corsa c - losing coolant...

[cra1gy1989]

Hi 1.2 corsa sxi, loosing coolant, it is completely empty after 2 days, it is not mine it is a freinds... things I have told him to look out for :
Mayo under filler cap... and there is.
Wet passenger footwell?
Oil in the coolant tank?
Does it overheat?
Any water on the floor outside of the car?

Is there anything else to check? I'm thinking possibilities are head gasket, heater matrix, water pump, split pipe? Or leaking rad?

Any other help would be appreciated cheers

[Prof Prolapse]

Can't think of anything you haven't short listed.

Unless he's using it for short journeys all the time head gasket would be my first point of call after the mayo under the cap.

Get a sniffer test done. Either buy the kit yourself or take it to a garage.

ETA: Badly worded that... First point of call after the obvious like water leaks!

Edited by Prof Prolapse on Thursday 13th December 15:14

[Lastinclass]

There's a plastic outlet from the top of the water pump. Pound to a penny it'll be broken and leaking. Nip down the local Vauxhall dealer and get the brass replacement.(there's a choice of 2 thread sizes so take your chassis number with you) You'll need to tap out the remains of the plastic one but it'll take 10 minutes at the most.
Remember to refill it with anti freeze.

[cra1gy1989]

Cheers for the replies, I have just spoke to the guy who owns it and he said there is oil in the coolant? What does this mean? And there is Mayo on the filler cap... signs of head gasket???

[Prof Prolapse]

It means you should read what I've already told you.

[Mave]

I wouldn't worry hugely about the mayo in isolation at this time of year. Oil in coolant is more of a worry. As well as all the above, check the hoses with the engine running so see of they're under pressure.

[HustleRussell]

Mave said:

check the hoses with the engine running so see of they're under pressure.

What would that acheive?

[A9XXC]

Oil in water = head gasket or cracked head or block (on a 944 oil cooler!)

[Mave]

HustleRussell said:

Mave said:

check the hoses with the engine running so see of they're under pressure.

What would that acheive?

To see if there's a leak between cylinders and coolant system

[Winky151]

A9XXC said:

Oil in water = head gasket or cracked head or block (on a 944 oil cooler!)

Unfortunately I have to agree with the above. Water in the oil can be something minor, oil in the water IMO is CHG minimum. I haven't heard of a modern Vx suffering from cracked blocks only a Lotus Carlton (I know from experience ).

[MGJohn]

Mave said:

HustleRussell said:

Mave said:

check the hoses with the engine running so see of they're under pressure.

What would that acheive?

To see if there's a leak between cylinders and coolant system

What would that achieve is asked...

ALL liquid cooling systems need to operate at a certain pressure ABOVE atmospheric. It can only do that in a sealed leak free system. This enables the coolant to run much hotter without boiling as it would at normal atmospheric pressure only. ANY leaks in the cooling system, be it a worn Water Pump, loose or split coolant hose, cracked cylinder head or damaged cylinder head gasket will allow that pressure to escape and this leads to premature boiling.

That is what a leak free healthy cooling system ... achieves or should do.

Coolant losses lead to premature boiling and then engine overheating. Overheating stresses engine components and guess which one is damaged first ... the Cylinder Head Gasket!

[HustleRussell]

MG man. He knows much of the mechanisms of cylinder head gasket failure

FWIW 'what would that had achieved?'- possibly that cooling systems operate under pressure and that it is normal and beneficial, as MGJohn said...

[Mave]

MGJohn said:

Mave said:

HustleRussell said:

Mave said:

check the hoses with the engine running so see of they're under pressure.

What would that acheive?

To see if there's a leak between cylinders and coolant system

What would that achieve is asked...

ALL liquid cooling systems need to operate at a certain pressure ABOVE atmospheric. It can only do that in a sealed leak free system. This enables the coolant to run much hotter without boiling as it would at normal atmospheric pressure only. ANY leaks in the cooling system, be it a worn Water Pump, loose or split coolant hose, cracked cylinder head or damaged cylinder head gasket will allow that pressure to escape and this leads to premature boiling.

That is what a leak free healthy cooling system ... achieves or should do.

Coolant losses lead to premature boiling and then engine overheating. Overheating stresses engine components and guess which one is damaged first ... the Cylinder Head Gasket!

Maybe I should have been more specific; see if the hoses are under excessive pressure. It can be particularly noticeable when the engine is cold; you normally expect pressure (due to temperature) to take a few minutes to build up. If the hoses are hard right away on start up, that might indicate a CGH failure.