Heater hoses

Although only eighteen months or so ago when I replaced those heater hoses on our TF I am sure it is an engine out job. On ours those spring hose clips were well inside the “tunnel”. As Airportable says those screws retaining the cover plates are hell on earth to remove. I am sure that you can only use the spring type of hose clip due to the very limited access. 

When you say spring type do you mean these awful bastard things:
 
These things are evil and should be banned!

 

Airportable wrote:

Whenever I alluded to David being the custodian of arcane knowledge on the PRT, he demurrers & make the excuse that the information he put up was from a third party.
I simply can’t recall doing any jiggery pokery around the heater pipes but that’s my memory mist.
I would have another look at David’s information & maybe he’ll put in an appearance to add his weight of knowledge to my dearth of memory.
M

David Aiketgate replied:-
When my pipework was converted to accommodate the prt, my friendly professional  mechanic did it.
he referred to this photograph:-
 

and I recall him saying that he only needed a 't' piece and one small diameter piece of hose in addition to adapting the existing pipework to fit.
The work was completed from below without the need for engine out!
Don't forget to remove the original thermostat...






 

Hi so why do you want to change to a PRT? I thought about doing the same conversion but was advised not to bother by others on another site, so I stayed with the original system on my 2002 TF but fitted an 88 degree stat with a jiggle valve incorporated. Can't say anything about it as yet because I'm still working on the engine and underbody surface rust. I also noticed on Rimmers site that some of the pipes need for that system are NLA.
But good luck with whatever you decide to do. Glyn.

First up though. Does anyone know of a source for the flow restrictor that fits into the hose associated with the PRT system?
It apparently has a hole through it of 8mm bore.
i know you have to cut the “mechanism” from the existing thermostat (mounted at the engine), but in doing that the hole must be way larger than 8mm.

Now to answer various questions
Yes, those are the spring clips, and without good access difficult to get aligned properly.
Why convert. Well as said I have some doubt about hose condition, the existing hoses no longer have the heat shield, if renewing hoses it makes sense to convert to reduce potential for HGF (if the conversion by the factory was not beneficial why would they have done it).
Hose kits are more readily available for the PRT particularly in silicone.
The downside- leaving the hoses for the heater will forever be a weakness (but I’m not about to drop the engine to gain access). 
 

This is the bit that would be needed, i.e. the bit that inserts into the 4 way connector.
Any ideas please (other than find a machine shop to turn one up).
 

I have over the years supplied many different types of hoseclamps. The Jubilee in its day was revolutionary, but its very design means it never tightens in a concentric manner. There is always a little bit of tube that is not clamped sufficiently. Cobber is quite right to identify the "super clamp" as a better alternative.
In industrial applications where the clamps do not have to be removed regularly, eared clamps are used, the type with a double ear that is permanently crimped with a pair of wide jawed snips or pliers. They of course can only be removed with a junior hacksaw, so only ideal where access is not an issue and regular removal is not required.

Yes those eared clamp are what we use in industry on the operators pneumatic retracting air hose reels, because you cant tell the knuckle heads not to pull the hose out by only gripping the air gun, thereby putting all the load on the hose joint, instead of gripping the hose to draw it out of the reel and drag it about!  They never listen as they are the fonts of all knowledge and wisdom, which of course explains why they are paid much less than us!
We find these types of clamp hold well due to their permanent crimped nature.
There are both double and "van Gough" single eared versions


 
you need special crimping pliers to crimp them and these come in single jawed
 
and double jawed with  side jaws for  space restriced applications
 
There are also pneumatic are crimping tools available.
 

To remove these clamps we either grab them by the ear with a set of wire cutters and twist to open them up or cut the ear through with a small set of bolt cutter type pliers at the eye of the crimp, I've also seen angle griners used to remove the but this usually damages the hose!

Yep, thats the beasties alright. As part of my working lot in life I used to search for compressed air leaks on customers premises, using ultrasonic hand held leak detectors.
The intention being to save money on compressor costs.
It worked and saved thousands p.a. for some.
But the one item I could just about guarantee would leak was the humble jubilee clip.
On the treatment of equipment on site by the heavy handed, that kept me in spares business.

I wonder if a short length of copper pipe of the pre requisite bore and od would suffice ?
it would bottom out perhaps (as it is slid in) on the inner wall of the cross piece, or a transition fit, tapped in with a toffee hammer ?

I replaced the hoses to the heater matrix on both of our Fs just over a year ago and posted some information about the job here. There was also an article about the job in a recent issue of FasTForward and MG Driver. A copy of the article can be found here: https://mg-stuff.stlbrits.com/kb/mgf-heater-hoses-pipes-replacement/

The replacement of the hoses through the blanking plate can be done from under the car, but you have to start inside the car as the new hoses get attached to the heater pipe and then pushed through to the rubber blanking plate.

Indeed I had been reviewing this potential job and had come to the conclusion that it might be possible to release the heater hoses from within the car but that is not a 5 minute job and with limited working space possibly better done in summer when there is potentially less chance of poor weather and more outside dry storage and working space.
But thank you for the suggestion it confirms the possible option.

As I gazed into the area beneath the coolant expansion tank it became very clear that access to the area around the thermostat is “limited” if not restricted. I have read the “how to’s” on servicing the thermostat and marvel at how anyone can get access to that area without. Removing the inlet tract which would be a whole new ball-game if that lot has to come off.

So my thinking is that I might just renew the bits I can get to and hope until the HGF fails which it may well do in due course.
My suspicion is that if I disturb one joint around the water rail associated with the stat one of the others is likely to leak and who knows what corrosion has taken place where the stat connects to the engine or at the hard metal pipe ends.
Can anyone offer experience in any of these areas please?