ummmm is that the radiaor that just went bang? yup it sure was!!

[PSYKO PHOENIX]

let me set the sceen for you

its 4:50 xmas eve, just getting the last of the sh!t sorted for xmas, goin to get some food, turn the corner to the street that the food place is on go 5 meters then pop steam p!ssin outa the car, pulled into a park poped the bonnet, the timing belt has come off (intact) and the pipe that leads out of the radiator (were the hose connects) has decided to go bang, so i had her towd her back to my place(good bye money), found a radiator (that im picking up 2morow) and will be installing as soon as i get home


2 questions, how do i put the timing belt back on (and a diagram, maby if there is one)

and

how do i install the new radiator (and what procedures will i have to do to it, eg, bleed radiator, maby the trans etc)


oh and 1 more, could this be a sign of further damage in the car? how do i tell?

i know that like everything in a commodore it will be easy and ill kick my self for not being able to figure it out, but ive never done these 2 things and i want to make sure i get it right (and im still learning stuff about cars)

(you allready know i think your all legends)

and thanks in advance for your help

hope your xmas has been better than mine lol

cheers guys

[immortality]

gotta figure out why it cooked first. maybe the serpentine belt came off and that caused it to cook as it drives the waterpump. was the battery light on before the meltdown?

[PSYKO PHOENIX]

not that i can remember, no warning ,lights were up at all (how ever i cant remember exactly)

[Scooter79]

Check that you aren't missing a pulley. I've had the belt fly off when a bearing failed. Luckily no damage done.

[Tree cutter]

As mentioned above check all the pulleys to make sure one hasn't seized and blown to bits because it could have caused the belt to come off so your engine overheated. There should be a diagram in your owners manual of where the belt runs.

[VS Omega]

I'm guessing you don't have a servicing manual - go to the local library and see if they have the gregory's, it's a service manual which will explain how to do the radiator and will also have diagrams of the belt (or you could pick one up from local automotive store though it's like $50)

Sorry to hear that your car would do this to you on christmas eve and hoping you get it all sorted mate!

[PSYKO PHOENIX]

cheers mate!! i was planing to get a hayns manual (is that the same as a gregorys??)

i wasnt planing on getting it so soon but i think i might have to beg for money to get it hahahaha

hey thanks to all for your help with this

ill let you know how i get on!!!

[alex2_s]

the Haynes covers i think VP - VS so its not very specific, the gregorys has one just for the VS

[VS_Pete_1]

I had both manuals Hayns then Gregorys.
I prefer Gregorys to Hayns.
I just didn`t like it.
I don`t know if it is just me but a couldn`t find somethings and got the ***** with it and just got a Gregorys I`m a happy chappy now.
Good luck.

[PSYKO PHOENIX]

Gregorys it is, weres the best place to get one? (im in NZ by the way)

repco, supercheap etc

[cxcxcxvcvcvc]

Legends?? You are right though i had a great uncle called Max Ellery teach me everything
I had something similar happen to me earlier this year! Had a brand spankin new radiator that i bought and put in and lasted less than 2months! Lost the receipt
but @ least i was @ a servo when she went, had a mate pick me up and went got another radiator and changed it out @ the servo!

[PSYKO PHOENIX]

ok i think ive found it,

Techbooks

is this the right one??

[Scooter79]

The Gregory's manual for the VS is very good. I have one and has been a help many many times. I also have an Ellery's manual for my wife '91 Laser and photos are poor quality of an old car with parts covered in grease and dirt so you can't see much. Still better than nothing though and has also helped a few times.

Sorry. Instead of Ellery's I should have said Haynes.

[immortality]

ok i think ive found it,

Techbooks

is this the right one??

yep, thats the one. better then the haynes one. try your local repco/appco/supercheap/auto one store. one should have it. fitting a radiator isn't that difficult. drop radiator hoses and trans cooler lines etc. remove thermo fan. then you need to remove the retaining clamp on each side of the radiator and it should pull straight up and out of the engine bay. instalation is the exact oposite. worste case i'll take a pick of the missus VS and you can see how the serpentine belt goes

[Morton]

It seems strange that no warning lights came on when the belt came off... but then I'm used to my old statesman which beeps at the hint of a breeze. Temp gets over 3/4, it beeps like a mad bitch and flashes lights all over the dash. So I should never be able to blow it up without a lot of warning

Best thing I can suggest is that you keep a keen eye trained on the temperature gauge from now on I take a look at mine as often as I check fuel.

[PSYKO PHOENIX]

yep, thats the one. better then the haynes one. try your local repco/appco/supercheap/auto one store. one should have it. fitting a radiator isn't that difficult. drop radiator hoses and trans cooler lines etc. remove thermo fan. then you need to remove the retaining clamp on each side of the radiator and it should pull straight up and out of the engine bay. instalation is the exact oposite. worste case i'll take a pick of the missus VS and you can see how the serpentine belt goes

thanks bro, that would help so much! its my first crack at doin this and i dont want to **** it up, what about after the new radiator is in and all the hoses are connected, im obviously going to have to bleed the system but what about the trans? will i have to bleed that 2?? (if so how?)

and is the radiator bleed any differant than a regular one?

ill buy that manual as soon as they have some in stock, but that wont be for a while, and its not fun having no car to drive

[PSYKO PHOENIX]

Legends?? You are right though i had a great uncle called Max Ellery teach me everything
I had something similar happen to me earlier this year! Had a brand spankin new radiator that i bought and put in and lasted less than 2months! Lost the receipt
but @ least i was @ a servo when she went, had a mate pick me up and went got another radiator and changed it out @ the servo!

i drove the car for about 1 min after it blew, to get itg into a park, steering gets real heavy with no timing belt lol

could it have overheated and cookded the engine in thet 1min?

lucky you, having great uncle Max Ellery (i saw a few of his manuals while i was online lookin for manuals) im the only person in my whole family whos mechanicly minded, you dont even want to no what condition the engine was of my mums commy b4 i got to it hahahaha

[PSYKO PHOENIX]

It seems strange that no warning lights came on when the belt came off... but then I'm used to my old statesman which beeps at the hint of a breeze. Temp gets over 3/4, it beeps like a mad bitch and flashes lights all over the dash. So I should never be able to blow it up without a lot of warning

Best thing I can suggest is that you keep a keen eye trained on the temperature gauge from now on I take a look at mine as often as I check fuel.

hahahaha hey bro!, i think some lights did come on but i was more worried about getting it into a park to see what was wrong, and not gettin hit in the process lol

1 thing thats great about the cluster is that the fuel and temp are in the same place (one on top of the other) so like you i check the temp levels and fuel levels regularly, every few mins

[ImAHoon!]

i drove the car for about 1 min after it blew, to get itg into a park, steering gets real heavy with no timing belt lol

could it have overheated and cookded the engine in thet 1min?

lucky you, having great uncle Max Ellery (i saw a few of his manuals while i was online lookin for manuals) im the only person in my whole family whos mechanicly minded, you dont even want to no what condition the engine was of my mums commy b4 i got to it hahahaha

stop calling it a timing belt!

its nothing like a timing belt, it never will be, nor ever was a timing belt!

it makes me wonder how mechanically minded you really are to be honest.

also, the 1 minute of driving would not have cooked the motor, but I'm guessing your radiator cap is screwed, and thats what caused the problem in the first place.

[immortality]

no need to bleed the trans system, it will look after itself, just make sure you don't get any water in the lines.

to bleed the cooling system, just fill with coolant, run engine and have the heater on. once the engine is upto temp the thermostat will open and coolant will cycle through the entire system. coolant level may drop a little in the radiator as it heats up. top it up as required. once the car is upto temp open the bleed screw on the engine, it's where the top radiator hose connects to the engine. once coolant starts coming out of the nipple close the bleed screw, make sure the radiator is full and fit the cap. make sure there is coolant in the expansion tank also. next time after you have been for spin bleed the system again just to make sure all the air is out (just open bleed screw a little, if only a small amount of air comes out then don't remove radiator cap and just add coolant to expansion tank. as the engine cools it will draw coolant back into the radiator as it's required). watch the temp gauge for a while and also double check coolant level in the expansion tank just to make sure everything is OK

[VS_Pete_1]

That is it bro.

[PSYKO PHOENIX]

wicked! thanks heaps to you all your all brilliant!!! ill let you know how it all goes

hopfully that will be the end of the issues!!

thanks again

[VS_Wagon_Baby]

Off topic, but VS_Pete, can you post a my ride thread on your wagon? And good luck with the radiator Psyko.

[pillarless]

Home Page
for your manual mate

[immortality]

Home Page
for your manual mate

he's in NZ mate and pulling your leg, they can't really read down there, they just look at the pictures