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Old Sep 13th, 2018, 15:18   #26
canis
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Last Online: Oct 13th, 2023 05:46
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Chadderton, Oldham
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I'd give 'em a good scrub out with a toilet brush and washing up liquid. But then, I'm a cheapskate. Sure, for genuine peace of mind, new hoses will of course last longer. But all hoses will burst eventually - nothing lasts forever.

For a bit of insurance, you could carry a hose repair kit. I carry a bottle of mineral water for emergencies. Mineral water so it can be drunk if the need ever arose, but has become useful more than once in an overheating situation.

It might sound silly, but if the temperature needle ever does rise, you should stop immediately (safely) because it's evidence of something going wrong. On a motorway this is impractical, but you could stop at the next exit. Until then drive very gently. Maintain speed so you don't need to accellerate unnecesarilly. Freewheel down hills. These are normal driver strategies in a "just get me off this motorway" situation. If you do need to nurse the car home, do it in short bursts with long periods of cool-down between.

Chances are you'll never need any of this though. The hoses will likely outlast the car. The main thing is, don't drive an engine which is too hot. There are a lot of metals in an engine and they all expand at different rates. Overheating will really ruin your day, but it's not unrecoverable if you're sensible about how you deal with the situation. Where people go wrong is to continue to drive until it absolutely won't go anymore. That's a mistake.
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