lower radiator hose : URO vs. Genuine Porsche

[Bukowski]

probably asking for trouble here, but : lower radiator hose : have a small leak. its a thing I gather. I'm looking for some comments on the URO part vs. the Genuine Porsche part, both of which it appears Pelican sells. Is there some inaccuracy in the URO part that causes a leak?

[flash968]

i have had problems with aftermarket lower hoses, though i cannot remember the brand. it has happened a half dozen times. they have not been an exact fit, and in fact one was so far off that i have had the power steering pulley cut it.

now i only use the ones from porsche.

[John_AZ]

I purchased a couple of off brand lower hoses ('87 924S) and the fitting was not accurate.
The hose would hit the radiator fan blade.
The OEM hoses have the correct bends needed.

(aftermarket hoses that hit the radiator fan blade can be used if you nip/cut ~3/8" each fan blade that contacts the hose)

J_AZ

[dgcantrell]

I'll second the motion that it is the bends that are slightly off that cause the power steering pulley to kiss it and slice it open... I had URO contact me about it and I took pictures showing them the problem. I had the same issue many moons ago when iI bought my first replacement hose from NAPA. I was able to trim that one enough to make it work. Heck, I think it lasted at least 15 years or more before I replaced it.

[Bukowski]

My URO hose is surprisingly fit well - there's an extra sleeve to protect from the belt, and it is sufficiently away from it.

How about the hose clamps - I have two wide bands - are thin bands better in this location?

What other causes of coolant leakage are there for that lower part? My radiator is about 8 years old.

[dgcantrell]

URO may have made some changes to theirs to make it fit better. The factory hoses also had the sleeve on them. This was sometime last year when URO contacted me when I posted the gripe about aftermarket hoses on their Facebook page.

[Bukowski]

I don't want to get excited, but :

The coolant was leaking so much there were puddles. Didn't have to fill too much though. Oil and filter (not Mahle) hadn't been changed in 5000 miles deliberately. Leak started towards 5000 mi. Notably, about 6 USqt of fresh oil had been added.

Changed oil and filter (Mahle). Took a spin. Now I want to say - leak is gone?!

[grendiers]

You can 'fix' the fan blade problem hitting the hose, by twisting the hose away from fan as you tighten the hose clamp. May not work for everybody or every situation, but it worked for me.

[Bukowski]

Tried again - no leak.

This means something.