another renix heater hose thread

Checked with the dealer and ordered the three hoses, how do those metal fittings on the tee work?
A few have hacked them off and reused the tee but I'd rather go with a little better connection. Maybe it's best to buy an aftermarket tee?

I think the more threads I read the more confused I got. tons of conflicting info out there on the renix heater core setup.

Two ways to go...

Those crimp sleeves are aluminum - they cut off rather easily. Either split in one place and prise open, or take two cuts opposite each other and watch them fall off. Save them - they go in the scrap bin (it's amazing how much of my funding comes from scrap metal...)

Or, get a bunch of 1/2" copper tubing and joints, and sweat new lines to eliminate needing to buy the moulded heater hoses. Email to dragonland2001 AT yahoo DOT com for pix of my setup...

5-90

YGM.

Have no problem sweating the copper long as I can use (find) barbed fittings, I'm replacing the hose for peace of mind and would never be comfortable with just clamps, warranted or not.

side question too, how are the heater valves on these things?

Other cars I've owned the plastic valves get old and brittle and blow, sort of like our expansion tanks. I'm tempted to replace.
it'd also solve one of my problems as this is only 38 bucks

Rounds overhead!

I deleted my heater control valve - damn thing broke apart anyhow. I may add a manual valve later (as I mentioned in the email,) but I'm not sure yet.

I also haven't done hose barbs on beads on the tubing yet - I want to, but I'll have to get a tubing beader. However, I put this in three years ago using a dab of RTV Black under the hose junctions, and they haven't leaked yet - touch wood. I still want to put beads on the lines, tho...

5-90

I have a 88 XJ and changed my heater hoses in 2000. I used aftermarket hoses but they did not fix right. A couple years later when I changed coolant I installed new heater hoses from the dealer. The dealer hoses laid right and looked "correct". The aftermarket hoses even if they were the right PN looked "rigged."

I also pulled off the heater hoses, went to my work bench and cut off the aluminum bands. I installed new hoses using stainless steel hose clamps. The Tee looked just fine to me, not sure why you want to re-invent the wheel. I also got a new heater control valve and mine looks like the one posted. When you go to the store to buy the valve be careful, there is a catalog error and they only have a 2 port valve, not the 3 port you need. Be patient with the parts guys as they try to find you the right valve.

I also recommend if you still have the pressure bottle you need to replace it. You can get a new one from quadratec.com for $20 or so. There is also a mode to install the moroso surge tank but it requires mods to use.

Also when you pull of your heater hoses from the heater core slice them and pull the rubber away from the nipple, do not twist them, there a chance of breaking a joint in the core and causing a leak.

while you have the heater hoses off you may want to flush the junk out of your heater core. You will need two 4 ft pieces of hose, one 5/8 and one 3/4 and install a female hose end the hoses. Install the hoses with hose clamps, then begin to flush. Flush forward and backward until the water runs clean. I collected my water in buckets so I could tell how clear the water was, if you look at it coming out of the hose it looks clean but collected in a bucket you can tell how dirty it is. After I did this I have plenty of heat, my 70 year old mother complained it was too hot with the temp in the middle of range on a 20 degree day.

Good luck!

what a pain in the butt.

the dealer has some of the hoses, not quite all.
I used a generic goodyear hose from the stat housing to the heater valve, this hose is a 3/4 on one end to a 90 bend then 5/8" to the heater valve. (part number found http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=69671&highlight=part+numbers $12) , I replaced the tee and heater valve with a new one from NAPA ($34), used an OEM hose from the heater valve to the top of the football and some regular 5/8" stock from the third leg of the valve to the lower port on the heater core.

I reused the other tee, it was in fair condition. I used an OEM hose from the pump nipple to the tee (16), an oe hose from the bottom of coolant jug to tee (12) and from the top heater core nipple some 3/4" stock, then a 3/4" to 5/8" reducer, then some 5/8" stock to the last leg of the tee. An OEM hose would have been preferred here but no one had one and I wanted to button it up. I think it's a safe setup but not the most pleasing visually.

Maybe this will help future searchers. Really you could do the whole thing with some reducers and save a lot of money but I hate having even the one plastic reducer in there.