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On my 1973 454 the clearance between the upper radiator hose and the alternator pulley and the alternator fan blades is so close it eventually touches. I have tried 3 or 4 new OE style hoses but it keeps happening. I have seen other 454's and the hose is really close also. I'm trying to keep the original look but this is an annoying problem. Any suggestions.
maybe you need to trim a lil bit more off the radiator end to pull it away from the alternator. Stretching it a litle bit.
It takes a bit of twisting and triming it to get it good.
I have cut the hose on the radiator end like you suggested. Then by twisting it I got enough clearance and was happy until I saw moisture on the middle of the hose a week or two later. I guess I weakened the hose by to much twisting. Getting ready to try again with a new OE hose.
Happened to read an article in a 1969 Road & Track and during there road test of the '69 Corvette big block the same thing happened. The upper hose got grooved by the alternator pulley. Amazing Chevy never thought to correct this problem.
Thank you very much for the suggestion.
Paul
I have cut the hose on the radiator end like you suggested. Then by twisting it I got enough clearance and was happy until I saw moisture on the middle of the hose a week or two later. I guess I weakened the hose by to much twisting. Getting ready to try again with a new OE hose.
Happened to read an article in a 1969 Road & Track and during there road test of the '69 Corvette big block the same thing happened. The upper hose got grooved by the alternator pulley. Amazing Chevy never thought to correct this problem.
Thank you very much for the suggestion.
Paul
One time I installed a new Gates upper radiator hose on my '71 454, and after a test run the alternator belt/pulley put a groove in my new hose. It turned out that I had a broken engine mount on the drivers side. Replace both engine mounts and no problems since.
From: I tend to be leery of any guy who doesn't own a chainsaw or a handgun.
Originally Posted by Mooser
Take a look at a different brand of hose
These were two on my car, one I believe was a Gates hose from NAPA and the other a "GM" hose from CC
Yes there are other differences (rad and alt) but the shape of the hoses were significantly different
This probably should have had a 1/2" or 1" trimmed from the intake end to pull some of the kink out
Neither actually touched the alt-belt but they are certainly close to the pulley.
I'm currently in the process of changing all of this so I can't reference anything other than these old pics
M
Is the second hose the Gates/NAPA hose? It looks a bit less busy than my present GM hose. I moved the alternator over to the RH side for better weight distribution, and the second picture hose might look a bit more at home in my application.
LOL
I'm hoping I still have that hose somewhere around because I need the number from it as well for the same reason you just mentioned, well maybe not for weight distribution but for visual balance and access to the power steering pump
And now I have to find something better than this snake hose
I got my 72's hose from RICKS CORVETTE , it fit perfectly. Lucky I guess.
The previous hose on my 71 was from AutoZone and did not fit well.
On the 71 I wound up using a different water neck which solved the problem. It's a 2 piece which has an O ring seal. I needed a second tap for the fan sensor anyway.
Upper Radiator Hose
