My 2000 RL with 264000 Kms ( 164000 miles ) is still wearing the original top and bottom rad hoses. For hoses with 24 years of service they look and feel (still pliable, not mushy nor hard) in good condition. I have a set of spare hoses ( Dayco brand ) bought some 5 years ago but these OEM units seems like a waste to replace. Any members out there with the same or close to the same life span with their rad hoses. Are my hoses living on borrowed time ?

 

It should be OK. Might do it as preventative maintenance though. Have an 04' and just did the radiator with the hoses about a year ago. They were still good. They were probably made around 99-01. Most of the parts with date codes I have found were in the 98-00 range. I'd do it with some OEM hoses though. Believe they are still available.

 

@1186KA9 Much thanks for the infor. Checked that spare set of rad hoses and they are from Gates ( not Dayco as per my 1st post ) bought from RockAuto. Better quality than Dayco, I think ( but stand corrected if not be the case ). As per your suggestion, I'll change them hoses as a PM come this summer. One thing less to worry about on a 24 year old vehicle. Nowadays, 1st Gen RL's are about as rare as hen's teeth up here in Canada, no doubt all thanks to winter salt and subsequent rust.
Did you change out the heater hoses same time when you did the rad's ?
I've only had a heater hose went bust on me back in the days when one has to change points/condenser and plugs once a year as a PM. Thats the only time I replaced a heater hose. My 00'RL is the longest and oldest ( time-wise ) in car ownership for me, hence I'm in uncharted waters as far as what consumable parts should be replaced before a breakdown occurs.
I had followed religiously all fluid ( engine oil, power steering, brake fluid, differential and tranny ) changeout intervals. Except for no AC ( compressor crapped out 2 years ago ), car drives like a dream.

 

Nope. All other hoses except the bank 1 PCV hose are OG to the car. These things aren't too bad with rust. They were really rare in Canada to begin with even back in the 00s. Pretty much all of the rubber on this car is holding real strong. Still soft and pliable. Door seal is causing a whooshing noise due to pure mechanical wear.