|
more likely to be he heater matrix leaking hence smell when heater on and loss of coolant , Regards TB ps it will look dry due to the heat in the matrix vaporizeing it
Edited by topbloke on 07/02/2010 at 20:28
|
Indeed I am pretty sure thats what the smell is. I am still concerned about the steam/mayo/water coming out the exhaust though. My back is 6 months old and is orange coloured, however I do lots and lots of small journeys so it is quite hard to say.
Is their a quick kit I can buy to test the coolant to see if it has any oil in it and to test the exhaust water to see what is coming out?
My MOT is due soon and I know it needs the tracking and a new tyre (down to 2mm) before any of the hidden extras.
|
|
|
|
|
Water dripping out of the exhaust is condensation which is normal in cold weather and the mayo build up is a common problem in cars that do a lot of short journeys, but a cooling system that needs regular topping up isn't normal, it is either leaking out somewhere or it could be HGF. There are several different symptoms of HGF and you can have 1 or several of them, in your case it could be a waterway leaking coolant into one of the cylinders and the water getting burnt off, or one of the cylinders might be pressurising the cooling system causing it to blow coolant out of the overflow.
|
Somebody on the Corsa picked up that I haven't used any oil in 3000 miles on an engine which normally burns oil, they reckon it could be because the oil is being mixed with water which would explain the tappety sound.
The MOT is due and other silly things need sorting, the rear shoes will need replacing before long too.
I am aware that water is normal but even after the other day it was about 10c outside, I did a 35 minute (8 mile city traffic) journey the temp guage was on a quarter so the engine was warm but still a lot of steam and there wasn't from any other cars, I did get concerned then but thought its just condensation, today when I noticed its lost 1cm (in the header) of coolent in 100 miles I realised it wasn't right.
Actually I think last time I put coolent in it was slightly above max, today it was 1cm below so thats a fair bit of liquid. If all that had gone out the heater matrix there would be a might puddle behind my dashboard :(
|
I still reckon that the first thing you should do is take it for the sniff (sorry, i don't know the proper name for it !) test, this will confirm or discount HGF as that would probably be the most serious problem, then take it form there.
Once you have got it sorted i really would recommend that at least once a week you give the car a good 30 mile round trip on a motorway or dual carriageway at 60/70mph as this will get everything good and hot. I understand that living in a city doesn't always make this easy, but it would be worth the effort if you can do it.
|
How do I do the stiff test? I tried sniffing the exhaust gases but couldn't really smell anything but then my sense of smell is pretty useless these days.
I've got a bit of money saved up so if it is anything serious because of everything else that needs doing if it is that I might go mad and treat myself to an xx10 reg :) thats if I can credit, if not I will have no choice but to get a new engine or get this fixed.
Hopefully it is nothing more than condensation and a leaky matrix though.
|
|
Any garage will have the kit to do this test, basically they fill a glass tube thing with a blue liquid and hold it over the open expansion tank with the engine running and the solution will turn yellow if it detects unburnt exhaust gasses in the cooling system which is caused by HGF. Sorry Rattle that is a bit of a carp description of the test, but it is roughly what happens.
|
leaking battery smell when heater is on
Ratters, does it only happen on one fan speed (possibly the highest?) or does it come through regardless of fan switch position? Not sure of the exact location on teh Corsa but on my Escort the heater fan motor lives directly beneath the windscreen wipers and the wiring connections get dripped on. In this frosty weather they are wet virtually all the time and have started to corrode / make a poor circuit / overheat and melt the insulation a little. I get an "electronics-burning" smell (you must know that one in your line of work!!) on fan speed 1 but not on the others, so - I don't use speed 1 ;-)
|
I know the smell you mean, its not like that at all, its a sort of acid smell. I don't know if you've ever smelt a leaking alkaline battery but it smells just like that.
The smell gets worse the hoter is the heat is, but it only smells when the coolent is coming through, if I set it fan speed four but the temperature is set to cold it dosn't smell. It is why I suspect the smell is coolent.
The more I think about it it probably is a matrix leak and the reason its not wet is because it is evapourating. I will get the HG check done though to be sure.
|
OK. If the matrix is leaking then your windows will mist up with a horrible greasy kind of condensation that is really difficult to completely shift. When you're driving into strong sunlight you'll see all sorts of smears no matter how hard you tried to clean it.
Assuming the car isn't smoked in, try wiping the inside of the windows with some clean white cloth or kitchen roll and see how dirty the resulting residue is - if it's pretty grim then there's a fair chance it's coolant.
You're not having much luck with it are you? Look on the bright side, you could be in my shoes (between jobs, on benefit, completely run out of surplus cash, planning every car journey meticulously so as not to waste a penny's worth of petrol, praying for a lack of problems, wondering how on earth to afford next month's MoT test)!
|
It has been a bad year luck wise but work wise I have been very busy so I am thinking if it is anything serious I might see if I can get a loan for a scrappage car.
My parents have been in your situation a lot fo times, its the usual trap of needing the car and having to spend a fortune to get the car road worthy. No car no wages, get the car fix no mortgage money.
I haven't really noticed any problems of misting up I had a problem for a month or so ago but it turned out it was because I was getting in my car with a soaking wet coat so thats why the windows missed up, hadn't had a problem since.
Dave good luck finding a new job :) and I know from my parents problems over the past 15 years that no matter how bad things are financialy things do always work out in the end.
|
Thanks :-)
I'm a month into a full-time college course to retrain in a completely different area, I also have an ongoing problem with child access through no fault of my own. I need to be in a position to qualify for legal aid at the moment, at least until the family court route is exhausted. I'm finding it all very strange as I've paid my dues for the last 20 years and have never been able to identify with those in whose position I now find myself. I should be armed with a useful qualification 12 months from now though, whatever else happens from here the only way is, it seems, up.
Have you had the Corsa a year yet then? If so I wouldn't hesitate to scrappage it if I were you, as many people on here have suggested. Surely the repayments would total less than your current R&M budget, and of course you'd have a car where every single part of it is new, reliable and not on the verge of failure.
Edited by Dave_TD {P} on 07/02/2010 at 23:21
|
Must be very difficult doing that at a later stage of life so respect for that :).
I've had it almost a year well just over 10 months but the scrap-page has been extended so I will be within three days of the limit of when I can PX it.
There are other offers too though I could consider. I know VX were selling the pre 2010 face lift Corsas for £6k pre reg. There is the Panda if I can qualify for scrappage.
I use my car in the city so any small petrol thing will be fine. That said I don't mind driving a ten year old car either, I just don't want to end up in a stage where I can buy a new car for what this is costing me.
|
Just had it confirmed, the head gasket has gone. I am going to the dealers after my jobs to sort out buying a scrappage car, I want to see if its an option e.g getting cheap credit if not then I will have to get my Corsa fixed.
Going to buy some block seal which I hope will be enough for a good temp fix to get it through the MOT, then I can decide what to do with it.
I suspect what is causing it is the timing is slightly out causing it to pink unless I get the gear change right. Really the entire top block probably needs rebuilding buit it will cost £100's its just not worth it.
In the mean time I have got my dads Fiesta up and running so I have transport.
|
to sort out buying a scrappage car
Hurrah, can you imagine the blizzard of responses you're going to get when you post that in Discussion? ;-)
block seal
Fingers crossed on that, I take it the MoT needs renewing before the earliest date the Corsa is eligible for scrappage? If so that's a shame, as assuming it's definitely going for scrap, you shouldn't spend another penny on the thing unless you absolutely have to. If block seal doesn't work, you could do worse than take it to a ropey little back street garage for a cheap HG change - after all you're only interesting in getting that bit of paper, not whether the engine lasts even one minute after you've driven it to the new car dealer.
|
This was a ropey little back street garage he was very honest and just told me because the amount of labour its not worth messing with the engine. I have thoguht something wasn't right for a while because my MPG had gone down it was only yesterday I checked the coolent again and realised I much I lost I suddenly realised all that water coming out the back may actually be coolent.
I am self employed and the only acconts I have are for Inland Revenue so I am not sure how easy it will be for me to get credit. On the way back from the garage which sells blockseal I shall pop into a FIAT dealer and see if I can get creidt and see if the logistic works, it could well be another alternative such as a pre reg car which means I can bypass the scrappage scheme.
Even with block seal its now going to take me half a day at my grandmas garage to do it as I need to drain the entire system. So it will cost me money in terms of not being able to work.
Edited by Rattle on 08/02/2010 at 13:43
|
Rattle: pouring sticky gunk into the coolant may or may not provide short-term relief but may well do more harm than good by blocking up small passages that shouldn't be blocked up.
Replacement of the head gasket shouldn't require a cylinder head rebuild or anything of the sort. But a proper repair is indicated. Gunk in the coolant is bad. And your description of the nasty stuff in your header tank could indicate someone has tried it already.
I am sorry this has happened to you Rattolo. Might be worth getting a second opinion on what's wrong and what to do about it. Anyway you will be giving your father's car a bit of exercise while yours is off the road.
|
The reason cylinder head is needed is I suspect the timing is out which may have contributed to this HG failure because of the pinking. It will cost £100's either way and a new engine can be bought very cheaply. I will try this block seal as a cheap way of getting the car through the MOT then I decide. I will make another thread on this because anything else is off topic.
I have just got to the point where I want to cut my losses and yes I have use my dads car but need to sort out insurance so I can use it for business use.
|
The reason cylinder head is needed is I suspect the timing is out
Total logical non-sequitur Rattle. You don't need a cylinder head rebuild. And by putting sticky stuff in the coolant you aren't cutting your losses but increasing them.
|
The reason cylinder head is needed is I suspect the timing is out which may have contributed to this HG failure because of the pinking.
As suggested already, your logic here is beyond us, as is your comment earlier that ½ a day is needed to drain the cooling system just to pour in some Radweld or K-Seal. These products don't require the cooling system to be completely drained.
Edited by Victorbox on 09/02/2010 at 15:41
|
The stuff I got said it needs to be completly drained, its called blockseal I bought it from this back street engine repair specialists which I found ironic.
I am not going to put that stuff in my car until I am 100% sure that I am getting rid of it, if I am then there isn't really anything to loose. What is putting me off the repair is knowing what damage might be found when the head is removed, e.g if it needs new valves.
|
|
|
