I had fondly imagined I might get the job finished today but you can imagine how my heart sank reading about the quick connect thing on the lower hose. I might just order a new lower hose and stick the job on the back burner till after Christmas.
In happier news I finally got the bumper right off: You may recall the screw on the offside bottom edge of the bumper was rusted solid. I found that with the bumper swung forward, pivoting on that screw, there was now access to the top of the screw. So I could grip the top with Mole grips and with a twist hey presto it broke loose.
It looks as if there's no chance the rad will come out by going back and then up because the plastic parts for the bottom of the condenser to sit on make the assembly too wide to pass backward through the gap. So it has to be forward. And the filler neck getting in the way must mean it has to tilt its bottom edge forward and then slide down. So it must indeed be a bumper-off job. The struggle will be getting the condenser out of the way, and the condenser is in terrible , fragile condition (though not leaking - the AC still works). Might need extra pairs of hands. I walked away from it as Christmas stuff got in the way. I'll try to grab photos to illustrate the fittings.
In happier news I finally got the bumper right off: You may recall the screw on the offside bottom edge of the bumper was rusted solid. I found that with the bumper swung forward, pivoting on that screw, there was now access to the top of the screw. So I could grip the top with Mole grips and with a twist hey presto it broke loose.
It looks as if there's no chance the rad will come out by going back and then up because the plastic parts for the bottom of the condenser to sit on make the assembly too wide to pass backward through the gap. So it has to be forward. And the filler neck getting in the way must mean it has to tilt its bottom edge forward and then slide down. So it must indeed be a bumper-off job. The struggle will be getting the condenser out of the way, and the condenser is in terrible , fragile condition (though not leaking - the AC still works). Might need extra pairs of hands. I walked away from it as Christmas stuff got in the way. I'll try to grab photos to illustrate the fittings.