serious overheat
Discussion
Hi all last night before I took the car out I had it warming up in the drive for about 10 mins, then noticed steam from the bonnet, quickly looked at temp gauge which was over 100, turned car off and at that point a bang which was the small 3x1.2 hose from the rad to expansion chamber blew big time tore it apart, didnt know if the fans on rad came on, any clues as as Im away tomorrow,,,
Rgds Kenny
Rgds Kenny
100% identical thing happened to me recently. The wife got the fright of her life as the bang was so loud!
Mine was due to a hole in the radiator. Air had built up in the cooling system.
Replaced the rad and replaced all my hoses with a silicone set and all is well.
Oh also, the fans didn't come on so a new otter switch was fitted
Mine was due to a hole in the radiator. Air had built up in the cooling system.
Replaced the rad and replaced all my hoses with a silicone set and all is well.
Oh also, the fans didn't come on so a new otter switch was fitted
Probably your fans not working, you can check the fans by removing the connector from the otter switch (should be at the bottom of the swirl pot) and shorting it out , fans should come on. If they are ok then you'll need to run it up to temp and see if they come on when it gets warm, if not get a new otter switch. They are cheap and easy to replace.
When I had an overheat due to failed otter switch the expansion cap let out the excess pressure. Assuming you have an expansion tank it should have a blue cap on it. Its a VW item. If its not blue then its not the right cap and when the pressure builds it will blow a pipe instead. Also as someone else mentioned check the pipe to the expansion tank as they can get blocked.
Suggest you get a new set of silicon pipes and also a new coolant expansion tank cap, refill and bleed then start looking for the cause - probably the fans not working.
When I had an overheat due to failed otter switch the expansion cap let out the excess pressure. Assuming you have an expansion tank it should have a blue cap on it. Its a VW item. If its not blue then its not the right cap and when the pressure builds it will blow a pipe instead. Also as someone else mentioned check the pipe to the expansion tank as they can get blocked.
Suggest you get a new set of silicon pipes and also a new coolant expansion tank cap, refill and bleed then start looking for the cause - probably the fans not working.
Why do you leave your engine idling for 10 minutes?
That's not an especially good idea, IMHO. Far better to get in and drive it gently avoiding high revs for a few miles. It'll warm up much more quickly and hence will be running rich for less time.
Letting it idle is a waste of fuel, and although you probably believe you're being kind to the engine, you're not really.
Also, any passing scrote could jump in and drive off while your back is turned.
That's not an especially good idea, IMHO. Far better to get in and drive it gently avoiding high revs for a few miles. It'll warm up much more quickly and hence will be running rich for less time.
Letting it idle is a waste of fuel, and although you probably believe you're being kind to the engine, you're not really.
Also, any passing scrote could jump in and drive off while your back is turned.
Back to the original question.
As said above, the problem of overheating may well be due to fan control (otter switch) failure, as otherwise it wouldn't have got hot enough to blow that pipe. So yes, do research what caused the explosion, but check your otter switch (bottom of the swirl pot on earlier cars, passenger side bottom rear of radiator on later cars) is working.
As described above, with the ignition on but the car not running, just bypass the switch by pulling the wires back a little and bridging the exposed terminals with anything metal (Screwdriver?). If the fans come on immediately, the fan wiring is fine, but the switch might be faulty, if they don't come on, it MIGHT be faulty, but more particularly the loose wiring to the fans under the radiator might also be faulty, so check the connectors in the middle of the wires to see if they are making proper contact. You need to make sure the fans are working to be able to diagnose the faulty otter switch. When mine went I was lucky - one fan wasn't working as well, but one was.....so get both fans working on bypass before you do the next bit.
Then start the car and let it run up to 90+. If the fans come on it was a wiring fault, if they don't do the same test at the otter switch, and if the fans now come on then its the otter switch that is your problem. About £12 from a good parts indie, get one that switches on at 92 degrees and off at 85. The parts place will be able to tell you what fits - I think it is a Ford part IIRC. You will need a big socket to get the old one out if it is the radiator type (later cars). Again, I think is was something like a 27-30mm socket. I can check if you want to do the job yourself.
As said above, the problem of overheating may well be due to fan control (otter switch) failure, as otherwise it wouldn't have got hot enough to blow that pipe. So yes, do research what caused the explosion, but check your otter switch (bottom of the swirl pot on earlier cars, passenger side bottom rear of radiator on later cars) is working.
As described above, with the ignition on but the car not running, just bypass the switch by pulling the wires back a little and bridging the exposed terminals with anything metal (Screwdriver?). If the fans come on immediately, the fan wiring is fine, but the switch might be faulty, if they don't come on, it MIGHT be faulty, but more particularly the loose wiring to the fans under the radiator might also be faulty, so check the connectors in the middle of the wires to see if they are making proper contact. You need to make sure the fans are working to be able to diagnose the faulty otter switch. When mine went I was lucky - one fan wasn't working as well, but one was.....so get both fans working on bypass before you do the next bit.
Then start the car and let it run up to 90+. If the fans come on it was a wiring fault, if they don't do the same test at the otter switch, and if the fans now come on then its the otter switch that is your problem. About £12 from a good parts indie, get one that switches on at 92 degrees and off at 85. The parts place will be able to tell you what fits - I think it is a Ford part IIRC. You will need a big socket to get the old one out if it is the radiator type (later cars). Again, I think is was something like a 27-30mm socket. I can check if you want to do the job yourself.
Guys So much thanks, I am getting it what can I say.,. 1stly I didnt realise I was doing damage letting her idle all the time , 2ndly its on a gated access/garage,,, Dodsy, Phased, Qbee, Ive taken all on board and will be more carefull im still learning, all us novices need and rely on hands on experience, or we would not need switched on people like yoooooos , cheers
Kenny
Kenny
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