I am in the process of flushing cooling system with distilled water, replacing the coolant. and thermostat. I bought the upper radiator hose as it's easy to replace.

Has anyone replaced the lower radiator hose? It's like a spider web. I will climb under the van on Friday and inspect with a good flashlight.

 

If it were ONLY like a spider web that'd be much MUCH better! And yes I've done this---not overly complicated but quite involved for lack of a better word.

I bought mine at NAPA, $90 out the door. Normally I'd shop for a Motorcraft part but needed it on a Saturday late afternoon, dealer didn't have one in stock anyway.

The hoses running over the left side crossmember to the oil cooler are held in place with a wrap around clamp secured only at one end---its not necessary to remove the impossible-to-reach clamp bolt---just cut the hoses in front of or behind the cross member and yank them free. When re-installing these hoses just feed them one at a time through the clamp---both won't fit at the same time.

I removed my degas bottle for more working room---IIRC also removed the air filter housing and throttle body ducting back to the TB. I don't know the factory spring clamps will break but have on hand suitable worm drive clamps for all hose connections.

Do be careful to secure the lower hose so it doesn't rub against the drag link--if necessary trim part of the opening where it fits the lower radiator outlet to assure enough "natural" clearance between the hose and drag link. I'd suggest trimming the old lower hose to form a wrap along the length of the new hose where it could possibly come in contact with the drag link. Cut the old one to length and split it length-wise, wrap and hold in place with outdoor rated Zip Ties.

its an aggravating job if you're a driveway warrior like me---not horrible but not too much so.

HTH

 

You answered well my friend. I felt oil and crap on the back of the hose next to the drag link. When time is on my side and I am not in a rush I tackle jobs like this. I will do a thorough inspection tomorrow. If it needs to be done I will drive around the corner to a Vietnamese mechanic with small hands. He let’s you bring your own parts. Other shops don’t allow this and they charge fortune for after market parts. We leave in 2.5 weeks for a month long camping trip.

I am right at $1000 for replacement parts as you said. I replaced all the brake pads, calipers, shoes, and hardware master cylinder tomorrow. Mobile mechanic Pablo did not replace the drive side brake wheel cylinder. Said it was in good condition. Too late to make no. Redo it. My son was supposed to check his work. I inspected it and would have left it if I were not replacing the passenger side hardware and shoes. Bilstein shocks all around! Active Suspension in the rear pulled from diesel van. New radiator and alternator.

Its been 6 weeks of work after work.

 

Thanks!

Working on your own stuff up to your level of expertise or confidence not only saves money but is about the best assurance the work has been done well. I've seen far too many half-assed repairs for big money that would embarrass most true mechanics. For good reason I don't trust too many people to work on my vehicles.

Good luck with getting all this up to snuff before your trip CoolFeet!

 

While flushing the cooling system, I located the lower radiator hose routing. Looks straight forward. I saw the impossible to reach bolts holding the clamp. My Ford hoses look good. I will do a better inspection tomorrow.

I flushed my transmission as that is the highest priority. Got the pinion seal and rear differential seal replaced and a fresh fill in the diff.

I installed the solar system in less than 1 hour. My buddy convinced me to make everything portable.