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Ist Gen Ugly coolant and washer bottle ideas?


Imp558

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Okay, not a real prority for most but I know other people think they are obnoxious so here goes. I'm thinking about brazing up 4" aluminium bottles to hide in my fenders but I've seen other cars that have factory bottles with flex tubes for inlets. Anybody have some solid suggestions as to what vehicles may offer bottles that can be hidden easily? My aluminium ones would cost almost $100 to make all 3 (SC Intercooler Reservoir for later makes 3) but I'm having trouble deciding on simple and cost affective caps for them, first thought is chrome valve cover vents in rubber grommets but that would add unwanted cost to the project.

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Aside from looking as though some GM Engineer added them as an afterthought? The washer fluid bottle sits on top of the battery, and will be a problem when I relocate the battery to the trunk and run my cold air intake through there. And the coolant res oozes around the right strut tower and looks much bigger than it actually is. Besides I'd really like to clean up under the hood, don't know wtf to do with the electrical centers that don't even open without pulling diagonal braces....

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You can use the 99+ GP washer fluid resevoir's that go into the wheel well. Otherwise, you can be like me, and remove the washer fluid resevoir completely. Your going to run into an issue with the coolant resevoir as that needs to be the highest in the system.

 

As long as they are clean it doesnt look that bad. Its certianly not something your going to hide by any means.

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The washer fluid bottle sits on top of the battery, and will be a problem when I relocate the battery to the trunk

Mistake #1. Most trunk-mount battery stories end up with the owner wondering why the electrical system doesn't work right anymore. The typical problem is the relocation uses copper cable for the + side, and the shitty body conductance for the - side. Steel is a crappy conductor, and it's worse when half the spot-welds connecting the uni-body have broken.

 

and run my cold air intake through there.

Mistake #2. Do you understand that the only thing you need to do to get a "cold air" system is to remove and plug ONE vacuum hose on the OEM air box? GM--who actually has engineers, unlike the folks who design "cold air systems"--provided a resonance-tuned air intake, as described in the '90 or '91 SAE paper that details the 3.4 DOHC engine.

 

don't know wtf to do with the electrical centers that don't even open without pulling diagonal braces....

How often do you actually need to open them? Once a year? Less often? Loosen one bolt, remove the other...access granted.

Edited by Schurkey
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1) I'm smart enough to ground the battery thoroughly and I too have seen that mistake many times.

2) I'm dressing up my engine bay, and would prefer to run a more visually appealing aluminium tube CAI into the fender and relocate the filter more where the battery is.

3) My OCD doesn't mix well with the impracticality of the UECs

4) Oh shit, I must have an open vacuum port, never seen or heard that before.

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I have a psychological hangup with trunk mount batteries where I'd like to run a sealed box vented through the floor of the trunk or Gel cell batteries. Been looking for "my" battery box for a long time and it may turn out to be custom. No trunk mount battery for me just yet, but in the near future.

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  • 1 month later...

I'll post some pics tomorrow but found a Chrysler washer bottle and mounted it in the left fender today, has a hose that comes to a nice little fillerdoodle by the battery. Didn't make out so well on the coolant bottle, got a really long necked one but it'd put the hose like 10" lower than where the factory one was. Does anybody know for certain this is bad? The hose won't be much longer and it's kind of cool that the bottle has a dipstick.

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^^^ Thats why I took mine out completely. Besides, I never drive it in the rain or on damp roads so its kinda useless in there.

 

It's different up north, we get salt and crap on the windshield all winter, I wish I didn't need one.

 

There was a little cutting, had to remove the sheetmetal that goes down to the vaccuum ball and relocate the ball. The brackets were easy, a 5" piece of 1" aluminium angle and a 12" hunk of strap metal. The coolant bottle isn't going to work the more I think about it it should be the high point to trap air bubbles. Probably back to fabricating an aluminium one. I hate that factory coolant bottle so bad I'd trade it for a wart on my big toe in a heartbeat.

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I remember that my 2001 Chrysler neon ( I guess other dodge and Chrysler cars have the same) had the washer bottle in the fender/front bumper on the passenger side like like in the picture posted by Imp558 also, just as a suggestion if you can weld aluminum like you planned at first why not make a good looking one that you can display in your engine bay ?

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For some reason, when I was thinking of how someone could beautify these ugly reservoir bottles, I pictured in my head a bottle covered in fake swarovski crystals and illuminated from the inside with white LEDs that turn on when the hood opens. The crystals will glow in sparkly green (or blue) when reservoirs are full and white when not! PIMP! :willynilly:

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http://www.summitracing.com/parts/sdk-c1dz-17618-a?seid=srese1&gclid=CNOapOOX-boCFRFo7AodywIALA post-4483-143689144341_thumb.jpg You should be able to put this most anywhere...my '64 Ford had one. Pro-tip...it only says FORD on the front side, flip it, and it's just a red washer bag....though they did come in many colors.
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For some reason, when I was thinking of how someone could beautify these ugly reservoir bottles, I pictured in my head a bottle covered in fake swarovski crystals and illuminated from the inside with white LEDs that turn on when the hood opens. The crystals will glow in sparkly green (or blue) when reservoirs are full and white when not! PIMP! :willynilly:

 

 

Yes!! I'll bust out my daughters Beadazzler and sparkle the shit out of that ugly bastard!

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