The bigger hose on my Topsider collapsed so it looks more like a 300-ohm ribbon cable than hose. airpoweramerica.com has a hose kit for $9 with free shipping. Does Home Depot or a supply store have something better for the same money?

Thanks,
Sixto
87 300D^2

what all are you pumping through it?
hose is hose... but most of HD/Lowes stuff is for water. I'd try an auto parts store or Northern Tool before checking the box stores.

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John HAUL AWAY, OR CRUSHED CARS!!! HELP ME keep the cars out of the crusher! A/C Thread
"as I ride with my a/c on... I have fond memories of sweaty oily saturdays and spewing R12 into the air. THANKS for all you do!

My drivers:
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 560SL convertible
1987 190D 2.5-5SPEED!!!

1987 300TD
2005 Dodge Sprinter 2500 158"WB
1994GMC 2500 6.5Turbo truck... I had to put the ladder somewhere!

I just upgraded mine to a bigger size tank and larger diameter hose (from 3/8 to 3/4). 3/4" sucks as well as drain much faster then 3/8.

The 3/4 clear hose I used is thick wall (1/8") and I purposely made it short (about 8") knowing it will get soft with hot oil and could collapse if too long.

Here's a pic of it in operation. no problem with hose collapse

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85 300D turbo pristine w 157k when purchased 167,870 July 2025
83 300 D turbo 297K runs great. SOLD!
83 240D 4 spd manual- parted out then junked

Thats a pretty sweet setup youve got there.

Yeah, cheap and easy to make and works great. I use the hose clamp pliers as a valve to build up vacuum, then take pliers off and away it sucks.

__________________
85 300D turbo pristine w 157k when purchased 167,870 July 2025
83 300 D turbo 297K runs great. SOLD!
83 240D 4 spd manual- parted out then junked

now that's an innovative use of an old helium tank!

__________________
John HAUL AWAY, OR CRUSHED CARS!!! HELP ME keep the cars out of the crusher! A/C Thread
"as I ride with my a/c on... I have fond memories of sweaty oily saturdays and spewing R12 into the air. THANKS for all you do!

My drivers:
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 560SL convertible
1987 190D 2.5-5SPEED!!!

1987 300TD
2005 Dodge Sprinter 2500 158"WB
1994GMC 2500 6.5Turbo truck... I had to put the ladder somewhere!

How do you create the vaccum on the tank prior to removing the vice grips from the hose?

__________________
You can't always get what you want, but if you try sometime you just might find you get what you need.

I use a 12VDC RV vacuum pump.

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85 300D turbo pristine w 157k when purchased 167,870 July 2025
83 300 D turbo 297K runs great. SOLD!
83 240D 4 spd manual- parted out then junked

I've never had any trouble with my end wrench and drain pan in almost fifty years of use.

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2001 SLK 320 six speed manual
2014 Porsche Cayenne six speed manual

Annoy a Liberal, Read the Constitution

Correct me if I am wrong but I think the FSM oil drain method is to use a top sider.

The first time I used one, I took the drain plug out afterwards to make sure I got all the oil out. I was surprised not one drop came out.

__________________
85 300D turbo pristine w 157k when purchased 167,870 July 2025
83 300 D turbo 297K runs great. SOLD!
83 240D 4 spd manual- parted out then junked

X2 on first experiences with a topsider. There was actually less oil remaining in the pan than removing the drain plug and letting it drip for half an hour. It's possible that the ramps I use in combination with a slightly slanted driveway leave a small puddle of oil somewhere that seeps out forever. With the car flat on a flat surface the dip stick guide tube seems to be a low spot and all the oil can be removed. As with Funola, I was surprised how well it did.

The other learning here is not to use the topsider as an excuse for never taking off the belly panels and inspecting the underside of the car.

Jeremy

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"Buster" in the '95

Our all-Diesel family
1996 E300D (W210) . .338,000 miles Wife's car
2005 E320 CDI . . 113,000 miles My car
Santa Rosa population 176,762 (2022)
Total. . . . . . . . . . . . 627,762
"Oh lord won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz."
-- Janis Joplin, October 1, 1970

On my Topsider I use the clear,hard, plastic tubing you'd use for running a water line to an ice maker. Available at any hardware store and comes in a array of sizes.

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“Whatever story you're telling, it will be more interesting if, at the end you add, "and then everything burst into flames.”
― Brian P. Cleary, You Oughta Know By Now

So you insert the tubing inside the dipstick tube? I hose clamp my 3/4 i.d. clear flexible hose over the dipstick tube.

__________________
85 300D turbo pristine w 157k when purchased 167,870 July 2025
83 300 D turbo 297K runs great. SOLD!
83 240D 4 spd manual- parted out then junked

The dealers have an elaborate system for sucking out the oil. It saves them time and money and it gets the job done fine. For the DIYer, pulling the plug gets the oil out too. Is there something that will cause the engine to blow up if the oil is drained rather than sucked? I'm trying to figure out how the engine knows the difference.

__________________
2001 SLK 320 six speed manual
2014 Porsche Cayenne six speed manual

Annoy a Liberal, Read the Constitution

The engine will not know the difference but I will. Less mess, less work, more enjoyable. How's that for a come back?

__________________
85 300D turbo pristine w 157k when purchased 167,870 July 2025
83 300 D turbo 297K runs great. SOLD!
83 240D 4 spd manual- parted out then junked