9Shenandoah

iTrader: (1)

When should I replace the heater hoses on 98 maxima with 190K?

My wife's 97 Accord blew a heater hose at 154K miles and that really unnerved her when the temperature gauge shot up.. My daughter's Corolla--no problem at 221 K.

( If you are noticing all my cars are 150K +, you are right)

I am taking my Maxima on a 700 mile road trip soon. She;s our strongest toughest car (knock on wood) I don't want to be in the middle of Montana on the side of the road with a blown heater hose at 2 in the morning.

I haven't taken a close look at the Maxima heater hoses yet, but on the Accord I ended up taking off part of the intake manifold --I wanted to get a clear shot at the hoses without the risk of damaging the heater core inlet and ouulet when I took the hoses off.

50 year old motorhead attempting a comeback...

Mac.World

I never go on a trip without duct tape, zip ties, water and some basic tools. Just in case.

Roosky

I'd say do the visual inspection, make sure none of the hoses have bumps and "bubbles" in them. If all checks out good, i wouldnt be too worried to take it on a road trip. But then again, you never know what might happen. Take some extra coolant with you, so in case something goes wrong, you can at least make it to an autozone or something. They usually have everything in stock for our cars.

9Shenandoah

iTrader: (1)

As a liftetime owner of cars all over 150 k miles, please don't laugh but I even carry my junkyard set of tools, aluminum jack, jackstands, worklights and spare parts.
It has paid off several times! Lost a brake caliper bolt on a Volvo (my own fault, didnt torque it tightly) once in a rainstorm in North Dakota driving from Chicago to Utah. Pulled over, jacked her up and saw the loose caliper --a shop down the street had the right thread and grade--but was going to close in 3 minutes, Whew!

cashoit

i keep all my tools in the trunk of my car. When u own a used car and have any mechanical skills, u shd be always ready to fix stuff.

Case in point, last wknd my headlight jus stopped working. Apparently the harness burned out. I was nowhere near my house, but i had all my tools. So i hit the closest junkyard, pulled a new harness and good to go.

I would say inspect the hoses and replace if needed or cheap/easy

Trini Boom

iTrader: (5)

I would say disconnect them from the engine side and inspect. I found mine to be partially clogged with brown crud although my antifreeze was extremely clean. I cleared some of it out with air but may replace with heater core eventually. Don't think a flush would ever clear it up.

maxtrax

If the hoses are getting bloated near the hose clamps, it's time to change.