The original radiator hoses finally gave out on the 383 in my 58 Mercury Monterey. I called the local autoparts store and found out the lower hose is available--Gates or Carquest # 20206. The upper hose was discontinued. They did offer a flex hose as a replacement. The problem with a flex hose is they are not all that flexible. I've heard of the spout cracking away from the radiator tank due to side loading. I brought my original hose to the store and found that part of a new hose matched up. I trimmed the excess off the new hose and it fit the car pretty well. The Carquest/Gates # 22083 is a lower hose for a 94-03 Dodge 1500 Ram pick-up with a 5.2 litre.

Here is a pic:http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g39/F ... 1eb311.jpg

Excellent, thank you for the information. We did go with the Flex hose on the restoration of the Colony Park 430 because we couldn't find the other type either, and I had seen vintage photos with the flex type on there.

I put a link to a picture of the hose installed in my original post.

Wow, a flex hose in a vintage pic? Perhaps the original bent hose has been out of production for a long time.

My hoses were original. I got the 58 about 8 years ago with under 22,000 miles on it. I run the 58 in the good weather. I'd just leave the radiator cap loose. The original upper hose finally just cracked through. When changing these hoses they were practically crumbling in my hands during the removal.

What I'll do is order another hose, match up to the pieces left over from the first one I cut for fitment. This way I can give you some measurements on where to cut. I should have another tomorrow.