Hey all, my coolant flange is leaking and i need to replace it. How simple is this replacement? Has anyone done this themselves? Im mechanically inclined, so i can do it myself if it simple enough.

Thanks in advance!

 

i hear its just a pain because of the location being so close to the firewall. mine also has a tiny leak so would love to hear exactly how much a pain it is.

 

Yeah, i searched this forum and found a bunch of threads saying the same thing, just a pain in the *** to get to. I'll post how much of one it is when i'm done.

 

a true PITA, but patience will serve you well. Strip down all the tubes and pipes above the flange as you have to work on it from the top. Takes longer but you'll spare yourself extremely bloodied knuckes and a bucketload of f'bombs...

Get yourself a new Coolant Temp Sensor while you are there and a handful of small and medium hose clamps to put it all back together and replace the OEM clamps.

Good luck!

 

Very true MKE.
Attached are the pics for when I did mine.

 

Thanks all! Going to do it this weekend. Dunanga, the pics are great!

 

thanks for the pictures.
iam trying to this now got most of the parts out . but cant even see the bottom hose i dont know how i will take that off
anysuggestions?

 

If I recall correctly that is one of the real trouble spots for the knuckles...

Just a matter of working off that OEM clamp with a hefty pair of needlenose and pliers. Once it is off, swap it for a basic hose clamp that you can tighten in place. Just be sure to install it so you have the best angle of attack to tighten and loosen again.

Couple suggestions:
1. Easier to remove that bottom hose while the flange is still attached since it will be held in place and you can use two hands with tools to move the clamp. Once you get the clamp worked up the hose, then you can take the flange loose and be able to twist it out of the hose. Be patient and you will get it.

I don't suggest either of the options below, but if you are desperate and aware of the epic fail you could create you can try these:

2. Next option is to cut the flange so you can work that clamp off the end of the hose or even to crush the flange inside that hose. In both cases you risk putting junk into the engine so I would take the lower hose loose at the other end to make sure no flange pieces get into the coolant.

3. Worst case scenario as it has the biggest risk of ruining other stuff. If you have a grinder and some talent, you can attempt to cut the OEM clamp while making sure not to cut the hose. It is a tight squeeze and the angles are horrible, smaller cutting wheel is required. (Not suggested to do this unless you know you can replace that bottom hose in case you cut it!!) as well you risk damaging anything else you might nick with the grinder.

Above all else, have patience!

 

Talk about a PITA!!!!!! I tried for over three hours and still couldn't even get it out! Does CA cars have more hoses/smog parts on them?? I'll pay someone a couple of hundred to ease my pain! LOL!

 

For all those that are going to or thinking of going to do this DIY, this is a very fidly procedure. Certainly you need a cool head and tonnes of patience to undertake it. When I did mine what I found very important was the preparatory work. The air intake assembly has got to be taken out completely. when all this is out of the way, before undoing the clamp, squirt a bit of penetrant that does not damage rubber or silicone. then use a small water pump pliers, needle nose in this space will leave you kicking and cursing. The flange has to come off the Cyl Head while still attached to the hose that goes to the top end of the radiator (at least that is what I did). I found it easier to undo the clamp from the side where you are so close to the coolant expansion tank, as you can see in my pics above. The OEM clamps are a real pain to refit so YES I suggest for those that found this grueling, replace them with decent aftermarket ones. Tighten pretty well on refitting as these are the prime culprits for slow-leaks if left less than really-tight. It is a good thing to stick in a new CTS and retaining clip while on it. The surface where the flange attaches to the Cyl Head need to be cleaned real thoroughly before re-fitting. Assess the state of the rubber hose between the coolant flange and the metal pipe, if it is beginning to crack, replace it with a new one. Have fun with bleeding the cooling system. Eeeh eeh 3 X 1.5 litres of G12 plus plus & use distilled/de-ionised water by the way. On my 2.0L a coolant mix of between 6.5L and 7L was sufficient. I did a 50-50 ratio.