Audi 80

[mcdjl]

I posted this earlier in the general gassing but have realised this would be a better place...however i can't move it so i appologise for reposting- it offends people.

My cars slowly been loosing coolant for a while- enough to be noticable and tope up every few hundred miles but recently i failed to put the cap on properly with the inevitable results. After this the coolant has been disappearing much faster- about 1l evry 60miles or so which is definitely a problem. I can't see any leaks and there doesn't appear to be any 'mayonaise' in the oil. The heaters work fine. Other possible symptoms are that the temperature guage takes a while to come on and the fans (one is belt driven from the other) turn on as soon as the engine starts. Also the engine has become lumpy/rough when idling at start but reving it even for a few seconds cures this. If it makes any difference its a 1.6 Audi 80.

Will be very grateful for any advice/suggestions as to where to look/ replace- thanks .

[darkyoung1000]

Any difficulties when starting, loss of power or steam from the back of it? How does it react when you're stuck in town traffic (or just leave it idling)? If you've noticed any/all of the first three and the answer to the next question is 'it overheats' then you could well be looking at HG failure.
Check all the hoses round the rad for leaks and the rad itself. You could change the coolant and in doing so remove the rad to check it for leaks.
Good luck,
Tom

[mcdjl]

Hi, theres no obvious loss of power (still pulls fine down the motorway) and starts fine. There is some white puffs out the back occasionally but nothing continuous. Is one on its own still a pointer to HG? The rate at which its going suggests its comparitvely very slight. I've had a look under the bonnet and found a couple of possible problem pipes and checked them but with no joy.
Cheers,
Dan