Discussion
i,ve recently purchased a 400 chimaera and only done 460 miles but have put in approx 5 litres of water as i was advised the car had been recently serviced and i may need to top up levels. with engine running if you remove pressure cap to header tank it bubbles inside and pressures up and pushes water out.have dropped car into rt racing for them to evaluate it, but wondered if anyone else has encountered similar problems?
Might be best to read this thread.
http://www.pistonheads.com/xforums/topic.asp?h=0&a...
I used the method described by 450nick at the bottom of the first page. It worked very well, and as I stated in the thread, was better that the basic TVR method in the owners manual.
Sorry if I am repeating anything that is already well known to you, but it has been known to confuse people;
Keep in mind when reading the above thread; there are (at least) two major variations on the system.
Earlier systems have a pressure cap on the swirl/header tank/pot. (for absolute clarity that is the tank mounted on the front left of the engine).
Later systems had the pressure cap on the overflow tank that is mounted on the inside of the right wing (usually, but also may be on the front chassis rail, though that is more common to the early systems) and a brass screw / plug in the swirl pot.
Correct filling is the key to it all, assuming you don't have leaks, and from your description you are not doing it 'quite right'.
Finally, don't be surprised if someone else's system is completely different to the two I have described
Good luck
http://www.pistonheads.com/xforums/topic.asp?h=0&a...
I used the method described by 450nick at the bottom of the first page. It worked very well, and as I stated in the thread, was better that the basic TVR method in the owners manual.
Sorry if I am repeating anything that is already well known to you, but it has been known to confuse people;
Keep in mind when reading the above thread; there are (at least) two major variations on the system.
Earlier systems have a pressure cap on the swirl/header tank/pot. (for absolute clarity that is the tank mounted on the front left of the engine).
Later systems had the pressure cap on the overflow tank that is mounted on the inside of the right wing (usually, but also may be on the front chassis rail, though that is more common to the early systems) and a brass screw / plug in the swirl pot.
Correct filling is the key to it all, assuming you don't have leaks, and from your description you are not doing it 'quite right'.
Finally, don't be surprised if someone else's system is completely different to the two I have described
Good luck
Where are you adding the water exactly ? If it has the swirl pot with the big brass screw in the top thats where you need to check the level. It should be right up to the top with no air gap. This is on my 97 450 , earlier cars have a defferent arrangement I believe.
If you are checking it at the expansion tank (if you have one) then you may well be overfilling it which will result in it spitting out water.
If you are checking it at the expansion tank (if you have one) then you may well be overfilling it which will result in it spitting out water.
WedgieDom said:
i,m filling it in the expansion tank is this correct?
my expansion tank has a blue screw on cap and the swirl pot has a brass screw.i am topping up in expansion tank with engine off , is this correct?
No. You must fill from the swirl pot/tank mounted on the engine.my expansion tank has a blue screw on cap and the swirl pot has a brass screw.i am topping up in expansion tank with engine off , is this correct?
Take the brass screw out, and fill through that ridiculously small opening.
A lot of other cars can be filled from the expansion tank, but not a Chimaera/Griffith.
Read the thread I linked to above
Once you are happy you have all the air out of the system you can monitor the level from the expansion tank, but as previously said, if you are trying to rid the system of air then do so via the swirl pot.
If you have successfully bled the system and are finding the water still needs replacing then in my eyes you have 2 possibilities:-
1. If you are brimming the expansion tank the system will spit some out naturally till it finds it's level (most people's cars seems to like about 2 inches in the expansion tank).
OR
2. You have a leak in the system. Check all the hoses and hose connection points for wet (with engine off and running). A more likely point is the rad. Look under the front of the car at the 2 drainage holes in the body and see if there is any wettness. My rad was leaking very slowly and was difficult to find, in the end it was leaking inside the metal rad casing and was not visible to the naked eye. If you think there is a leak then get it sorted, dont ignore it. A rad recore is not expansive (£180ish) and is a DIY job.
Whilst your looking the rad over you may as well look through the front of the car and have a little poke around the rad fillaments, I was quite supprised at how they can break down and corrode over time.
If you have successfully bled the system and are finding the water still needs replacing then in my eyes you have 2 possibilities:-
1. If you are brimming the expansion tank the system will spit some out naturally till it finds it's level (most people's cars seems to like about 2 inches in the expansion tank).
OR
2. You have a leak in the system. Check all the hoses and hose connection points for wet (with engine off and running). A more likely point is the rad. Look under the front of the car at the 2 drainage holes in the body and see if there is any wettness. My rad was leaking very slowly and was difficult to find, in the end it was leaking inside the metal rad casing and was not visible to the naked eye. If you think there is a leak then get it sorted, dont ignore it. A rad recore is not expansive (£180ish) and is a DIY job.
Whilst your looking the rad over you may as well look through the front of the car and have a little poke around the rad fillaments, I was quite supprised at how they can break down and corrode over time.
When I read threads that say 'using/losing water' followed by the line 'I'm a new owner' nine times out of ten I'm sure its because you're overfilling the car. It will continually dump water if you keep topping up beyond what is the system's natural level and as mentioned above nearly all cars are different.
My car runs perfectly happily (and has done for 5 years) with just about 1 inch in the bottom of the expansion tank, others however find that the tank runs 1/4, half or even 3/4 full!!
As long as you're happy that the system is free from airbubbles resist the temptation to fill the tank and just keep an eye on both the temp guage (not always the most accurate but a good indicator of what's normal) and the level just before a run (when it's all cool) and as long as the temp stays finme and the level stays at a constant level then that's where your car is happy.
My car runs perfectly happily (and has done for 5 years) with just about 1 inch in the bottom of the expansion tank, others however find that the tank runs 1/4, half or even 3/4 full!!
As long as you're happy that the system is free from airbubbles resist the temptation to fill the tank and just keep an eye on both the temp guage (not always the most accurate but a good indicator of what's normal) and the level just before a run (when it's all cool) and as long as the temp stays finme and the level stays at a constant level then that's where your car is happy.
I made up a quick and dirty pressure tester recently. I used a pressure cap from a scrapper Golf, took out the springs and diaphragms so all that was left was the blue plastic moulding. Drill a hole in the top and silicone in a plumbing fitting to take a piece of garden hose. When it's all dry fit it to your COLD engine in place of the cap on either swirl pot or expansion tank as applicable. Use a foot pump or compressor to apply about 1.2 bar (16 psi) of air pressure and go leak hunting. Don't exceed this pressure or you'll potentially cause damage.
I found a slightly weeping bottom hose, enough to cause a 1 litre / 50 mile coolant loss.
I found a slightly weeping bottom hose, enough to cause a 1 litre / 50 mile coolant loss.
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