coolant elbows. Yes, coolant elbows

Look, I don't want to be writing this as much as you don't want to be reading another one of these

Anyway, Just redid my LIM and at that time, of course I did new Dorman elbows. I even put RTV on them because I did not want them to leak. So last night I take a look and it looks like both are very slightly dripping. I don't think I put anything on th eO ring itself for lube and I only put the RTV on the outside portion behind the O-ring.

My question is, what is the standard accepted practice for installing these things now? A little vaseline on the o-ring and nothing else? A slight smear of RTV on the o-ring?

I was at the dealership picking up a EVAP hose today so I decided to get the OEM elbows this time.

well what i have found that works is two things. 1. put a lot of lube on the whole end of it rubber o-ring and all; i used crisco this time because i was out of vaseline. if we aren't deep frying in the south...well you see the point.
2. let them fit themselves in. dont shove one all the way in before the other. just get them started, guide them, but dont shove one in let the bolts as it tightens down get the positioned. once they're tight, i put a last nudge on it just to make sure it's perfect 90° and that it's in as far as it'll go on both ends.

good luck.

Originally Posted by mainjet

Look, I don't want to be writing this as much as you don't want to be reading another one of these

Anyway, Just redid my LIM and at that time, of course I did new Dorman elbows. I even put RTV on them because I did not want them to leak. So last night I take a look and it looks like both are very slightly dripping. I don't think I put anything on th eO ring itself for lube and I only put the RTV on the outside portion behind the O-ring.

My question is, what is the standard accepted practice for installing these things now? A little vaseline on the o-ring and nothing else? A slight smear of RTV on the o-ring?

I was at the dealership picking up a EVAP hose today so I decided to get the OEM elbows this time.

Most important part of those elbows for me is that the holes are clean. I like to put some emory cloth round my finger and clean up the insides of the holes in the intake and belt tensioner assy. real good. I don't lube them with anything cept some coolant nor do I use sealants on them. I do these thing pretty regular and the dorman elbows seem just as good as the dealers. Maybe the same people make em? These may be the only Dorman product that works.

how do youo replace the collant elbow

You search on that phrase...and you'll have a nice guide to help you.

Originally Posted by mainjet

Look, I don't want to be writing this as much as you don't want to be reading another one of these

Anyway, Just redid my LIM and at that time, of course I did new Dorman elbows. I even put RTV on them because I did not want them to leak. So last night I take a look and it looks like both are very slightly dripping. I don't think I put anything on th eO ring itself for lube and I only put the RTV on the outside portion behind the O-ring.

My question is, what is the standard accepted practice for installing these things now? A little vaseline on the o-ring and nothing else? A slight smear of RTV on the o-ring?

I was at the dealership picking up a EVAP hose today so I decided to get the OEM elbows this time.

I just changed mine yesterday and made sure the holes were clean using emrey cloth and sprayed wd40 on the orings. No leaks as of yet.

Originally Posted by mbarbay

I just changed mine yesterday and made sure the holes were clean using emrey cloth and sprayed wd40 on the orings. No leaks as of yet.

I did mine a year ago and no leaks yet LOL

I also made sure the hole were nice and clean, yada yada, and still they leaked. So I had to do them again and now they are holding. I would keep an eye on them for a couple of good warm up and cool down cycles and be sure there is no leakage.

Apparently you can do this right the first time but for me it doesn't seem true I hope yours holds.

About a year ago is when Dorman had a bad batch of elbows.

On the WD40...you know it eats rubber, right?

I cleaned the inside of the tubes with a little steel wool....I was afraid emery cloth might be too abrasive. On both GPs (98 & 01) the elbows were deteriorated right at the o-ring groove, so they were holding, but broke and left a piece in the hole when removed. There was a fair amount of gunk in each hole that needed to be cleaned out. Just like a gasket, any old material or a high spot is a potential leak. I just wiped a very small amount of clean motor oil on the O-rings to allow them to move freely while positioning, NO RTV or anything else necessary.

I find it odd you used motor oil. I mean the dipstick is right there. But Brandon...in your neighboring state...he went inside, got the Crisco and used that.

Oh, Right..you weren't always from KY..lol

LOL...I took a red solo cup and cut it down to about 1/2" high, and poured about 1/8" of 10W30 in it. Just enough to dip my finger and wipe the 12 fuel injector O-rings. I had it right there on the bench, and figured it's certainly not going to hurt the O ring and that little bit won't hurt the coolant....so....it was handy! Or I guess I could have just about anywhere around here for lunch and kept my used napkin to wipe the O rings with....they don't call it the KY state for nothin.....

Originally Posted by BillBoost37

I find it odd you used motor oil. I mean the dipstick is right there. But Brandon...in your neighboring state...he went inside, got the Crisco and used that.

Oh, Right..you weren't always from KY..lol

he speaks the truth! but those elbows ended up breaking in half and blowing. on the next set I found some motor oil in Josh's garage

Just did my LIM gaskets and new elbow and O ring for the Alt bracket two weeks ago, cleaned real good, used dielectric grease(small amount) and "wiggled them in slowly not to cause a bind making sure they seated right. Got lucky so far with no leaks. Hope you get it replaced without leaks.

I always run a bead of RTV around the o-ring, cheating a little towards the front side of it. I've never had a problem with them leaking with this method.

I guess y'all picked up the elbows from rock auto? Any advantage really with alum vs the Orem one? Obviously they aluminum not plastics. Just after you guys talking about dormans bad batch y'all got me worried lol

Read closely..it was a year ago and if it didn't screw up immediately..you are all set.

The aluminums. Want to know my prediction?

Based on how the 97-98 W body and 96-99 H/C/G body tensioners had the metal elbow cast as part of them, I forsee a lot of corrosion occurring in the elbow areas. This will lead to people having to use excessive force in removing them and based on angles etc of how most would try to remove them, timing covers will break, knuckles will bleed and overall....the only guys benefiting will be the ones that never take the elbows back out. As for leakage, if the holes aren't clean they will leak, aluminum or plastic

So plastic elbows FTW it looks like ?

Time and breakage will tell. Til then most feel the aluminum is the bestest thing ever, even beats out sliced bread.

Experience says to me.. possible problems.

I'm not sure I agree....you may be right, but the flip side is that we don't know what the metal elbows are made of, they are some sort of aluminum alloy which may or may not have corrosion issues. Also, the only thing that holds these elbows in the hole is the O-ring, there's no metal-to-metal contact for seating or sealing purposes where corrosion would make it difficult to remove.

I am *hoping* that the Dorman engineers took these things into account when they designed the elbows, but only time will tell I guess. Besides, if they don't leak there is no need to remove them

The dorman engineers likely forgot the lessons the GM engineers learned the hard way.