i am in the process of going through the coolings system, my question is, the heater hose that goes to the top of the radiator, below the radiator cap, should that have water coolant shooting out of that hose all the time i didnt know if that junction box, or whatever you want to call it(where the heater hoses come together and theres a vacuum line)controls when the water goes through the hoses. thanks.

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Wide Open Till You See God...Then Brake

 

I'm not sure what you mean by junction box, but I don't think what you're refering to has any bearing on the cooling system. anyways, the answer to your question is no, it shouldn't have water shooting out of it at all times. this hose should be the overflow hose, where excess coolant goes into the overflow jug.when the radiator get really hot, coolant will come out of the hose and go into the overflow jug.

 

i am referring to the 5/8 heater hose, not the small overflow hose. the box i am talking about, theres 4 hoses that come together, and theres a vacuum line that comes out from inside the car, which i assume controls some valve inside that box that controls the amount of coolant that goes into the heater core.

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Wide Open Till You See God...Then Brake

 

He's talking about that ugly thing that lays on the passenger side valve covers.

Yes, the upper radiator hose there should have water coming out of it all the time.

Well, at least there has been on all my cars.
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89 iroc-z 305 tbi
k&n filtercharger, open element air filter. nuffin' else

[This message has been edited by Enkil (edited July 23, 2001).]

 

are you talking about the heater hose, or the top radiator hose?

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Wide Open Till You See God...Then Brake

 

He is talking about the return hose from the oil filter housing.
The coolant flow on that system is as follows:
-Coolant comes out of the base on a 5/8" hose to the Heater Valve.
- The Heater Valve has two outlets, one 5/8" hose that goes to the oil filter housing and the other which is a 3/4" hose goes to the heater core.
-Under normal operation without the heater in service the coolant will flow to the oil filter housing, but when the heater is in service the coolant is diverted to the heater core. After the coolant flows through the heater core it flows to the oil filter housing. If you follow the hoses you will see where the hoses are clamped to a metal tube close to the fender well.
-After the coolant flows through the oil filter housing it then goes to the radiator(3/4" hose) dirrectly under the cap.
So you see, wether you have the heater on or off there will always be a flow returning to the radiator. This flow helps heat the oil and the tranny fluid in colder climates and it also provides a minimum flow to the pump when the thermostat is still closed thus preventing cavitation* in the pump itself. The tranny fluid flows through the heat exchanger built-in the radiator just under the 3/4" hose return.
Hope this helps.

*cavitation= formation of steam bubbles in the coolant due to excessive heat from lack of flow.

[This message has been edited by Ozzy88GTA (edited July 23, 2001).]

 

ok, that answers my question, thank you for the reply, now i know whats going on

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Wide Open Till You See God...Then Brake