Figured i’d address the coolant leak first of my 3 leaks (coolant, power steering, and boost/vacuum) since i can always just top off the PS fluid, and if i stay out of boost the vacuum leak isn’t going to destroy my car…
I had replaced a rubber coolant line (the feed line to the driver turbo) last year, and turns out now that the majority of the leak was actually coming from the bottom hard line that said rubber line connects to.
There is a metal tube/bracket that goes over the hardline, kind of like a tunnel for it. Well, the break in the hard line is completely hidden by this runnel. I want to get tube cutters in there, cut off the broken/bad part of the hard line, and then just run a slightly longer rubber line in place of it. Problem is, this area is so jam packed that the smallest tube cutter i could find is still too big to make a full circle around said hardline.
My options:
JB weld, totally half ass…don’t even know if it will grab the line, and if it does, doubt it will hold for long…i do not want to do this, but it’s something that was stated as a possible quick fix, so i’ll mention it.
hack-saw or saw in some way said hard line since tube cutters won’t fit in there…main concern here is the possibility of metal bits getting in the coolant that will be immediately be fed to the turbo… :eekdance:
use a pair of pliers to cut said hardline…will be a clean cut so no worry of bits of metal, but then i have to hope i can pry the now crimped-shut coolant hardline open with a screwdriver or something…a chance i don’t want to take since this is a very tight space we’re working with.
ArcticZap will be putting up a picture illustrating what i’m dealing with…since i can’t get tube cutters in there, i wouldn’t have minded just running a longer rubber line over the entire hardline, totally covering the break in it, and putting extra clamps on it, but the break in the hardline is strategically positioned right under that tunnel/bracket i mentioned, just to make it impossible for me to fix this easily.
Removing the bracket is also not an option since the bolt holding the bracket in place is not only in a very tight place, it’s surrounded by other garbage so much that getting any sort of wrench on the bolt holding the bracket in place is impossible.
just wanna mention as well that the tube bracket going over the hardline that’s broken is attached to the flat metal piece you see just above it, which you can see is bolted and held in place by a black bolt…that black bolt i mentioned is the one that’s literally impossible to get any sort of wrench around, so removing that bracket, the easy way to the leak, is not an option…go figure.
i wouldn’t have minded doing this, but there is that metal bracket going over and around the broken section of the hard line…that metal bracket can not be removed, it’s all one piece with the flat, black piece of metal that’s held in place by a big black bolt you can see toward the top of the pic.
believe me if it was as easy as just sliding a longer rubber line down over the broken part of the hard line, i would be doing so…
i really wish i could…but the pictures are very misleading, making the space look much bigger than it really is. for example, the entire space shown, is completely filled up by a single hand when i’m in there…most of the work done in there is done by feel since with a hand in there, you can’t see anything.
plus…using a high speed cutting tool, i’d still be worried about bits of metal finding their way in the lines…
Wow, This is exactly the shit Im dealing with right now, god I love hammered 90’s Japanese sports cars, lol, On that note, my personal PS fix was cut the hard line replace with rubber and use PVC cement to secure, lol it worked
maybe if its not too bad keep up on the coolant and after you put it away this year drop the crossmember and bring it all down a foot or two and mess with it then?
i kinda ignored it a bit last year, and my plan was to take care of it now…i dont want to leak anything, especially if i’m going to be attending lapping days.
that’s the thing…what you see, the big thing in the bottom left of the pic, that’s in the way keeping the tube cutter from making a full circle around the hard line i need to replace…yeah, that’s the turbo…and removing the turbo = not happening.
I would hate to say it, but you got yourself into this when you half-assed it the first time. Now you are going to have to tear apart your car and fix it. Better start taking shit apart and labeling it, else it will just be a huge mess to put back together. Trust me, been there. Pull it apart, get things situated the right way.
Well, if worse comes to worse you can always donate the car to me.
no but really, I think your best option is to pull everything apart and get it done properly. From the looks of the picture and what you’re describing it’s the only way to go about doing it.
Andy, if you don’t have the tools to fix it, take it to a shop that does and have them do it. I’m sure there are long snips or something that can fit in there. If they have to drop the exhaust and that one turbo, it won’t be bad.
* Opinions expressed in this thread only apply to 90NA300ZX’s car and do not apply to the rest of the 300zx community.
But seriously, quit blaming your problems on the cars age. You simply bought a poorly maintained JDM motor for the swap, unknown to you at the time.
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