Several months ago I replaced all of the rubber coolant/heater hoses on my
1999 Town & Country Limited Minivan. Other than a few being a royal PITA, I
thought it went fairly uneventfully. A day later, I noticed a small drip on
my garage floor located just in front of the rear passenger side wheel. I
suspect this is the rear heater core, and sure enough when I checked the
hose was lightly damp, so I tightened the hose clamp a bit more, but the
leak did not stop. The leak is fairly minor and I have been able to add
about 8 oz of 50/50 mix every month to maintain the proper level on the
coolant recovery tank.

I now suspect that I could have possibly damaged the inlet tube fitting
going into the core since I recall that I was surprised to see that the
inlet tube actually pivoted in the horizontal plane when I replaced that
short rubber connector hose.

Has anyone replaced this hose or the rear heater core before and if so, can
you confirm that the inlet tubes to the rear heater core are supposed to be
soldered in place/stationary? Given the situation, will I need to replace
the core and if so, how difficult is this job, or can I apply a
simpler/cheaper fix (JB Weld, Epoxy, or have the inlet tube re-soldered)?

Lastly, I've always used the standard green ethylene glycol (Prestone or
Peak 2-year change interval) mix in this vehicle. Can I use Zerex G-5
(5-year change interval) coolant in this vehicle like I do in my newer
Chryslers? Doing so would allow me to avoid doing the time consuming flush
and fill during the remaining expected ownership of this vehicle.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

Bob