Major coolant leak--how much is this gonna cost me?

[frosty]

Car: 1990 190E 2.6 with approx. 104k miles.

Okay, here is a classic case of putting something off and letting a potential problem become an actual problem. No need to tell me--I know. I think about half a year ago I noticed that the upper or lower radiator hose (forget which one, but it connects to the thermostat) had a very disturbing bubble at the end that connects to the thermostat housing, right above the hose clamp. I decided to have it checked out at a later time and continued to drive the car. Fastforward. A month earlier I had been a bit more concerned about this bubble, knowing full well that it could burst soon, but the fact that I had been able to drive the car without any incident made me put off replacing the hose a bit longer! Well, guess what? Today I noticed that there was a leak of something under my car, not a puddle, but definitely a leak. I opened the hood and there is a very pin-size hole on the bubble. The strange thing is that the resevoir was almost empty, about 2 inches of fluid in the resevoir. There seems to be no overspray of coolant in the engine, as I would imagine a hole in the coolant hose would do. The car had been sitting for months and was only used two days ago for a night out. No idiot lights came on and the temp. guage, if I recall, was normal. I suspect that night of driving (approx. 10 miles total) was when the bubble finally ruptured, though not castastrophically.

Anyway, I did an archive search, and my heart sunk. Could all this coolant lost be the water pump, which I've read is an *gulp* expensive repair? Yes, the coolant seems to be seeping out from the belly pan on the driver's side! The top of the engine is clean, but I can't look under the engine to confirm if much of the leak is coming from another source. I'm just hoping it's just the coolant hose, but can a tiny hole cause that much coolant to leak? Grrrrrr.

Sorry about the long post. Please help!

[blueranger]

the cost of your repair is about 10 bucks... go get the hose
from the mercedes dealer and do it your self... just a simple clamp on
either side with a screw driver...


the coolant overflow is only about 1 galon and 2 inch is only about
a quart and thats not much for a few hours... i have seen pen holes empty
the whole system in just a few minutes... so your ok... change the
hose...


then check for leaks...you should do this your self.

[frosty]

Thanks, blueranger, for the reassuring words! About the doing it yourself thing, I have thought about it but quickly got scared because one end of this hose goes down and seems hard to get at for disconnecting, let alone connecting. Unless it doesn't require a hose clamp and I can just jiggle it onto the fitting for a secure, tight fit. Would I also need to drain the radiator? Thank so much!

ps,
I don't think my MB dealership is gonna have that hose for a measly $10! I'm hoping it's gonna be at least that cheap!

[free300e]

oh man. your probably gonna have to pull the water pump. its pretty easy, I did it a few days ago. your gonna have to pull the belt and a few pulleys to get in there. I had a few problems with that tiny piece of hose.

[Hatterasguy]

Here you go:
Upper hose
G2000-18116 Radiator Hose Germany IN STOCK $10.68
Lower
G2000-18106 Radiator Hose Febi IN STOCK $25.13

Figure out which one you need and order that hose along with some coolant from fastlane. Replace the hose and change the coolant. It should take you about 1/2 an hour for the entire job.

[blueranger]

the only real difficult hose is the one thats about 2 inches right next
to the distributor.... that one requires the removal of the water pump..

but the res should be easy... hose clamps use a screw driver or ratchet..

pull it off and all the water will come out immediately...

then just replace the opsite way you took it off... then fill with fresh antifreeze throw in some wetter water (redline) and take a drive.

this adventure will lead you into the spark plugs and the next thing you know you will be rebuilding your own engine.