Classic losing water

[madjock007]

Hi

I have a 19913.9 Vogue Sei Classic with 157,000miles on the clock. It runs fine, starts 1st time etc, but looses the contentse of the expansion bottle every 100miles. If you get the engine hot and then stop and pop the bonnet and put your head near the expansion bottle lid you can hear a quiet hissing, and sometimes a small amount of water near by...I mean VERY small. I have changed the top but no improvement. There is no oil in the water, or vice versa, but occassionally there is a VERY faint petrol smell in the water. It passed an emissions test ok, but there is still a smell of petrol on the exhaust if you just sittle there idling. This dissapears if you go off in it, but after you get back and have been sitting with the engine running it seems to re-appear after a few mins.

The heater does work, but it takes ages to get warm, and the top hose whilst being firm is not rock hard once the vehicle has been off for a 20mile run etc. I checked the radiator and it warms up evenly all over so have assumed it is okay. Any ideas...and preferably cheap solutions! Just spent £700 on getting it through an mot.

Help!

Many thanks

Matt

 

[discomike]

Matt,
You need to have soeone do a pressure test of the coolant system, this will tell you exactly what is wrong. If this is done and you loose pressure with none showing up on the ground, there is a good possibility that you may have a head gasket blown.
Good luck and let us know.
Mike J.

 

[mad gagsy]

HI MIKE

YOUR PROBLEM SEEMS TO BE A MIRROR IMage OF A PROBLEM THAT I EXPERIENCED. AS I CHECKED EVERYTHING AS WAS ALL BUT READY TO CHANGE HEAD GASKETS, I DESIDED TO TAKE IT TO A RAD SPECIALIST IN SWANSEA WHICH ASSURED ME THAT IT WAS THE RADIATOR CORE WAS PARTLY BLOCKED. HE ALSO POINTED OUT THAT SOME CLAISIC RANGE ROVERS RADS WAS MADE UP OF MONTEGO VIENS IF THE FACTORY WAS SHORT. HE HAD COME ACROSS MANY OF THESE RADS IN HIS TIME. HE FITTED A HIGH CAPACITY MEGA FLOW CORE TO MY RAD AND IT HAS BEEN ABSOLUTLY FULL STEAM AHEAD. I HAD REMOVED THE FAN AND FITTED TWO ELECTRIC FANS FROM A SCRAPED ROVER 820 SINCE THE NEW CORE I HAVE NOT HAD TO SWITCH THESE FANS ON. PERHAPS YOU LOOK MORE CLOSELY AT YOUR RAD. HOPE YOU DO SOLVE YOUR PROBLEM SOON WHAT EVER HAPPENS GOOD LUCK

GARETH

 

[Moose]

Gareth:

Good advice but in the future watch the caps lock button....unless you meant to yell at Matt

 

[Jsbholden]

Hi,

Was this problem sorted? I have the very same problem with my 92 3.9 RRC. Its loosing about an inch of water from the tank every 200 miles. No oil water mix or steam from exhaust. New rad fitted just over a year ago.