Volvo EC15 lower radiator hose failure

[Muz]

Well .. here we are again fellow knuckle skinners .... this time its a common fault Ive had on many small one tonne diggers ... the fan belt chaffing on the lower rad hose.

If its a hire machine .. the first you get told is that it overheats, but still gets the job done ... once topped up ... now .. you dont know how often its been roasted and that aint a good thing the machine in question here hasnt done 600 hours yet ... as much as I'm a fan of EC15's .. this is a real weak point ... and not the easiest to strip neither ....WHY O FEKIN WHY do manufacturers build these, in a way that takes no cognicence of the fact it may break down one day so you have to strip all sorts to get access to the bit you need.

Ive stripped the radiator supports out and managed to wangle the fan blade off .. but space is helluva tight

[Muz]

With all the crap out of the way we can get to the business .. but hold up .. Volvo has put a clamp on the hose .. will this get refitted on the new hose .. I dont feking think so .. If you blow the pic up .. you can see the philips screw that holds the band ... shite .. how you supposed to get access to that with only 4 inches of space

[Muz]

And heres the trouble ... cause ? .. poor design and possibly..... a slack fan belt jury is out on that one .... so keep an eye on yours fellas ... as I said .. its not the first manufacturer that Ive had that this been an issue

Anyway .. back in business now

[johnboy]

muz! your knowledge on all things that dig is awesome ,I managed to slip my arm along the gap under the rad and found the slight split on the hose caused by a loose fan belt (very bad design by the way) thanks again for the tip as my machine used to cut out after a while and the driver said he used to top up the water in the rad when doing the daily checks

[Muz]

Thanks Johnboy ... you must have a smaller arm than me and welcome to the forum BTW

[Stock]

The manufacturers Muz design a machine for manufacture not for maintenance, most engine come as skid units and are laid in complete, hooked up before any panel or tank / cab is fitted.................

[Derek]

Did you buy a replacement? We bodged mine together to get us going, rang Volvo and they want Ģ60 for it.

[wowe]

I have exactly this problem

but I donīt see a way to remove the the lower hose. I tried to remove the radiatir, but I failed. There is no room for action.
So can anybody note the working steps to remove the lower radiator hose at a EC15B (2002).

Does anybody know a cheap alternative replacement for this lower hose?

Regards wowe

[Muz]

Wowe .. you can slacken the engine mounts and remove the bolts ..move it to the side a couple of inches ... you should get enough space to do the work with that ,, except for that troublesome clip

[wowe]

Wowe .. you can slacken the engine mounts and remove the bolts ..move it to the side a couple of inches ... you should get enough space to do the work with that ,, except for that troublesome clip

You mean the engine should be moved? I donīt have a crane to lift the engine.

[Muz]

You mean the engine should be moved? I donīt have a crane to lift the engine.

No... the engine is mounted in a 'tray' which is bolted to the machine frame .. remove the bolts that hold the tray onto the formers of the excavator chassis, and that should give you the room you need

[Mattir]

thanks

Thanks Muz for giving a good reason to get knuckles greasy-again. Need to check that hose.

[Muz]

Thanks Muz for giving a good reason to get knuckles greasy-again. Need to check that hose.

You are welcome mate ... You must be a glutton for punishment if you are going in deep when it hasn't even broken yet ?

[Mattir]

You are welcome mate ... You must be a glutton for punishment if you are going in deep when it hasn't even broken yet ?

Well, previous acrobatics with the starter was a nice experience in many ways. Had to dismantle exhaust pipe, fuel tank, air filter, etc.

Will check the valves/ tappets tomorrow and try to inspect the hose as well. This all keeps me away from the vacuum cleaner

[wowe]

So - I have now finished the repair and will notice here the elementary steps. It was a real shithole work (right reserved by Trump) , if you made it the first time.

Disassembly:

• Remove ground at battery
• Remove the suction hose
• Drain the cooler by removing the drain plug.
• To get moore place for working the motor must be pulled out. The motor is carried and fixed with three screws at a rack. Two at the left side and one at the right side. For an easier reassembling I suggest to loosen only the left in front one - donÂīt remove it. The other two srews must be removed. Now you can pull the rack with the engine at the right side out like a door (but only about 10cm). Take care and stop when the Diesel-tank presses against the frame.
• Remove the upper cooling hose
• Remove the cooler grid
• Unscrew the cooler fan. The fan is fixed with four screws (10mm wrench size) with washers. You must remove it blind. Take care to lose nothing. (Maybe you can skip this step. It depends, if you can reach the cooling hose with your hands with the mounted fan)
• Remove the electric cables from the alternator und the thermostat.
• Remove the alternator
• Loosen the hose clamp for the lower cooling hose with a Phillips bit.
• Remove the lower cooling hose

The assembling is done in the inverse direction of course. Take care in the following points:

• Mounting the alternator:
  a) The screw for fixing it at the block has an asymetrical head to prevent a rotation at the mounting.
  b) To make the mounting easier, the bearing bush at the mounting foot should be hammered out softly about 1mm, so that there is more space for an easier mounting.

I tried to fix the hole by a fungus formed gum which is used for a tire repair. But the part didn't vulcanize well and was easy to remove again. The reason is that the many years old hose which was exposed to heat, oil (outside), water and antifreeze (inside) hasn't the feature of a new gum. The surface is more like plastic. So I used "Dirko-S Profi Press HT", made a lump inside at the hole, made a lump outside at the hole. After drying, the sealing compound has a good bonding with the old gum. I mounted this repaired hose only as a compromise solution. The new one is ordered.

Hope to help the next affected.

Regards wowe