Coolant Pipes Epoxy Fix
Discussion
The coolant pipes are not as expensive as the water rails, but it's still £400 to replace them
The originals appear to have a manufacturing fault the reveals itself as a weak seam that eventually fails
I used epoxy resin to flow in to the pipes to seal them, and so far it's worked well
I did a similar repair about ten years ago to fix a hole and it's not leaked since so I'm optimistic that the new fix will work as well
![](https://thumbsnap.com/i/sh5R4whr.jpg)
![](https://thumbsnap.com/i/zFYohzeV.jpg)
![](https://thumbsnap.com/i/Jf1gqZx2.jpg)
![](https://thumbsnap.com/i/c6NBApKR.jpg)
The originals appear to have a manufacturing fault the reveals itself as a weak seam that eventually fails
I used epoxy resin to flow in to the pipes to seal them, and so far it's worked well
I did a similar repair about ten years ago to fix a hole and it's not leaked since so I'm optimistic that the new fix will work as well
![](https://thumbsnap.com/i/sh5R4whr.jpg)
![](https://thumbsnap.com/i/zFYohzeV.jpg)
![](https://thumbsnap.com/i/Jf1gqZx2.jpg)
![](https://thumbsnap.com/i/c6NBApKR.jpg)
Hmmm I'm not so sure about putting resin on the inside of the pipe, that could bite you in the ass after a couple of heat cycles.
My ones had corroded as per yours and I suspect many others are in the same predicament.
I can't weld for toffee on thin walled metal so I asked a local fabricator, I think it came to less than 50 quid for the ends to be cut off and new ones welded on.
![](https://forums-images.pistonheads.com/177459/20240421657526?resize=720)
My ones had corroded as per yours and I suspect many others are in the same predicament.
I can't weld for toffee on thin walled metal so I asked a local fabricator, I think it came to less than 50 quid for the ends to be cut off and new ones welded on.
Rufus Roughcut said:
Hmmm I'm not so sure about putting resin on the inside of the pipe, that could bite you in the ass after a couple of heat cycles.
That was certainly a prescient warningYesterday I parked up in the corner of Dunkirk Carrefour car park, in order to swap out the thermostat with a used spare that I carry with me
The thermostat had stuck partially open, meaning I was cold and miserable, and the fuel consumption on the way to Dover was so bad that 140 miles cost €90
Epoxy is supposed to be stable in water, and good for up to 120C continuous
However, when I took the thermostat out, although there was no debris at all, there were signs that it was gummed up
It wasn't difficult to free it up, but I fitted the spare anyway
So my advice is - Don't be cheap like me, you might end up regretting it
![](https://thumbsnap.com/i/4bq41S86.jpg)
Edited by ukkid35 on Sunday 28th April 15:29
FarmyardPants said:
The metal pipe expands and contracts more than the expoxy, breaking the bond between them, the water gets in between and then the epoxy will detach and float downstream. I have had good results with self-amalgamating tape - I did a temp bodge with that once and it lasted years.
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