recently bought an 1996 a4 sedan 2.8L v6 fwd automatic. bought it about 2 months ago, has run fine since purchase. haD about 230xxxKM on it. everything worked perfectly but today right after i parked somewhere and was about to turn the engine off the car exploded coolant everywhere! like i even got some splatter on my windscreen. the car was running completely normal up until this point and i didnt notice any overheating or anything of the sort. i turned the car off immediately and popped the hood to find that coolant had sprayed everywhere. the cause at first i thought was the left main hose(a thick black hose which circulates coolant in or out) had came off the part it connects to. at this point i thought oh the hose just probably wasn't clamped tight enough and had come off. but when i tried to reconnect the hose onto what ever it connects on to that connector actually started breaking and it seemed corroded. so the hose is fine and looks almost brand new but the part it connects to on the car is breaking. and a part of that piece i felt inside the hose. so now i'll disconnect the hose and have to flush it out because i dont want that piece circulating into my engine and ceasing it. but my main concern is what is the part thats breaking off called? and where can i find one? because that seriously needs to be replaced. i'll try and post up soime pics tommorow. any help is really appreciated.

 

Sounds like you're talking about the upper radiator hose and the radiator endtank but without pics or a more accurate part name as a reference, it's tough to offer anything.

 

Most common cause of exploding coolant in a B5 is a cracked reservoir. Pressure test the system to find out where all the leaks are.

 

thanks for your quick responses guys, really appreciate it. here's what's going on. i still don't have my car with me because i left it where it was and plan on getting it towed home, unless i don't need to. found this very excellent picture which is not from my car but will definitely help you guys understand where the problem is so you can help me. the picture is from a quattro but i don't think it should matter with a problem such as this (please correct me if i'm wrong)

http://wiki.quattroworld.com/images/...Backflush2.jpg

I'm very new to the forum so i apologize if i have done something wrong by posting a link to another site or so forth, but right now it's all I've got.
so in the picture the outlet hose (the one on the left) is the one that came off. the hose is fine the reason it came off is because the part where it connects to (the piece that both the inlet and outlet hose connect to) is corroded and breaking off. i need to know what that part is called, and if i'll be able to find a replacement easily. also should i take the risk of reconnecting everything and tightening it up and driving the car back to my place or should i just get it towed. thanks again guys.

 

You're out of luck, that's the heater core and you gotta rip apart the whole dash to get to it.

 

I would think that you could connect those two hoses together and temporarily bypass the heater core. That would at the least allow you to get home.

 

yeah that's what i've done for now. been driving it around even after i got it home. just turned the fan and heat completely off. going good. flushed the coolant and put new one in. checked for leaks. probably just gonna keep it for the summer as is. might fix the drivers side wheel bearing which makes a ghastly noise while driving and then sell it and get a quattro. thanks for all your help though guys.