Category Archives: STS-V

Spectre stainless steel sheathed intercooler hoses

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One of the great things about OEM heater systems is that they have hoses exactly bent and shaped the way needed, so that the hose is perfectly formed for the job.  Good advice for aftermarket installations like my intercooler cooling mods is to measure out exactly what type of hose you need, then go look at the big books of existing OEM hoses at an auto parts store and find the one snowflake that is similar to your needs.

Another option is the Spectre stainless steel sheathed heater hose, 39798, which is designed to allow a variety of hose turns without kinking or crimping.

Spectre hoses in their packaging

The hoses I need are 3/4″ inner diameter. These Spectre hoses are rubber hoses with a stainless steel braided sheath around the rubber.  For Spectre 39798 the hoses are 4 ft (48 inches) long.
Here is a shot out of the packaging:

Vanity shot of the hose out of the packaging

The sheathing helps prevent hose crimping. After playing with one of the hoses in various bends I would say it is helpful in resisting but does not eliminate crimping. So I will still need to ensure that the hose routing helps as much as possible to avoid crimping the hoses.

AVS 1 gal inline tank for the Cadillac STS-V intercooler loop

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Got the AVS tank I ordered in the post today.  Very interesting.  Previous mention:  Cadillac STS-V inline flow-through intercooler tank

AVS tank in the box

I ordered this as a possible inline tank addition to my Cadillac STS-V intercooler coolant loop. Additional coolant would act as a buffer to temperature changes (both up and down). The stock system has 2.6 quarts. My system has the S3TC heat exchanger added, which holds 2 quarts, so it is running 4.6 quarts. The new tank would add 4 quarts, for 8.6 quarts total.

The tank has a drain at the bottom, 1/2″ NPT fittings that handily I have 1/2″ NPT to 3/4 inch hose barbs from my 45321 experiment to fit, and a 1/4″ NPT fitting for a gauge which I will either stick a stopper in or a temp gauge.

1/2" NPT to hose barb attachment added

I will have to decide whether to add the tank during in this weekend’s big install adjustments session, or wait and test with the new Spectre hoses in place first so I have a clean baseline, then redo the circuit with the tank in place. Notionally with the angle brackets on the bottom, this tank would just sit directly on top of the S3TC.  Choices are good.

Update:

This temperature gauge, with 1/2″ NPT fitting, 2″ probe length, and 0-220F temperature scale could work and hopefully be visible through the grill on close examination.  Hmm.

Mityvac intercooler coolant refill?

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The intercooler cooling system for the STS-V is self-bleeding, although it can take a bit to complete. I have been considering using a system like the Mityvac 4535 with a compressor to both leak check and refill under vacuum to ensure all air is out of the system.

This system takes a vacuum on the coolant system to pull the air out, and clean fluid in. I would attach it at the Tee reservoir.

The Mityvac 4535 is around $108 but perhaps can be had on loan from O’Reilly’s Autoparts. Then I’ll need to get a better air source to draw a vaccum. Either would be a seldom use item for me so that makes them dear to purchase. It is possible a local shop could do this also but the fee might have paid for one of the tools.

;

An alternate appears to be the UView 550000 Airlift Cooling System Leak Checker and air purge kit.

Thinking I will add this process after I replace the intercooler hoses with the Spectre stainless kink-free hoses planned for this weekend.

Update:

I ‘cheated’ and ordered the Mityvac 4535, and will have to shop a larger air compressor. Should made my intercooler experiments easier and more controlled.

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