Clutch and Coolant Question

[Mikey Rudamann]

I recently had one of the larger coolant hoses coming from the firewall and going into the engine burst at 7,000RPM. Thankfully I recently took off my engine cover so I noticied it right away and shut the engine off and coasted to safety. After pulling out the expansion tank I noticed a nice sized fissure in the coolant hose. I was stuck in the middle of nowhere so my Macgyver instincts took over and 20min later, some curse words, and half a roll of duct tape I made my way back home.

My question is:
The clutch went almost completly limp after the hose burst. It still is sprining back, but it is not as rock solid as it was before the incident. I cannot for the life of me figure out why this happened. Any advice would be much appreciated.

2 hoses are on order and should arrive monday, thank you MJ at Dali.

I attached a picture of the hose so everybody can cringe in horror in what the elements can do to rubber in 13 years. I cut the hose vertically at the end.

Thanks in advance
-Mike

 

[titaniumdave]

Sounds like you might have sprayed coolant with enough force to get it on the clutch. The slave cylinder is on the front side of the transmission just below where the big hoses are going into the tunnel toward the front of the car. My guess is it will burn off after a while. If the clutch starts to chatter on engagement you might think about having it looked at, other wise I would drive it.

I am in the process of replacing all the hoses in my car, bought the whole kit from Dali. I was thinking I was worrying about nothing, but your experience makes me feel like I made a good choice. The only hoses I have found that looked like they were leaking or bad have been the little ones around the intake and throttle body. You might do those while you are in there.

Good luck and good save with the duct tape, I think you can fix anything with that and a hand full of zip-ties!

 

[1BADNSX]

Maybe the hot fluid damaged the slave cylinder or was hot enough to boil the brake fluid in the clutch lines (which would feel like the clutch needed bleeding). You might try bleeding the clutch and see if it improves.

Bob

 

[titaniumdave]

Not a bad idea to bleed the slave cylinder, but not possible to boil the fluid. Even the lowest tech brake fluid will have a boiling point much higher than coolant which is mostly water, boiling point 212 degrees F at sea level.

 

[Mikey Rudamann]

Thank you very much 1BADNSX and TitaniumDave for your advice. I will bleed the clutch and then wait untill the fluid burns off and hopefully all will be well.

TitaniumDave: Have you had any fitment problems with the hoses from Dali? I have a 1991 and I received the hoses today and the one hose does not appear to be the same as the damaged one I removed. I got the Dos Amigos and the one on the driver side the bends somewhat upward appears to not have the same length or contour as the damaged one I removed. Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
-Mike

 

[titaniumdave]

All the hoses I got are Honda pastic bagged and have been very close to identical. Some have been a bit different but once installed seem to make smooth bends and have all been long enough.

I read using a heat gun will help slide the hoses on if you are having problems getting them postioned, most of mine have gone on with spit and elbow grease! The worst part for many has been the damn spring clips, I think I have used 6 different pairs of pliers to get to some of them that are hiding in odd places/angles, and I have my engine out, which should make it easier.

 

[nsxexotic]

Dang ... i wonder if my hoses are original. I think they might be. Maybe I'll go buy some hoses.

 

[Larry Bastanza]

I would not recommend using a heat gun at all. That will only shorten the life of the hose IMO. Go to any pool supply and buy a tube of "Jacks silicone O-ring" lube. Use it liberally on the ID of the hose. THey will slide right on easily.

HTH,
LarryB

 

[Mikey Rudamann]

Thank you everybody for all the help and great input.

I installed the 2 hoses today in about 2hrs. 1hr of installation time and the other hour was cursing. MJ at Dali gave me the genious idea to boil up the hoses in water before installing them. It worked great the only drawback was I was dying for some pasta when I got done.

The coolant must have burnt off the clutch because after about a hour of drive time the clutch now feels back to normal.

I would reccomend to everybody with a 1991 or 1992 to replace those 2 hoses. It sure would have saved me a lot time and frustration.

Thank you all again for the input,
-Mike