[chrisk1500]

drain it a bit or you will get a bath....

 

[TurboTahoe]

OK guys,

I ended up installing the leaking quick connect on the 'burb yesterday. With all your hints, it went very smoothly - in fact, it was only a 15 minute deal. I worked on the vehicle while it was stone cold. Shot threads of old quick connect with PB blaster. Took off the coolant system pressure cap, but did not drain. Put a drain pan underneath vehicle. Pulled off quick connect, got a small stream of coolant into pan. Using Axeman's suggestion of using a 1 1/16" socket, gave slow steady pressure on quick connect. It came out easily. New one went in just as easily. No more leaks!

Thanks guys!

Sincerely,

Rob

P.S. For those whose quick connects broke, did you use a deep socket, or did you use an open ended wrench? Inquiring minds want to know!

 

[mvgmc]

I used a box wrench. My fitting was so thin it probably would have broke anyway.

 

[TurboTahoe]

MAN! The Tahoe heater hose quick-connect replacement was a complete PAIN!

It took me 4.5 hours to get it changed, ate up my Sunday afternoon.

You guys were right, even with PB blaster and the correct socket, it sheared off immediately, in fact I was surprised it had not broken off before I touched it, it was so fragile.

I ended up going to NAPA, and getting a special Lisle tool, LIS62200 (see photo) - get this, it's a PATENTED Heater Hose Coupling Remover. Cost me $5.

I had to remove the upper intake manifold in order to get enough room to pound the tool into the remains of the hose coupler. (I had to chip several pieces of the hose coupler out with a small chisel to get enough material removed so that the tool would go in) I was afraid I had gotten some aluminum chips into the thermostat cross over, so I did the following:

• Removed the thermostat
• Used a wet/dry vac on the hose coupler end
• Put an open garden hose running with lots of water into the thermostat opening.
• Sucked several gallons of water out of the hose coupler end of the thermostat crossover.

I'm pretty sure I got all the chips out. I was reluctant to try and take the whole crossover out, as I think several of the nuts and bolts look pretty brittle (it's an East Coast car), and I didn't want to have to deal with having to replace all the broken studs if that occurred.

AUGH!

Anyway, I succeeded in getting the hose coupler remains out, and then cleaning everything up, putting a new factory coupler back in. No more leaks for now.

I have now gone to the dealer and picked up the coupler mentioned earlier in this thread. It is GM part #12597484, and sells for around $13.00 at the dealer. It looks almost identical to the hose couplers at NAPA, but the GM part has a much narrower orifice leading into the heater hose. I believe it is because you don't want to run so much volume of coolant into the heater core, because it would throw off your heater controls. (Anyone have a better theory?)

I plan to do this all once again, replacing the quick connect with the #12597484 heater hose coupler, to avoid this problem from ever occurring again. I can just imagine the quick connect leaking and messing up a fishing trip, leaving me stranded.

I suppose the oil cooler lines suffer from the same dilemma. It is clear that GM designed these items for ease of installation, NOT for longevity or durability. That just eats me up! Shame on GM for doing this!

Thanks for listening,

Rob

 

[turbovanman]

Yeah, they can be a pain but I don't understand why the complaining. Sure the old design was dumb, pot metal but the new ones are steel and will outlast the truck. As for them coming undone in the middle of nowhere, not a chance unless you didn't push the connector in properly. I personally love them, makes servicing so much easier. My 2 cents.

 

[TurboTahoe]

Yeah, they can be a pain but I don't understand why the complaining. Sure the old design was dumb, pot metal but the new ones are steel and will outlast the truck. As for them coming undone in the middle of nowhere, not a chance unless you didn't push the connector in properly. I personally love them, makes servicing so much easier. My 2 cents.

Hi TurboVanMan,

It's actually the other way around. The OLD design was the steel coupler, the new one is the pot metal one.

My comments are around the fact that the coupler snapping off in the housing is so common that an enterprising entrepeneur actually patented a device to help you remove the broken remains of the part. It tooks hours of work to fix - that's the point.

I'm not sure why there would be much of a difference in servicing - the old one requires you to undo a hose clamp, the new one requires you to pinch and pull out. Do you find the quick connect a lot easier?

Sincerely,

Rob

 

[turbovanman]

Hi TurboVanMan,

It's actually the other way around. The OLD design was the steel coupler, the new one is the pot metal one.

My comments are around the fact that the coupler snapping off in the housing is so common that an enterprising entrepeneur actually patented a device to help you remove the broken remains of the part. It tooks hours of work to fix - that's the point.

I'm not sure why there would be much of a difference in servicing - the old one requires you to undo a hose clamp, the new one requires you to pinch and pull out. Do you find the quick connect a lot easier?

Sincerely,

Rob

You got the wrong parts or old stock. I have worked on 1000's of GM cars and trucks and the OE part was pot metal and the new one is steel. I stock the steel one at my shop. The old one was pot metal, thats why they corrode and break off,

 

[TurboTahoe]

Well,

Thanks for being so patient with my frustration, guys. Today I installed the GM-replacement steel heater hose coupler. Took about 20 minutes (the old quick-connect came out easily - I only installed it a couple of weeks ago). I popped a 3 in length of heater hose on, put in a couple of universal hose clamps, and voila, all done.

Sincerely,

Rob

 

[DieselPro]

Old Timer trick > Take an old hacksaw blade and grind the back side down on the "pull side" till the blade will fit in the fitting. Wrap the blade in duck tape to make a handle. Slice the inside of the fitting to the housing. It may take out a few threads but that's O.K.
Now chisel out the fitting. Works great on those SOB broke off ones.

For the gotta have tools this makes it a snap >https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/klein-703-hacksaw-blade-tool-handle-1802344446