headgasket??

[bal]

Im no mechanic but i think the headgasket is gone.

My temp gauge has gone from being in the middle to near the red markings!!

I have put the fan on full heat and there's no hot air coming out.

I used steel seal but that has made no difference.

I took the expansion cap off and the water is rising out and bubbling a little.

I looked at the exhaust and theres drips of water coming out.

Im confused because i never lost any coolant or oil so could i be wrong?

 

[quest63]

I think your jumping the gun a bit with your diagnosis.Have you done any work on the water system lately or is it a new car for you? A little condensation out of the exhaust is normal.A lot of white smoke out of the exhaust might indicate a headgasket problem as would a white grey yoghurty substance in the oil cap.

Possibilities are thermostat not opening
Low water level / possible leak
Airlock
very loose / slipping auxilliary belt
Water pump impellers broke
Blocked radiator

I would start by topping up the water to the correct level and running it at idle with the cap off the water tank for 15/20 mins gently squeezing the pipes to encourage any air out.Check that all the pipes get hot and that all areas of the radiator get hot.

 

[bal]

Im not sure but i called two mechanics and they reckoned its blown the headgasket from the diagnosis ive told them on the phone.

I topped up the water with anti freeze and ran the car for 15 mins with the cap off...The top hose from the radiator was "hot" but the one from the bottom was "cold" The water did rise and start to pour out the system after warming up.

What ive just noticed this morning is lots of water in the drivers footwell...is that the heater matrix??

 

[quest63]

Diagnosis over the phone from someone with a vested interest in saying its a head gasket problem particularly if you may have mentioned it yourself doent mean much.The same could be said for diagnoses over the internet but theres no one here after your dosh.(well not many lol)

I dont know why the water would rise up out of the water bottle unless you filled it up to much, or squeezed too hard and I'm wondering if the water in the footwell is just water that bubbled out of the water bottle and got on the panel under the screen and into the car.

Did the temperature get up to half way on the guage? I would try again but try and give it longer and make sure its up to half on the guage,If / when the thermostat opens that bottom pipe will get hot if it isnt getting hot my guess would be the thermostsat isnt opening

 

[bal]

my temp gauge has not dropped...its just reading over half.

Ive just had the car running for 15 minutes...the pipes going to the hcv were hot...the pipe from the engine block to the radiator was hot but the radiator was cold and the bottom pipe was cold as i mentioned before??

The water is over maximum so that could be why its rising and pouring out when its running...The water in the drivers footwell was there before i started doing any tests.

 

[scbond]

Sounds like a blockage in the radiator...the radiator wouldn't be cold if it was a blown head gasket.

 

[bal]

yeh it must be the radiator...the pipe coming from the hcv to the thermostat is hot...the only pipe which is cold is the bottom pipe on the radiator which goes to the thermostat and also the pipe from the expansion tank to the radiator is cold...lets hope a new radiator fixes it...ive just noticed my fan isnt working either now.

 

[YOG]

I have put the fan on full heat and there's no hot air coming out.
..the pipe coming from the hcv to the thermostat is hot...
...ive just noticed my fan isnt working either now.

I would be checking the HCV is working correctly as well. Sounds like it's stuck in the cold position.
Which fan has stopped working, heater or engine?

 

[bal]

the engine fan has stopped working?? the blowers inside the car work but no hot air...its just cold!

 

[jonr]

Sounds very similar to whats been going on with mine.Does the temp drop if revved to about 4 then blow hot air?

 

[bal]

Ive not tried that and will probably leave the car on the driveway until i get a radiator.

 

[jonr]

Good luck with it and try not to get an air lock RE Quests advice.

 

[ScubaSteve]

Sounds like a blockage in the radiator...the radiator wouldn't be cold if it was a blown head gasket.

it would if the blown hg was pressuring the system causing an air lock

 

[quest63]

Just a couple of points the water in the footwell could be totally unrelated and could just be a leak on the top panel, its certainly been raining plenty lately.

iirc theres a way to induce the engine fan to come on to see if its working,I think you have to disconnect a temp sensor but I'm not sure

Good luck with it

 

[oilburner]

Try bridging the fan switch with a piece of wire if it comes on you need a new switch

 

[Daveyca55]

If the bottom rad hose is cold, its prob just the thermostat not opening. Only a few quid so worth changing. Simple test to see if it works would be to put it in some hot but not boiling water and see if it opens. If not, its donald ducked

 

[bal]

i changed the thermostat and jobs a gooden...all the pipes are hot but i still have cold heating so i ordered another heater control valve...BUT i drove it today and the temp gauge started going up and felt like it was gonna cut out so i stopped and let the car cool down...when i opened the bonnet there was like an explosion in the expansion tank...i could hear hissing and water shot up in there...Im out of ideas??

 

[ScubaSteve]

Could be an airlock did you let the system self bleed? Run the car with the lid off the tank until it gets hot, if the water keeps boiling over does sound like hg

 

[bal]

yeh i did let the system self bleed...but its still rising...still no white smoke or yoguarty stuff on oil cap though!

 

[quest63]

Since an air lock or a new dodgy thermostat seem unlikely now, I'm guessing theres still a possibility that its a problem with your water pump.Apparently you can put your fingers in the hole when you do the thermostat and feel if the impellers are broken. Or you could take it somehwhere to do a test on the water to see if its got any Co2 or hydrocarbons or whatever it is they test for in it.