The reason you jack up the front of the van is to allow air bubbles to slither forward in the plumbing that runs under the van and to accumulate in the radiator, where you bleed them out with the bleedscrew on top of the radiator.  If the van is maintained as level, you will not be bleeding the rear heater box and could get an air bubble in the line which may not let coolant past.

Karl Wolz
    -----Original Message-----
    From: John P. Flaherty <jflaherty@PIVOT.NET>
    To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
    Date: Monday, March 01, 1999 3:27 PM
    Subject: a different way to bleed cooling system
    
    
    A little Yankee ingenuity. I haven't tried it, but is seems like it should work. If were to take a 3 foot length of radiator hose and clamp it to the expansion tank where the pressure cap goes, my fill point would then be the highest point in the van. I should, without jacking up the front end, be able to open the bleeder, fill until coolant runs out, close the bleeder and be done. I don't imagine I'm the first to think of this, so I assume there's a reason it won't work, but I can't figure out what it is. Would have tried it, but was almost done bleeding the conventional way when I thought of it. Can someone explain why it will or won't work?
     
    Thanks,
     
    John Flaherty
    '84 GL
    '74 SB

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