Howdy all... need a little help here in removing the heater hoses from
the rear firewall. I need to replace the heater core.

1995 Chevy Lumina APV 3.1 engine

Hoses on the firewall have the broad type spring clamps (not the wire
ones). The clamps are facing downward and tangled with each other.

I can't get at them from the front of the vehicle, clamp pliers
won't work, I have a cable type clamp remover, but again the
clearance and position of clamp arms makes this ineffective.
Tried a 12" long nose pliers but can't get at them that way either.

Jacked the car up... can't access them from underneath.

What am I missing here.... is there another type of removal
tool required for this type of situation??? Is there access from
inside the car ???

This is a damn stupid way of installing heater hoses....

Your suggestions are appreciated !!

Thanks in advance !!

Peter

peter (AT) nospam (DOT) net wrote:
Welcome to Auto Mechanics 101

Yep, you need to get in there with something like a small set of needle
nose vice grips. Get a grip on a tab and turn the clamp. If you look at
the clamp you will find that you can twist the tabs IN and spring them
enough to twist them. Then remove them.

Or buy one of the remote jaw styles of clamp plier.


Not unless you cut out the firewall!

Not when those hoses are installed. The engines are not in the way, of
course the entire front end is also missing but why quibble about that!

It's how they assemble most of the autos out there.


--
Steve W.

On Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:55:40 -0400, "Steve W." <csr684 (AT) NOTyahoo (DOT) com>
wrote:

Ach....tried to turn the tab inward, hoping to get enough clearance to
slide the hose off. The clamp loosened barely enough to cause it
to travel where it's very difficult to reach. Good idea.. but
just lacks a lot of clearance and space to move.

Thanks for suggesting it... It'll come in handy for future jobs.

Okay... so..... I'm out of options on how to do this with
finesse.....

Thinking of cutting the heater hose off right at the pipe and seeing
if I can get access without the hose in the way.... plan #2 is to
slice the hose and see if I can wiggle it out from under the clamp.

Heater core is leaking and will be replaced so no need to worry
about damaging the tubes. Heater hoses will be replaced so it
doesn't matter if I cut those.

Any other suggestions are appreciated.... how would you get
past something like this ???

Just for laughs, chuckles and grins, I loosened the bottom
hose at the engine bypass pipe.... ran the engine... no
leakage. That plastic quick disconnect coupling is frozen
on there solid. (car is 15 years old, 112K miles)...... wow
do parts fuse together after that many years.

Thanks again for your help !!

Peter

On Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:47:35 -0400, peter (AT) nospam (DOT) net wrote:

Just a general idea, but I'd cut the hoses off as close to the fitting
as I can, and then generally I can get at the poorly installed clamps.
I have once or twice had to use a dremel and cut the clamps.

On Wed, 21 Oct 2009 18:45:00 -0400, PeterD <peter2 (AT) hipson (DOT) net> wrote:

Good idea.... especially the part about using the Dremel to cut the
clamps.... I have a pretty good Dremel and a bunch of cut off wheels.

Thanks again for your suggestions.... darn I never even thought
about getting a dremel in there..... truly a professional tip !!!

Wow !!! Nice hint !!!

Peter