Page 1 of 1

JC Sports Turbo Coolant Expansion Tank - Part 2 - read time

Posted: Wed Sep 26, 2001 1:54 am
by ssspoon@aol.com
JC Sports Turbo Coolant Expansion Tank - Part 2 - read time 4 - 5 minutes

OK, here's second and final installation of our two part series on the JC Sports turbo coolant expansion tank. This is the second iteration of the design (2.0), intended to facilitate the installation of an over the engine intercooler. If you missed part one, it just detailed the time spent waiting from placement of order to doorstep delivery. We pick up the action where we left off in part one. Saturday afternoon, after five weeks of waiting and calling, I have my nifty JC Sports turbo coolant expansion tank 2.0 in my grubby hands. My understanding wife gives me a ride to the parking lot at work where my car has been since Wednesday. On the way we stop and get a radiator cap because the infamous filler neck is larger than the neck on the stock tank.

My stock tank comes off fairly easily. Too easily in fact. I am unable to remove two of the hoses without breaking off the stock tubes at the root. One of the tubes crumbled inside the hose and kind of scared me that shit would get into the coolant system and plug up at the turbo, but I think I got it all out. Should have removed the hose with the tank or even cut the hose, but wanted to reuse it. As it turns out, the hoses are molded shapes intended to fit to the tubes coming off the back of the stock tank. Tank version 2.0 has the tubes coming out the turbo side of the tank, so the stock hose I wanted to save wouldn't go on without kinking anyhow.

Since we're talking about the tank you may be interested to know that it is constructed from one curved and five flat pieces of aluminum welded into kind of a "J" or backwards upside down "L" shaped box, with a standard radiator filler neck. A tube for the overflow bottle comes off the filler neck in the same place as the stock tank. The three tubes that come off the back of the stock tank and interfere with a cooler installation have been moved to the turbo side on version 2.0. Two attach brackets are welded on permitting use of the stock tank attach points on the intake manifold. The fit is good and tight. So good and tight in fact, that when I had the tank on with the attach bolts on finger tight, I had to remove the screw clamp from the nearest gas line fitting because there wasn't enough room. I reversed the clamp then found the adjacent rigid gas line was too close to permit a reversed clamp, so I would need a different style clamp! . After I tightened the tank all the way it snugged up so the clamp would fit in its' original orientation, with about a half millimeter to spare.

So back to the stock hose I had been wasting time trying to save. It's the bottom hose, and only about six inches long. I could tell another trip to Autozone for a longer hose was at hand. And not only the lower hose was giving me grief, but the middle hose was too. The middle tube was pointing right at the throttle cable assembly and the clearance would not permit the stock hose to attach without contacting the cable assembly. All my Quality Specialist background took my imagination to the furthest extreme scenario of a binding cable at full throttle during the worst possible time. The contact was very light, but I couldn't live with it.

Luckily, Autozone had the rubber hose elbow I needed as well as another hose to replace the stock six incher. I would rather the tank tube be an elbow, or maybe just be positioned in a slightly diff location so it would not aim at the cable assembly. I don't like the way I've got a rubber elbow on the tank tube and a splice into the stock hose, and three clamps within three inches of each other. It just doesn't have that "sano" look, like we used to say. Maybe I'll keep my eyes peeled for a long hose with an elbow on the end.

My other kind of nit pik was the tubes didn't have the ends expanded to help with hose sealing so that water can leak thru if the clamps are not tight. Either the tubes O.D.'s are slightly too small or my hoses are slightly too big on the I.D., or both. But maybe that's really picking fly shit out of the pepper, and overall, I am pleased with version 2.0. It's better than stock. A fifteen year Subaru tech at the dealer described it as "pretty trick". I'm ashamed at the length of my install time, which I had predicted would be one half hour.... next time....

My cost was two bills. I think the quoted price was $180 but we built in twenty bucks for shipping right from the get go, which ended up being used for the overnight shipping.

Is it worth it? After all my trials and tribs, I vote yes, and a thank you to JC Sports for making it available.

Just don't wait till you're down to the last month before you order one.





ADVERTISEMENT
<http://rd.yahoo.com/M=168643.1620686.31 ... Fcid=12715>

<http://rd.yahoo.com/M=168643.1620686.31 ... Fcid=12715>
<http://us.adserver.yahoo.com/l?M=168643 ... =982223967>

To unsubscribe from this group, please send an email to:
BC-BFLegacyWorks-unsubscribe@egroups.com



zZz <http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> .