Bypass Heater Matrix

[ant192]

I'm hoping for some help/advice to get the galaxy back on the road - If there is anyone on here that has done this please let me know your experiences.

 

So, for background, a bit of steam and loss of coolant from an unseen area right down at the back of the engine prompted me to take the gal (mk2 v6) to the garage for a bit of investigation. According to the garage i have a leak in my heater matrix which is likely to set me back 600 as they need to take the dash out to reach it.

 

600 is simply not an option for me at the moment and by the looks of some of the posts neither is doing i myself. I've taken the car home and what i think i'd like to do is bypass the heater matrix for the time being and get the matrix replaced when i can afford to.

 

By taking out the tray below the wipers i can see 2 hoses running vertically at the back of the engine bay, are these the two that run up (or down?) into the heater matrix? I would assume that i just need to introduce a u bend into the system at this point - any thoughts on plastic/copper/rubber and how to secure the new section of pipe? Also does anyone know the diameter of this bit of pipe.

 

Thanks as always