Living with a Greasecar Part 7

Well, this could have been VERY bad.
Last week, when it was Africa-hot here I parked in the only spot that has shade at work. I decided to pull forward as much as I could to get into the small amount of shade available. What I didn’t know what when I pulled forward I popped a zip-tie that held a heater hose to the bottom of the core-support. This heater hose of part of the grease setup. The hose goes from the pass side below the turbo, crosses over under the car and connects to the plumbing that heats the fuel line and filter heater.
Anyway, I didn’t know I popped the zip tie and drove home, all 35 miles of it.

I did hear something for a quick second but couldn’t reproduce it. Like moron drive on home. Well, that night, while doing something else I noticed the heater hose had come loose and had been dragged for 35 miles on I-75. It is 5/8” Goodyear heater hose that was wrapped with ¾” heater hose. I wore through the ¾ heater hose and all but about 1/32” of the Goodyear heater hose! Another mile or two and I figure I’d be shopping for an engine right now.

So, I replaced the hose, re-wrapped it with the ¾” heater hose and re-routed it. I also noted, and told me wife to NEVER pull all the way into a parking spot.
Whew! That was close!

Why shopping for an engine if that hose had failed? I assume you would have noticed the temp gauge spike and shut it down without too much fanfare.

I bet you attached it with more than one zip tie this time!

Wow, that does look like some close call wear on the hose.
I would be thankful for not having the oily mess drain on the driveway.

pigeon wrote: Why shopping for an engine if that hose had failed? I assume you would have noticed the temp gauge spike and shut it down without too much fanfare.

I don't know. It was 95 degrees out and I was cruising 70 mph. If a hose blew then, I'm not sure if I'd catch it in time. I don't know what the merc has as far as idiot lights, though I do check my gauges regularly, just dont know if it'd have been often enough.

Z31, you bet I used more than one. I used 4 or 5 to secure the 3/4 hose as conduit, 4 to secure the hose to the car and two more secured in a different place in case the 4 others break, it'll still be secured by twice as many as before.
JRW, that is a coolant only hose, thank goodness. After that hose, just about the rest of it is hose-in-hose where the fuel line passes inside the coolant hose. That would have been more work and more mess.