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Turbo hose about to go south

Help, Advice and DIY Tutorials on Volvo's P80 platform cars -- Volvo's 1990s "bread and butter" cars -- powered by the ubiquitous and durable Volvo inline 5-cylinder engine.

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jreed
Posts: 1619
Joined: 8 March 2009
Year and Model: '97 Volvo 855 GLT
Location: RTP, North Carolina
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Re: Turbo hose about to go south

Post by jreed »

I recently replaced my turbo coolant inlet hose (on a '97 855 GLT at ~148k miles) after inspecting it per Tailor's advice above, and it was getting a little soft and puffy at the connection to the metal tube that connects to the turbo housing. There always seems to be a lot of oil around the turbo, which probably accelerates the degradation of the rubber, plus that is probably the one of the hotter spots.
I bought an OEM replacement inlet hose from DW Volvo in TN from Don Snyder. It cost $6.50 and it is part number 6842190. The two hose clamps are part 988023 and cost $1.75/each.
I did most of the repair from underneath the car after jacking it up and placing it on four jackstands.
I basically followed Tailor's procedure to remove the bottom hose clamp and the upper banjo bolt from the turbo housing. Then when you get the tube and hose out of the engine bay you can remove the upper hose clamp, which is virtually impossible to loosen (at least on mine). I did not remove the heat shield.
The picture below shows the state of the original hose, covered in oil at the top and somewhat hard to access:
Picture of old turbo coolant inlet hose, covered in oil and starting to puff and swell.
Picture of old turbo coolant inlet hose, covered in oil and starting to puff and swell.
Turbo_coolant_inlet_hose_4.jpg (241.29 KiB) Viewed 1667 times
To remove the lower hose clamp I found there was an angle from the top of the engine that, with a 7mm socket and a 1' 9" extension (the longest I've ever had occasion to use), I could reach and loosen.
The picture below shows the extension going down to the hose clamp before I attached the ratchet and loosened it.
A 1 foot 9 inch extension to reach the bottom hose clamp.
A 1 foot 9 inch extension to reach the bottom hose clamp.
Once I got the lower hose clamp a little loose, I got under the car and spun it around so I could finish loosening it with a 7mm ball driver. To get the old hose off the bottom nipple I had to gently slice the old hose with a knife taking care not to nick the nipple. I cleaned up the deposits on the nipple with a brass brush.
Then I used a 17mm socket and ratchet to loosen the banjo bolt at the top of the turbo housing. I did this from underneath the car and it was a little difficult. There is a heat shield on the firewall that is pretty sharp. Once my knuckle heals up I'm going shopping for an extendible 1/2" drive ratchet (the 10" handle on mine puts your knuckle right where the shield can get it).
As Tailor said there are two copper washers on the banjo bolt you have to keep track of. Once you get the tube and hose out of the car, you can remove the upper hose clamp, get the old hose off and clean everything up. I made a mental note of the angle (and took the picture below) showing how the tube fit to the hose so that I could put the new hose on at close to the right angle.
Old hose and tube, ready for swapping on the new hose and new clamps.
Old hose and tube, ready for swapping on the new hose and new clamps.
The old copper washers had a little green corrosion and some compression marks but they didn't look too bad so I reused them. I cleaned up the banjo bolt hole and threads and the tube, and then installed the new hose. I needed to orient the hose clamps so the nuts faced me downwards -- that made it easier to tighten them up when I was under the car. I loosely attached the banjo bolt at the top and attached the hose at the bottom nipple. I found I needed a little liquid dishwashing soap on the tip of the nipple to get the hose to go on. Then I tightened everything up, refilled the coolant, burped the system of air and refilled about 4 times, checked for leaks, and it's all good! :)
1997 855 GLT (Light Pressure Turbo) still going strong. Previous: 1986 240 GL rusted out in '06, 1985 Saab 900T rusted out in '95, 1975 Saab 99 rusted out in '95, 1973 Saab 99 rusted out in '94

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