Several years ago, both of the lines from the engine going back to the rear heater had rotted at the bracket under the passenger seat. When I looked at what was involved in doing the job the right way which involved somehow getting access to the top rear of the engine, I decided to do a Rube Goldberg and just cut out the bad section and replace it with heater hose.
I just had the van in to replace the water pump and the hard pipe that goes to the pump as a precaution and the mechanic mentioned that he sees a lot of these vans come in with these hose leaking and that I might want to consider replacing them while the coolant was being replaced. I looked at the old ones after he was done replacing them and they were pretty bad.
I just bring this up so that people who live in areas where salt is used may want to consider replacing these lines. They weren't cheap from the dealer but it may save you from being stranded somewhere.

 

Good points, that's a fairly long pipe going from the bottom radiator hose to the water pump. The rear heater pipes are notorious for rusting from the outside in and around the brackets.

The only protection against the road salt and the salt ions in the air around marine/coastal environments is frequent washing off of salt OR a good quality rustproofing job. Locally there are some products with good reputations, one of those being Rust Check. I have my rear heater pipes and the pipe to the water pump as well as the pipe joining the top radiator hose to the engine, coated with Rust Check - Coat and Protect (Aerosol spray can applied). It stays soft and hangs in there in spite of the heat.

Rust Check - Coat and Protect: http://www.rustcheck.com/rustcheck.asp

Corrosivity Map of North America: http://corrosion-doctors.org/Corrosi...-corrosion.htm

Corrosion Doctors: http://corrosion-doctors.org/Car/Rust-Prevention.htm