OLE442

Well, I keep coming up with troublesome issues that keep putting me even more behind than I normally am. I got the car started up a few weeks ago and all seemed well but then I noticed a fluid leak. At first I thought it might be the filter adapter I had to remove to facilitate putting the passenger side header back on. Well, it was that. Next i thought it was the bottom rear corner of the passenger valve cover but realized it wasn't that! Yesterday, after I had it running for a few minutes, I raised the car on the two post and looked from underneath and saw fluid dripping off the back bottom part of the of the A frame where the bolts are and got the light out and it appears to be coming from the tranny coolant lines! Sh*t!!

My question is, can the tranny lines be replaced with the headers and engine in the car. I can do it on the 2 post lift so access is a little better that way. The little things are stifling my progress and it takes me 3 times as long as it did when I was younger to fix things! I was hoping to get it painted this fall but that isn't going to happen. Hoping for next spring. I'm just about to hit 70 so time is getting by me! Hopefully painted next year and finished up the following year. Any rate, now I have to deal with this fairly healthy leak. Any thoughts appreciated...........

OLE442

OLE442

I also would like to re-route the lines from the side of the frame rail (between the frame and the headers which is tight! I'd like to route them above the frame a bit higher than the A frame pivots? Anyone do this? Just curious....

OLE442

72455

I used 3/8" rubber trans cooler hose from my trans to my external cooler and was able to route them along the oil pan with no issues. Mind you, I have a 455 and headers also, and I did it with the car on the ground on jack stands.

4speed455

i installed new lines with motor and headers in place and the car on the ground. I was also able to route them around the headers with some minor tweaks.

OLE442

What brand of lines did you use for this? Looks really nice.

OLE442

4speed455

Thanks, I used Inline Tube stainless lines. I messed up and ordered lines for a a 72 which has the fitting on the radiator for the upper hose a lot lower. The 70-71 lines have a longer drop on the upper line. I think with routing them over the A-arms both would have worked for me.

OLE442

I have stainless but the ones I ordered are for 70-72 so who knows what they modeled them after! LOL! I just went out and looked at them and it appears where the lines connect to the tranny that both fittings are going to be hard to get to. I don't want to take headers and that valve on the side of the transmission off. Damn......my line wrench appears to be too short. I'm getting too old for this stuff,,,,even with a two post! LOL!

OLE442

4speed455:

I have been looking at your install of the lines like you posted on the thread about routing them. I bought one stainless set that were for 1968 to 1972 Cutlass and they are not right. Most likely generic.I ordered and received a set of 1972 specific stainless steel from Inline Tube and they look very close to my original lines. My question is what bends you had to do to get those lines away from the motor and headers and closer to the rt front fender? The return line has a a dip in the line where the line dips down and then curves back up. My original does the same thing. Where that dip and curve back up is, is next to the frame and there isn't as much room between my headers and the frame there. Maybe your photo just makes it look like you have more room. it also could be the different brand of headers. I got mine from Jet Hot many years ago [size=13px]and,[/size] if I knew the brand then, it has slipped my mind! I'm assuming your motor is a 455? I do have an AC compressor on that side but it is up top but a but in the way of vision. I also have the inner fender out. Below are a couple photos of the line:

4speed455

Hey Gary, I do have a 455 and the headers are hooker comps. The lines are for 72 only but my radiator is a 70 so the top connection is much higher then it would be on a 72 model. I think that actually helped me get the lines up on top of the control arm. I don’t remember the exact bends I made but I know I did open up the areas circled below to change the directions of the lines, in fact that’s where most of the tweaks were made. I connected the lines to the transmission and took the top plate off my radiator to give me a little flexibility. Then I basically just grabbed the lines with my hands and pushed and pulled on them to get there where I wanted.I took the lines off and back on a few times to make some minor tweaks. I did it by myself with the inner fender in place and the car on the ground, it took me a few hours.

OLE442

Joel (4speed455):

Well, they're in and not quite as pretty as yours but look decent. I ended up getting the set from Inline Tube since you had good luck and the upper line re-bent easy and went in nice. I just did it by hand. The lower one, I had my brother come over because it was a little more complicated. He brought his bending tool and we straightened the big curve out and tried to re-bend it. We kinked it because we didn't put any gear oil on the bender surfaces and where we kinked it was where we straightened out (friction issue). If we'd have lubed it, the line probably wouldn't have kinked.

I decided to order a SS line from Inline Tube the length of the first line (55 inches) only straight with the double flairs and fittings on each end. In the meantime, I used the one we kinked to roughly form the line to fit and to use as a template to bend the new straight tube when it arrived. Inline made it up and sent it in two days to my home. They charged me a reasonable amount for this "special order" line!

My brother is the "angle guy" in the family and he came over and we spent a couple hours bending the line and installing it on the car. It looks pretty good and I'm happy. And, they're nice and shiny.

The lines are moved outward away from the frame and headers and nothing to rub on them. I'm going to fabricate a line holder to keep it another 1/4 inch away from the A arm pivots. I've sat the car on the ground and moved the front end up & down and it won't get close.

I have another set of SS lines from another company that I'll be listing on the forum shortly. They are listed as 68 to 72 lines and are very nice.

Gary (OLE442)