Upper rad hose that works with big block swap into 66'/67' Skylarks?

Has anyone had any luck finding an upper rad hose that works well for when you swap in a 400/430/455 into a 1966/67 Skylark? I did my swap 25 years ago and of course I did not take note of the upper rad hose I used when I swapped it in. It had fit great. I am doing a 430 swap into my wife's Skylark now so need to find a hose again. I know the lower hose you can trim the 300/340 hose to work fine. The 67' GS 400 has a 90 deg upper fitting on the factory radiator so that hose does not work with the 300/340 Radiator that has the upper fitting coming straight out. I can not stand the accordion style universal hoses, they look too cheesy. I did find a hose that is doing the job on my 66' with 455 but I had to cut a section out of it and clamp it back together. Pictures of the one I used below. I would like to find one that fits well and does not need to be cut and spliced. Let me know if you have a good solution.
Thanks.
Greg

 

I'm interested in this as well

 

I am kind of thinking of trying this one. It is listed for the 340 but it is different than the one I tried before. I am just hoping the leg to the right side of picture is long enough to clear the distributor. My thought was to install the LH side to rad and RH side to engine inlet.
Greg

 

FWIW my 67 special deluxe 300 AC car 3 core rad is a strait upper inlet on the rad... Not like the GS400 rad....

 

It looks like you have a good fitting hose. What did you use for your install Bob?

 

I'm waiting on a Gates 20869 to arrive. Hoping it fits a little better than the continental E70548 which needs to be cut and sectioned like the one you show.

 

That one seems to be pretty long looking at the picture. Let us know how it works.
Greg

 

60674 here, straight rad outlet. Trim to fit.

 

Greg-
My '73 Gran Sport radiator w/455 had an upper outlet on it that was orientated like the one in your '67. The upper hose for my '73 called out in Rock Auto is as follows:

The specs for the AC Delco hose are identical to the Gates hose you purchased; so I'm guessing the Gates hose is what you need.

I like the overflow tank that you mounted next to the radiator; it looks that it fits quite nicely. Where'd you get it/what is it made for?


Thanks,

 

The thing I worry about with that hose is that the 68' and later cars have the frame get wider fwd of the control arms and a wider core support opening for a much wider radiator. With the wider radiator the upper fitting is farther to the drivers side and those hoses are typically longer. It seems they will end up needing some length removed in the centre. The general shape of those hoses looks good. I am hoping to find someone that has made one work with just end trimming.
As for the coolant reservoir, that is a Dorman universal coolant reservoir. You can find them at most suppliers for cheap. I purchased mine from Amazon. I ended up moving one of my horns over a little and made a little bracket for one of the bolts. It works perfect, looks kind of OEM and is tidy. https://www.amazon.com/Dorman-603-0...44353686&sprefix=dorman+univer,aps,312&sr=8-3

 

Greg-
Obviously I'm assuming here, but even if the core support is indeed wider, the cooling requirements of the later engine should not have increased over time so the radiator width should not have increased. Maybe vs the 300/340 radiator that you are using the upper radiator location is in a different place (ie, further inboard). But if you've been good the Gates hose you ordered will work. Good Luck!

And THANKS for the lead on the Dorman overflow tank!


Thanks again,

 

Funny - some of us think alike:

The Dorman overflow tank fits perfect.

 

Unfortunately thats a old pic of the day I bought the car....... I have no idea just how old that hose is... All I can say is the main & rod bearings had a date of 1992 on them.. Which also kind of lead me to believe the car build was done about that time.... Fortunately the hose the hose is still in great shape so I used it for my rebuild...

All I could find was the factory style hose for the GS 400 with the 90 elbow on the rad top.... I will just get my radiator guy to put a 90 el on the rad if needed, or do the 90 elbow on the hose like you did if needed....

 

For my sons I looked up a napa hose from a 76 electra, lay it out like its going to hook up and you will be able to see and mark where to cut it in the middle and seam it together with an appropriate sized plastic union. Double clamp it in the middle

 

I am trying to avoid cutting the upper hose and adding a coupler. I would like to find a hose that does not need cutting and clamping in the middle. If you look at my earlier posts that is what I have now. I ordered a Gates 20543 on Friday and it should be delivered in a couple days. It is for a 340. I am hoping I can make it work.
Greg

 

Well, I ordered two more hoses and neither will work without cutting and splicing. Can't seem to win on this one. I need to have an auto parts store that I can just look through the hoses myself. It seems every hose I tried has the correct bends but all are too far across left to right as far as lining up to the outlet and inlet.
Greg

 

Have you tried a 66-67 340 w/ AC hose? Thats what I've always used with no issues.

 

The 20543 one is the 340 hose. Still too far across.
Greg

 

Thats odd because the radiator inlet is in same spot for big block and small block. I bet the small block thermostat housing sits further back than the big block.

 

The big block is definitely higher and farther forward in the engine bay.
Greg