Ok I have read numerous things about the advantages about silicone ruber hose. If silicone rubber is so great, why don't we just use it to replace all conventional rubber engine hoses? for example rear main seal, front seal, coolant seals, coolant hoses, oil pan gasket etc. I know that there are certain silicones that are NOT designed for oil or fuel use, but then again I have seen some silicone rubber hoses that ARE designed for such conditions, what do you guys think?

http://www.tweakit.net/shop/product_...tm_medium=feed

 

Silicone is not the ultimate material. If it didn't come in pretty colors I think it would be a lot less popular with the tuner crowd. There are better elastomers out there.

You could replace all of your fuel, coolant and vacuum hose with some version containing silicone.

But for the fuel line it's not necessary, and if you're really serious braided line with mechanical fittings is superior. For the coolant hoses you can't get more than the radiator hoses in a proper form, so that idea also has issues.

As for those internal engine seals, whether a silicone version will work depends on what you're sealing and how the joint was designed by Mazda.

Dave

 

Forget about silicone hoses unless you simply like the LOOKS of it. Frankly, the original rubber hoses are about as good as it gets, unless of course you go with VITON hoses...like I did.

 

There are a number of hoses under the hood of the FD, all up to different tasks. There is really no hose that works with every application.

My recommendations -

Fuel line - Mazda OEM. With the fuel recall, they updated the hoses to a high temp, high quality fuel line that is VERY rugged. It's the only way to go. They're also metric sized for a VERY tight and leak-free fit.

Coolant hose - again, Mazda OEM. Mazda updated all the coolant lines in the car with higher temp ranger and better quality hose. If you get one of the newer hoses, it should last the life of the car. There are silicone radiator hoses, but IMHO they're a ripoff. The Mazda hoses work great, and you can't really even SEE the radiator hoses, so the flashy colors don't do anything for you. For the cost of just silicone hoses you can get a kit with ALL the coolant hoses in the car.

Vacuum hose - I prefer high-quality silicone here. Many go with Viton, but IMHO the extra expense of the Viton hose isn't worth it. I only use Hose Techniques hose, 3.5mm and 6mm, and I have been using it for 10+ years with NO failures or problems. The cheap hose is what gave many people problems - kinking, degrading in oil, etc. I run black silicone hose - it always looks clean, and fits super tight, and is good for many removals/reinstallations.

PCV hose - this is a good spot for Viton hose. Even the best silicone will degrade over time with repeated exposure to oil. I bought a few feet of Viton for the PCV hoses from the oil neck, works just fine.

Dale

 

Ok I see. Ya your right for coolant hoses, silicone would last longer, but the hoses are VERY expensive and I would know cause I bought some. Im more concerned about vaccum hoses than anything else. It's good to hear about the "hose techniques" hose, because these are the vaccum hoses I bought too.