Hello,

I just purchased a 2005 Grand Caravan 3.8L and I have had to replace my upper radiator hose twice due to a pinhole leak in the very middle both times. Is this just a brand issue or is this a common occurrence due to pressure or something I'm not seeing. Help is greatly appreciated!

Thanks.

 

where did you get the hose from? Haven't replaced a radiator hose on a caravan in a long time

 

I'd go with the brand of the hose unless it's chaffing against something. Very unusual. Could be just a manufacturing defect in a particular run of hoses. What's the brand?

 

Could you also possibly be kinking the hose a little bit on installation? Not caused by wrongdoing on your part but a badly molded hose. I know it's a remote possibility but in my experience hoses from the local parts stores don't always fit perfectly or you are meant to cut a few inches off one end to get it to fit (so they can sell the same hose for multiple different vehicles).

I only buy OEM or Gates hoses and belts for my cars. If you do it right you can find Gates hoses pretty cheap on Amazon. The only time I have ever had an OEM or Gates hose go wrong was because the hose had over 15 years and over 200,000 miles on it.

 

Thanks for the tips guys it is in the middle of the hose and was the cheap brand from auto z so I'm thinking manufacturer. I have now purchased a gates hose off amazon. Thanks again.

 

As the other guys have already said, it's really unusual to see a hose leak these days. And IMO, 2 leaking in the same place is way out there. Did you actually see a break or hole in either of the 2 hoses? If not, is there a possibility that this is a pressurized pinhole spray coming from somewhere else, and hitting the hose in the spot where it's "leaking"? (the rad would be the first suspect).

 

Thanks for the tips. I will look in to it being the radiator.