Maybe a dumb question. But my wife bought a 99 Miata with only 15K miles. I have changed all the fluids except for the coolant which appears to be new. The car is 17 years old but the hoses all look and feel fine. Not hard. Not dry rotted. I sort of hate to change them but a bit concerned about the age. Thoughts?
Cooling system hoses. Old but not brittle.
- Thread starter Martin10
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They rot from the inside out
I'd change them the first time you have other maintenance required on the cooling system/engine as hoses aren't that expensive. And they'll last the life of the car. Until then, just keep an eye on them. The hoses on my 1999 are all original. I have no intention of changing them until they show some type of defect. When I bought some original 1960's Muscle Mopars in the 1990's their original hoses were up to 25 yrs old and not a problem. And back then the quality wasn't as good.
This is the perennially asked question which never gets answered.
Anecdotes are the best you can hope for (in the absence of facts or data).
I changed my sister's 13 year old hoses (150K) in her Jeep and the old ones looked OLD as I finished the job and saw them lying on the ground. They were "grainy" on the inside.
My Volvo's hoses are now 14-15 years old and do not look as bad but I've bought the replacements and will put 'em in when I do the timing belt/water pump.
In both these cases selling the vehicle is on the horizon.
The hoses in my 1999 Saab are originals and I plan on selling this car without changing them unless I find any sign of leakage.
Anecdotes are the best you can hope for (in the absence of facts or data).
I changed my sister's 13 year old hoses (150K) in her Jeep and the old ones looked OLD as I finished the job and saw them lying on the ground. They were "grainy" on the inside.
My Volvo's hoses are now 14-15 years old and do not look as bad but I've bought the replacements and will put 'em in when I do the timing belt/water pump.
In both these cases selling the vehicle is on the horizon.
The hoses in my 1999 Saab are originals and I plan on selling this car without changing them unless I find any sign of leakage.
Originally Posted By: Martin10
Maybe a dumb question. But my wife bought a 99 Miata with only 15K miles. I have changed all the fluids except for the coolant which appears to be new. The car is 17 years old but the hoses all look and feel fine. Not hard. Not dry rotted. I sort of hate to change them but a bit concerned about the age. Thoughts?
Remove the upper hose, cut it open and check the condition of the hose on the inside. If bad, change all the hoses...if still good, only replace the upper hose.
Problem solved.
Maybe a dumb question. But my wife bought a 99 Miata with only 15K miles. I have changed all the fluids except for the coolant which appears to be new. The car is 17 years old but the hoses all look and feel fine. Not hard. Not dry rotted. I sort of hate to change them but a bit concerned about the age. Thoughts?
Remove the upper hose, cut it open and check the condition of the hose on the inside. If bad, change all the hoses...if still good, only replace the upper hose.
Problem solved.
The old rule of thumb when it came to preventative maintenance was to replace all the hoses and clamps every 5 years. Cheap insurance.
Contradicting some of the recommendations above, I've noticed a decline in the quality of automotive rubber products over the last 20 years or so.
Contradicting some of the recommendations above, I've noticed a decline in the quality of automotive rubber products over the last 20 years or so.
Keep them clean
These days hoses outlast the engine.
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