MatraSport Forum

In the post http://www.matrasport.dk/forum/index.php/topic,1522.15.html I wrote about my cooling problems one day on  the way home from work.

In the photo below you can see the hole in the cooling pipe right where the front bracket fastens the pipes to the bottom of the car. The rubber grommets are a prime place for the pipes to rust, so based on my experience I advice you all to keep a close eye on the pipes.

The new stainless steel pipes, that Jan, Jesper and I ordered from Matra Magic back in august, have finally arrived. They look nice (photo). This coming week we will have them electro polished at a local galvano company. They should turn briliantly smooth and thus be more resistant to "flying rust" (like you see in a dishwasher when an iron or steel item is mixed in among the stainless stuff)

So far I am the only one of us who desperately need the pipes replaced. More pictures as the replacement move along. By the way, my experience says that you have to remove the fiberglass shield in the front compartment in order to get the pipes out.

Hi
I fully agree as I have had exactly the same expirience, and my original pipes looked exactly the same.

Hans

Congrats with the new pipes, they look magnificent!
I'm looking forward to seeing you and your car back on the road real soon! :)

/Anders

Isn't brown the original color for the pipes :o
The originals are still unther my car.
It isn't the question if they fall appart, but more when they fall appart.
It is on my to do list, job number 250 or so :-\

I believe the original coolant pipes were fitted on the car before it underwent the galvanization process .

Sorry, krede. I wish it could have been so. :(

On my photo you can see the original pipes and the rubber gromets. They fit around the two cooling and two heating pipes and are held in place by the two steel bands. There are a set in front and one in back and this is the only thing holding the pipes.

The galvanizing was done by dipping the car in molten zink, which would have burned away the rubber grommets.

Update.

The pipes came back from electro polishing. I added the picture to the original post. Jesper picked them up which is why there are only two sets in the picture. If they looked good before, they are positively stunning now. You can see how the flash reflects and almost blurr the surface.  ;D

Very Bling! Be sure to take a mirror to show them off now! How easy was it to get the old pipes out?

Getting the old pipes out is quite impossible IMO if you dont first take out the fiberglass liner in the front compartment. You have to remove the battery and drill out all the pop-rivets. Then either disconnect the spedometer cable from the left front wheel, or cut a slit to the edge from the hole it passes through in the liner. You also have to take off the vacuum valve and the bracket that holds the stay for the hood.

The reason for all this is that the pipes fit so close between the liner and the front suspension bridge that you cannot wiggle them out. But once the liner is out it is a breeze.

On the upside, it offers me an opportunity to replace more rusty brackets with stainless steel.  :D And also gives access to paint the suspension bridge with Hammerite. ;D ;D

Social activities arranged by my wife (she obviously does not realize that I would rather play with my car  :D) Kept me busy. But I did manage to make new brackets to hold the new pipes in place.

If you want to get an idea of how to make them I have added photos below.
The brackets start out as a 3cm X 20cm piece of stainless steel.
First drill 8 mm holes at each end.
Mark lines for the initial bends, 22mm from each end and 70 mm from each end for the middle bends.
Bend the middle first at about 30 degrees and the ends at 60 degrees from that. The result can be seen below.
To get the curved bend you can do it by hand around a pipe or such. But the easiest requires a block with a 90 degree grove in it and a 1.1/4" socket (or such)
I place the socket and block so they are centered on the curve I want to bend and close the vice.
Slack off a bit and slide the bracket to one end and tighten the vice, then the other end.
The result turned out quite nice. A small bit of twisting and beding may be necessary to get the shape just right. But compared to the original rusty brackets this will work quite well.
Of course they will be polished to a bright shine, but I didn't have time for that yet.  ;D ;D ;D

Update. I thought the drawing would be convenient to have here and of course the polished brackets and hose clamps. ;D ;D

Quote
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she obviously does not realize that I would rather play with my car.
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a common problem :-\

Nice job.
I had the luck to buy some galvenised from a fellow member.
It will save some time, however loosing the bolts is difficult, despite the 2 litre WD40 I puted there the last few years.
I am afraid it will break off the car making it a bit more difficult.

The nuts are the "Cage nut" type and they usually cannot be saved.  >:(
In spite of holding on to them with an adjustable wrench, they came off and two of the bolts just snapped.  >:( >:(

They will be replaced by 8mm stainless umbrako bolts, washers and lock nuts. ;D Of course I will have to hold on to the lock nuts, rather than just being able to tighten the bolts, but that is a small price to pay for the durability. :)

Well, my cooling pipe project has been sidelined for several weeks now.

This week I finally got the new hoses and clamps that I ordered from CarBuilderSolutions. They had the best type of stainless hose clamps that I coould find. I have added a photo of the clamps and the, now polished brackets that I made. The clamps have the threads pressed into the surface, rather than cut through the clamp. This is stronger and both the screw and housing are stainless too.

So this weekend was to be assembly time. But, I have been struggling with my right hand, because my thumb had developed a "snap finger". This means that you cannot move it smothly, but that it has two positions, straight or bent. Anyway, my appointment to have it fixed was in april 2010, but wednesday the doctor called because he had a cancellation and could see me thursday. He subsequently scheduled me friday for the operation, which took half an hour. Result, I cannot work on the car for another two weekends.  :(

Hi Jon

I hope you'll have a quick recovery with the thumb. I guess that after the operation, it will be quite a releif to have a fully functioning hand again! Good luck :)

About the clamps, I admire your no-compromise style. Personally, I have found that the mild steel zinc plated hose clamps from Biltema are sturdy, good quality and value for the money. Non-perforated bands are kinder to the hoses, so I also prefer those, and most stainless clamps are perforated.

/Anders

Hi Anders.

Thanks, you are right, it is really great to have the hand function normally again. It is already pain-free and the bandage is off. A week from now the suitures come out.

About my "style", I never thought about it as no-compromise, but you are right.  ;D
Over the years I have learned that doing things right the first time saves time and trouble in the long run. Since the clamps are very exposed under the car, stainless is the "right" way for me to go. Now, if only I could find indestructible hoses..  ;) ;) ;)

So you've lerant something new today! :)
Good to hear the recovery is quick!

PS: I took the liberty to edit your post so the "/quote" tag is between my old post and your reply.

For those of you who wish to make new brackets I am including a drawing here. Also check the pictures in my previous posts in this thread for the actual manufacture. But here are the dimensions. I forgot to include the final length of the bracket after the bending. It should end up being appx. 175 mm long, and you start out with a strip of material 30 X 200 mm.

Have fun. It is not all that difficult ;D

The day finally arrived wher eI mounted the new stainless steel cooling pipes. (Pictures below.) They look nice, I think.  ;D

When mounting them I recommend that you attach the hoses to each pipe first, so they are suspended by the hose. This allows you to move them about and tighten the hose clamps with ease. There is only just enough clearance between the pipes to pull/push hoses and clamps onto the pipes, once they are mounted in the brackets. Trust me, I tried and the other method is much easier.

Once attached it is pretty simple to fix the pipes in the brackets. These have (of course) been refabricated in stainless steel and new stainless steel hose clamps procured. The new clamps are 12.7 mm wide and do not cut into the hose. Also, the "thread" is pressed into the clamps, which is better for the hose too. All bolts, washers and nuts are also stainless. Sweet  ;D ;D ;D

Finally I mixed new coolant and filled about 8-9 liters into the system. I used a vacuum cleaner to suck air out from the small hose that attaches to the top of the radiator, thus ensuring that it is completely filled. Next step (starting the engine) will have to wait until I get the shield back in the front and the battery re-connected.

Better than new!

Looks good John.
When you are under the car you can see if your hair is up to specs ;D

It is,  though I can only take my sunglasses off for a few seconds at a time when under there.  :D :D :D

On the rooooad again..... It's good to be on the rooooad again....  ;D ;D ;D

The day finally arrived. :D I got all the parts put back together and cranked the engine up. I let it run until warm and I must have gotten most of the air out of the system, because it did not boil, spit or gargle.  ;D

After making sure it did not leak anywhere, I took it off the jack stands and drove around the block a few times. No problems, nice warm air from the heater, temp guage safely in normal range. Things look good, also literally. Those new pipes are sweet :D

I highly recommend the switch to stainless. Considering how rusty I found mine to be, the original pipes are a disaster waiting to happen.

Excellent, Jon! Congratulations :D