Okay guys, this is a little OCD, but I don't wanna buy a new tranny anytime soon so...


The guy that installed my aux tranny cooler put the two lines to it rather well and you can see in the pic where he put the hose clamps. My issue is that with the left-hand hose installation, he pushed the hose all the way onto the tranny cooler tenon and put the hose clamp on so that there was a margin of hose above the clamp itself. On the right-hand installation, however, there is no margin of hose. It's almost as though he put the clamp right at the edge of the hose. I cannot see any hose above the clamp. Now, the clamp is secure and there have been no leaks, but I'm concerned that under pressure this may slip??? I was going to loosen the clamp and push the hose on a little more, but I don't want to do more harm than good and cause a leak. Is this a case of if it's not broke, don't fix it???

 

Can't tell from pic, but is the clamp on the right up against the cooler? If so, I'd like a little room there, as well as down from the very end of the hose itself.

Depending on how long it's been on, the hose might've taken a set to it which means it's permanently/semi-permanently grooved from the clamp. This might (stress: might) make it more difficult to move down a very short distance where it overlaps the old position. But maybe not. Wiser minds will tell me if I'm wrong on that one.

The most difficult thing for me would be, how much to tighten it. Or, more accurately, how little to tighten it so I don't crush the inlet/outlet, but have it tight enough so it doesn't leak immediately or down the road. Gear clamps are good that way, though, so I might not worry too much.

 

This is my concern exactly! It's been on there for about a year, so I am inclined to think that any fiddling that I would do with it *could* lead to possible leaks. I just am not really comfortable with the way that it's on there right now. So I seek the forum wisdom...

 

Here are some more shots of the fitting in question. Note where the bulge is and how little (*ahem* -none-) hose there is beyond the hose clamp... will I create any leaks by shoving the hose up higher and re-installing the same hose clamp? As I said before... as of now there are no leaks... but I am concerned about this fitting (which has been like this for a year - just noticed it while cleaning) under pressure:

 

I'm not sure if I understand your concern. The fitting the hose connects to should have a shoulder that the hose goes over. The clamp is compressing the end of the hose over the shoulder and is seating it. I don't see how it can slip off unless the fitting has no shoulder, and since it's been on there a year it should be fine.

 

 

OCD, possibly! You run the risk of monkey fisting it, I would let it be.

 

whoever did this should have his fingers removed to protect society...the clamp on the right is failing due to over torque--the mis-alignment of the ''loose'' end as it exits the screw is evidence of that, hose material extruded thru the clamp is further proof...the clamps are both too close to the end of the hose--fluid pressure cycling in the system and ''creep''(which will occur even with no fluid pressure) will eventually result in total failure...i have seen some coolers that did not have long enough fittings from the mfr to be correctly installed, that is no excuse, won't help when you are stuck along the side of the turnpike with a 500 ft long oily stripe behind your car...i have seen at least a half dozen of these that were about a year old when they blew, i would fix it immediately...make sure that the correct hose is used, your pic looks like fuel hose that is ready to fail.
also, get a ''fin comb'' from a heating&plumbing supply house and use the correct side of the comb to fix the flattened fins on your a/c condenser...looks like the cooler installer works with his fists and already has no fingers

 

My exact sentiments!!

Rich K

 

Which sentiments? Redrose's?

 

other than it being over tight i see no problem.

 

If it would make you feel better, and if you can feel where the 'bulge' near the end of the nipple is and there's enough room to slide the clamp back a bit, do it. But as everyone said above, if it hasn't leaked in this time it's fine. No matter what though, check and snug them if needed. All clamps generally need checked from time to time. Also, just to make everyone aware, there's a special clamp made for silicone hoses that is superior in all applications. It has extra clamp material on the inside that covers the screw area and beyond, and it prevents hose material from coming through the clamp slots. It's essential for silicone hoses and is a better clamp for any hose. Conventional clamps are available in this form and all constant torque clamps are made this way. Constant torque clamps run $3-5 each depending on size but are a good investment. I use them most everywhere on my car. I buy mine at work but Jegs has them available in many sizes under their brand name for a very good price.

 

Okay...

first I would like to thank everyone whom I bothered with this topic. With all of your input, I decided to do a little investigating (all the while trying to do less harm than good). I actually undid the hose clamp and boy was I suprised at what I found:



The red bracketed areas were all that was in contact with the hose clamp!

So I took a deep breath and pulled the hose off the cooler, and put a stopper on the cooler nipple so it wouldn't drain. Then I cut about 3/4" off the end of the hose, and put the whole thing back together again. I probably lost a grand total of three tablespoons of tranny fluid, and I also now know what tranny fluid taste like. Good news is that the fluid is in good shape.

BTW... here's the end of the hose with the clamp still on it:



Redrose was right... the guy that did the installation indeed should have his fingers removed. He is a certified mechanic and was a member of a former Corvette club that I belonged to. He is also the reason that I replaced the radiator in the car, but that is another story...

I would like to thank everyone here at the forum for putting up with me and helping me to gain the knowledge and ambition to work on my own stuff so that I don't have to rely on other so-called "experts."

Oh, here's what the cooler fitting looks like now:



Yes, I splashed a little tranny fluid onto the AC condenser... don't really know what to do about that. And those mangled fins are only at the very bottom of teh condenser... the rest of it is nice and straight.

Thanks again guys!

 

thats how it should look.
go back in a couple days and tighten the clamps just a tad to recover the initial ''creep'' of the hose, out of the pressure under the clamp...that should do it.

 

Good job! Glad you gained the confidence to dig into it and fix it.

 

Thanks guys!!!

 

Nice catch..now I have to go out and look at mine...