think that my car is standard and fairly original......all the parts that were on the car that i took off prove this .

 

Anyways cheers for the help people.