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Silicone Coolant Hoses

Fred930

Scirocco MK II Track Car
Location
Wisconsin
Will be interested to see if anyone has actually tried a kit like that. It's certainly cheap!

I just bought silicone coolant & boost hoses from Pegasus Racing in Wisconsin for a custom 1.8 liter turbo install in my old Scirocco track car. It's crazy expensive stuff - couplers and elbows run $15 - $30 each, so total cost adds up fast. Here's the link to their cooling hoses: https://www.pegasusautoracing.com/advcat.asp?CategoryID=3COOLHOSESIZE

Had to do that because "normal" hoses won't fit (sure wish they did - would have saved a lot of money).

One thing I did notice - the ebay kit appears to be using regular cheap hose clamps versus a full circle "lined" type which better protects the hose: https://www.pegasusautoracing.com/productselection.asp?Product=3613

But I've just got to ask - why do you want to install a kit like that, anyway? Regular OEM coolant hoses have advanced to the point of often lasting the life of the car. Wouldn't be surprised if you can run OEM hoses for 200,000 miles, so even if I ever DID have a hose fail, I'd just get a known brand name from any local auto supply store. That way I wouldn't have to worry about a part of unknown quality that I got on ebay blowing up at the worst possible time.

If you want to spend money on your car - direct it toward something that either makes you go faster or improves reliability. That said, those VW/Audi plastic "flex" hoses (PCV, Aux Air, etc) are complete junk - you can crack an old one by just looking at it the wrong way!! Anyway - just my 2 cents ....

Regards ..... Fred
 

doc280

Ready to race!
Location
North Carolina
Will be interested to see if anyone has actually tried a kit like that. It's certainly cheap!

I just bought silicone coolant & boost hoses from Pegasus Racing in Wisconsin for a custom 1.8 liter turbo install in my old Scirocco track car. It's crazy expensive stuff - couplers and elbows run $15 - $30 each, so total cost adds up fast. Here's the link to their cooling hoses: https://www.pegasusautoracing.com/advcat.asp?CategoryID=3COOLHOSESIZE

Had to do that because "normal" hoses won't fit (sure wish they did - would have saved a lot of money).

One thing I did notice - the ebay kit appears to be using regular cheap hose clamps versus a full circle "lined" type which better protects the hose: https://www.pegasusautoracing.com/productselection.asp?Product=3613

But I've just got to ask - why do you want to install a kit like that, anyway? Regular OEM coolant hoses have advanced to the point of often lasting the life of the car. Wouldn't be surprised if you can run OEM hoses for 200,000 miles, so even if I ever DID have a hose fail, I'd just get a known brand name from any local auto supply store. That way I wouldn't have to worry about a part of unknown quality that I got on ebay blowing up at the worst possible time.

If you want to spend money on your car - direct it toward something that either makes you go faster or improves reliability. That said, those VW/Audi plastic "flex" hoses (PCV, Aux Air, etc) are complete junk - you can crack an old one by just looking at it the wrong way!! Anyway - just my 2 cents ....

Regards ..... Fred

I was inspecting some of the hoses and I have a couple soft ones. So I think you are correct, 200,000 miles might be the limit for the factory hoses. Not looking for a performance gain just looking at options for replacing the coolant hoses.

I see your point on the clamps, wonder how the factory clamps would work with the silicon.
 

Fred930

Scirocco MK II Track Car
Location
Wisconsin
Have no previous experience with the "expensive" hose clamps. Pegasus claims they prevent internal sharp edges from cutting into the hose. Certainly I've seen hoses (with regular clamps I've probably over tightened) showing some distress (not leaking), but suspect they would continue to work fine for a long time. Pegasus sells quality stuff to racers, but they also need a good story to justify why a $0.35 clamp costs $3.00. Are they worth it - who knows?

Guess my point in above post was mostly aimed at how good OEM coolant hoses are. In the "old days", people would regularly replace then as routine maintenance. Now they seem to last forever. And I have developed a great suspicion of after-market auto parts that claim enhanced performance, but with precious little technical information to back up the claims.
 

doc280

Ready to race!
Location
North Carolina
Have no previous experience with the "expensive" hose clamps. Pegasus claims they prevent internal sharp edges from cutting into the hose. Certainly I've seen hoses (with regular clamps I've probably over tightened) showing some distress (not leaking), but suspect they would continue to work fine for a long time. Pegasus sells quality stuff to racers, but they also need a good story to justify why a $0.35 clamp costs $3.00. Are they worth it - who knows?

Guess my point in above post was mostly aimed at how good OEM coolant hoses are. In the "old days", people would regularly replace then as routine maintenance. Now they seem to last forever. And I have developed a great suspicion of after-market auto parts that claim enhanced performance, but with precious little technical information to back up the claims.

I have been searching the interweb and I get what you are saying about the clamps. Several people on different automotive and motorcycle forums recommend the OEM spring clamps, which are on our VW's. But overall seems what ever clamp is used no leaks, just does not look as nice. I also could not find a picture of a silicone hose cut by a clamp.

I also understand the OEM hoses are great and they have come along way from what they were decades ago. However that longevity has come with a price, the OEM hose kit (which includes 12 hoses vs 8) has a price tag of $475.00. Ouch!

I have located a few reviews of the Gplus silicone hoses, comparing them to Samco silicone hoses (Samco supposed to be really good) and the Gplus received thumbs up. Most of the reviews were from motorcycle forums.
 
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