1975 LeSabre Coolant Recovery Tank

[ZTatZAU]

I'm getting ready to flush and refill the cooling system of my 75 LeSabre Convertible.  Step 7 in the relevant section of the Owners Manual states:  "Remove Recovery Tank CAP with hoses intact... and remove recovery tank COVER... before cleaning with detergent and water."

 

My OEM Coolant Recovery Tank is shown below.  As is often the case, a little voice in the back of my mind is whispering, "Don't be too hasty on this!"  I'm not sure what this tank is made of but experience tells me that whatever plastic material this is, might very well have become somewhat brittle and inflexible over the years.  Am I being too cautious here thinking the cover could break before readily popping off the tank?

 

Has anyone dealt with this, or similar, that could offer some advice?

Your replies, as always, are appreciated.

ZT

Edited August 14, 2023 by ZTatZAU (see edit history)

[pfloro]

Having owned a new 1984 Toronado for 28 years, I learned a lot about aged plastic...

 

It appears that the tank and cover is fiberglass which I believe, holds it's strength longer than "plastic" components.

If it were plastic, I would expect the tank to have yellowed.  The overflow tank in my Toronado was plastic and turned

pale yellow over time.

 

I would carefully remove the cap from the tank cover and remove the entire tank assembly (with cover attached). 

Then I would add some tepid water with a bit of dish detergent and slosh it around.  Use a bottle brush to get into the

corners...

 

Paul

 

PS:  There was an old swamp cooler (evaporative cooler) on the roof of our first Tucson house.   It was 40 years old and the

material looked the same as you recovery tank.  It was not brittle and had not yellowed...  The strong Arizona sun didn't seem

to bother it...!

 

 

 

Edited August 14, 2023 by pfloro (see edit history)

[ZTatZAU]

Thanks Paul,

 

I appreciate your suggestion and the info you provided!

 

ZT

[ZTatZAU]

Well gents... turns out this was much too much ado about nothing.

 

Bolstered by Paul's rooftop AC comments, I used a small 3" plastic pry bar tool and carefully worked my way around the recovery tank cover without difficulty or damage.  I bought this car in 2000 from the original owner with 16K on the odometer.  It now has a little over 30K miles and I know this recovery tank cover has not been off since I've owned the car.  I find the material, whatever it is, is the right stuff for this application as I find no deterioration or brittleness in the cover or in the sealing areas around the perimeter.

 

So I'm happy to report my recovery tank cleaned up nicely, the cooling system is flushed & refilled and all is well.

ZT