help with Prestone coolant flush kit

[chriscw81]

hey guys, i bought a flush kit made by prestone and i'm having trouble finding where the "tee" should be installed. i have a 1996 3.8L V6. i have a kid on the way and i cant afford to pay someone to flush my coolant for me. here are the instructions for installing it off the prestone website:

Install
Make sure engine is cool, then loosen radiator cap to release any pressure and re-tighten cap. If radiator has no cap, loosen and re-tighten the pressure cap on the expansion tank, if so equipped. If it has a conventional recovery system (a non-pressurized plastic bottle) and no radiator cap accessibility, vent and reseal the system via the cap covering the thermostat.
Two heater hoses extend from the fire wall to the engine, in both front and rear wheel drive vehicles. Hose #1 runs from fire wall to water pump. Hose #2 runs from fire wall to top of engine. This is the heater inlet hose. Ask a qualified mechanic if uncertain.

my mechanical experience is pretty minimal. it would really help if anyone knew where i could find a picture that said where it needed to be installed. basically the "tee" gets installed where you hook up a water hose and flush the sysem and i cant figure out where to put it. any help is greatly appreciated.

chris

 

[wmburns]

Good luck as the flushing kit comes from a mostly by gone age. An age where the heater hoses were long and straight with plenty of places to install a flushing kit.

Today's cars have short pre formed hoses that do not afford an easy location to install a flushing tee. Further, the use of "quick disconnect" fittings has become common.

If this we me, I would disconnect the heater hose from the tee near the t-stat. Use a short piece of scrap garden hose to attach it to the tee. Worm clamps will keep it from blowing off.

Run water through both directions. Don't use too much pressure. Remember to open the drain in the radiator.

DISCLAIMER: be advised that on the 3.8l V6 it is VITAL to get all of the air out of the crossover when refilling. Engine damage/overheating is likely if not purged correctly. There is a vent provided for this purpose. The 3.8 V6 is difficult to fully vent so be prepared for additional work.

 

[chriscw81]

thanks for the reply wmburns. you're not talking about the hose that runs into the thermostat housing are you? it doesnt sound like you are, but i'm not sure where you are referring to.

 

[wmburns]

Do you see the two heater hoses where they pass through the firewall? Follow them from the firewall to the engine. Where do they go?

FWIIW, in today's cars is prob doesn't matter which hose is used. Yesterday's car had a valve in the heater line. When heat wasn't needed, the valve was closed blocking the flow of water through the core. The instructions were designed to reverse flow water through the engine regardless of the setting of the valve.

Today's car the water flows all of the time through the core. So tapping either side will work.