Hi, currently working on my girlfriends 1998 pontiac bonneville SE, 3.8L. She had a very severe coolant leak, where it was just pissing out and so we replaced the waterpump, and it was still leaking...had the car pulled apart last night, came up with the conclusion that it is likely the plastic elbow that runs from the tensioner pulley assembly to the ITM.. I am trying to find this part online at a parts store and can't seem to figure out what it would be called... Can someone help me please? Also..how do I get it off? I am thinking I would have to take the four bolts out the tens. pulley and remove that first and then pull the elbow out of the ITM?

Welcome to GM Forum! If you're not shy, go introduce yourself in "Introductions for new members."

These hoses go by many names, most of them with "elbow" in the name. They can be found under the Help! brand of cheap little things at most auto stores. (If you replace the belt tensioner, you'll get one in the box with that.)

You are correct; the easiest way to do it is to separate the entire tensioner from the block.

Thank you SO much, you have no idea how stressed out her f'ing car is making me haha, will introduce me later when I have more time.

Dorman part number 47065 is what you need. That is the package with both elbows. You'll need the one elbow with both ends the same size and the o-ring off the big end of the other elbow for your year.

Also, the coolant elbows typically don't break. What usually happens is the O-ring deteriorates. When you install it, standard O-ring safety procedures apply (put some fresh oil on the rings, clean out the holes well, and insert smoothly with even pressure).

I was nervous about how long it would take to get a reply, because this thread seemed kind of dead, but you guys have been so helpful, thank you very much. That part number really helps...as far as the plastic elbow..I don't think that was damaged but using plyers to try and yank it out might have compromised the condition of it, hahaha...so I am just going to pick one up...so once I get the tens. pulley assemb. loose I should be able to just pull it off the elbow, and then pull the elbow out of the ITM? Then repeat the process backwards to install the new one correct?(after of course cleaning connections to ensure a secure connection)

Colin...the o-ring doesn't damage the elbow. The groove for the o-ring makes the plastic thinner in that area. They can bend and deteriorate a bit that allows them to break when trying to remove them.

Best advice here is get all the pieces out, clean both the tensioner and LIm with steel wool. Then lube the o-rings well before putting them back in. As you tighten the tensioner wiggle the top elbow repeatedly. When it'* fully tightened down, the elbow will typically still wiggle. If the elbow has pressure on it..it'll bend over time with the engine heat and leak.

What do you mean I need the o ring of the larger end? The purple one? I am suppose to use that instead of the red o ring? Put the purple o ring on the manifold connection or the tension assembly connection?

Its pretty obvious where the o-rings go. Any mating plastic or metal parts which transfer coolant should have a groove to accept an oring. On my 96. The plastic elbow has an oring on each end. There is also a larger oring on the metal tensioner asm that plugs into the lower intake manifold to supply coolant to the heater core. This oring should probably be replaced too.

Put a little oil or vasoline on the orings so they slide in easy and don't pop off.

Also the alignment of the plastic elbow is critical. Make sure the elbow holes are concentric to the holes in the mating part. If the elbow is crooked, the orings won't seal correctly and leak coolant. This happened to me twice before i figure it out.