Had a leaky radiator on my 89 so I figured I would change it today. Got a new (used) one from a junkyard for $50. Figured I would change the upper and lower hoses while I had it out.

Here are the hoses:


I noticed this: (4 13 89)


and: (3 31 89)



Do you think they are the original ones? The car'* build date is 04 89 according to the driver'* door sticker.

For the original hoses, they are in excellent shape. I would toss them in the trunk and keep them as backups. Believe it or not, I don't think I have ever seen a blown hose on this forum, at least since I have been here. Hoses have come a long way since the mid 80s (85 and below hoses sucked, IMO.)

ill vouch that the hoses on the ln3 do stand up over the mileage and time, a couple of the ln3s ive owned have had their original radiator hoses and radiators with no problems

I had to change the radiator because when the hose was removed to change the thermostat it was stuck to the nipple. The person doing it was wriggling it like crazy and caused a leak to start. It looked like the braizing came loose. It was only a trickle, but it drove me nuts to see fluid under my car.

The upper hose ruptured (split) on my '92 last year. Luckily, it happened when pulling into a parking lot, so it didn't leave me stranded.

The GM performance and test specifications for heater and radiator hoses have been upgraded a few times since the eighties. There was a big push for better product in the late nineties also, with GM visiting suppliers to verify that they were building the actual production hoses to the same methods as they had tested to.

However, it still pays to inspect your hoses every year or so. Production variation and mechanical failures can severely decrease the life of coolant hoses.