My hoses don't get so hot with a 180 thermostat that I can't hold on to them, but if you are running a 195, maybe yours will get uncomfortably hot.

If you can, do the tests with both cars at the same time. If the '93 has a good heater you should be able to feel a difference in the relative temperatures of the hoses. If both hoses are not hot in the '97 under condition A, then the heater core is probably plugged up.

Maybe there is a difference between the Series I and the Series II that I am missing, but whether the problem is airflow or coolant flow, the hoses should not feel the same in a car whose heater is not working as the hoses in a car with a good heater under conditions A and B.