topping up water levels help

[Cityman]

can someone please confirm what steps to take to top up water levels, i was told a way to do it to make sure you get rid of any air bubbles etc but forgot. can someone help ? i nipped out earlier and noticed a couple of spurts of steam coming out of one of the holes on the bonet (drivers side) not sure if this means water levels are low or if anyone can help with that one.

thanks

[nordin450]

Cityman said:

can someone please confirm what steps to take to top up water levels, i was told a way to do it to make sure you get rid of any air bubbles etc but forgot. can someone help ? i nipped out earlier and noticed a couple of spurts of steam coming out of one of the holes on the bonet (drivers side) not sure if this means water levels are low or if anyone can help with that one.

thanks

How much water have you got in the expansion tank? Have seen recommendations for between 1/3 and 2/3 full when car is cold... If you got more then that it could be that the system was trying to get rid of the extras.

How to bleed the system, don't remember all steps on stop on my head, but it's something to do with undoing the screw on the radiator.. There's a guide in the handbook and also in the Bible.. If the search function worked for this forum I'm sure you'd find a thread within seconds describing the steps.

[Cityman]

Please help folks.....The sun is shining and dont wanna gamble on driving it until I have checked this

thanks

[CaptiV8ed]

Cityman,

I would strongly recommend that you find the leak before topping it up. Which engine do you have? Serp or Pre serp? There is a difference in how they're topped up. There are two metal coolant pipes running alongside the bottom of the rocker cover. One of these goes over the top to front / right side of the inlet manifold and the other goes down by the steering rack. Check for splits and loose jubilee clips in these areas. There's not much point topping up until it's water tight.

[benventura]

Hiya,

I had similar problems - trouble is when everything is hot it can be very tricky spotting leaks. I solved mine using a cold pressure test - you can get a cunning little gadget from Steve Heath Engineering that screws into the top of the swirl pot and couples up to a bog standard tyre foot pump. Mine was a knackered hose from the water pump that only leaked under pressure.

All best,
Neville