vt how to bleed the air from the cooling system ?
can someone tell me the CORRECT way to bleed the air from the cooling system
i have a idea how but seems like now and then i have to do it all over again is this normal
GMH has a "tool" for doing this. However, it can be replaced by a 2 litre coke bottle with the bottom cut off and some insulation tape wrapped around the bottle filler neck to make it a neat fit in the radiator neck. Stert your motor (cold) and open the bleed valve on top of your thermostat. Simply pour coolant through the coke bottle until no more will go in and no bubbles are coming out of the bleed valve. close the bleed valve, not too tight and make sure you still have a full radiator. replace cap and check that your overflow is at the right level. Done. I posted this a few months ago but I cannot find the op.
Just by the way, if you are constantly losing coolant check for leaks(obvious) if you can't see any get your system pressure tested.
wats the point of the coke bottle???
Donating Member
To keep the coolant level higher than the bleeding screw, letting gravity do the work.Originally Posted by vs commo
MY RIDE
I thought I was wrong once but I was mistaken.
This is how I have bled both mine and a friends, you should also make sure the heater tap is turned on and depending on how the bottle fits into the top of th eradiator you may need to either pinch off the overflow hose or take it out of the overflow and hold it above the top of the coke bottle as the coolant may flow into the overflow as well.
sounds pretty pointless to me wats wrong with pouring it in the radiator with out the coke bottle?
vscommo, in answer to your query "sounds pretty pointless to me wats wrong with pouring it in the radiator with out the coke bottle?" Holden dealers use their fill/bleed tool with 100% success, ie no air locks after using their bleed "tool". The coke bottle is a good substitute and costs nothing as opposed to $49 for the GM tool. Wortus, the overflow question, you put the neck of the coke bottle in the lower section of the filler neck, below the overflow oulet. As accentstencil said, "let gravity do the work" by raising the coolant level above the bleed screw, about 10cm in the coke bottle to make sure.
Graham, no worries I can see how it works now with a Coke bottle. When I did mine I used a Gatorage bottle and the cap was bigger than a Coke bottle so it only went in as far as the pressure cap goes. I found it useful as the excess coolant in the bottle could be bled off into the overflow and you don't spill any.
It has got me stuffed why so many people have trouble with air locks and bleeding the air out of the ecotec engine.I have drained my vs radiator that many times that Ive lost count,and Ive never had trouble,just fill it up again and go.I mentioned about this to a radiator repair bloke one day,and he said that because the bleeder screw is there for holden to connect their bleeder tool to,people think they have to undo it to bleed the air from the cooling system.He said they didnt worry about touching it,they just fill the radiator and thats it.I always used to undo the bleeder a little bit whilst filling the radiator and then just tighten it up again.But then after talking to this guy,I didnt bother with it and I have still never had one problem with having to bleed it because of air locks or whatever.Id just try filling the radiator to the top and also make sure the overflow bottle is at the max level and then recheck the overflow bottle and radiator levels after its been driven or bought up to operating temp and completely cooled down again.This is all I do and it works every time.
I think the idea here is to post the correct way to do things, it's no extra effort to use a coke bottle or similar and it also makes a good funnel
on holiday
i just fill the system when cold fit cap start engine let warm up and pressurize then undo bleeder all air pisses out when water only comes out shut bleeder done repeat next cold start to get any remaining air out can take a few goes no matter how you fill the system as air gets trapped in the heads pretty easy and doesnt come out untill engine running/driving
I tune the oldschool way fear on the passengers face and knuckle colour cant go wrong
tabbacco is still my favorite vegetable
F O R U M W A R R I O R
The radiator repairer you spoke to is an idiot. The bleed point is there for a reason and should be used when bleeding the system.
Run the engine with the bleeder open until coolant comes out in a steady flow and close it, then fill the radiator and put the cap on a go for a spirited drive. Carefully open the bleeder again and if no air comes out youre done. Once the engine has cooled remove the radiator cap and top up if neccessary.
Silver Certified.
RESPECT!
& what if the air lock in the top of the engine causes a hot spot n stuffs somethin in the mean time???
The way that it has been explained in this thread is the best & correct way of doing it(AND THE EASIEST), i dont see why it is so hard for people to just leave it at that....
I WISH MY GRASS WAS EMO SO IT WOULD CUT ITSELF
SILVERFOX
OK, the idea of using a bottle is to make the level of the coolant higher than the bleed valve. I use some sort of medium sized orange juice bottle with duct tape wrapped around the neck. I just pull the overflow pipe off at the radiator filler neck, then it's easy to block the hole with one finger rather than trying to hold the entire overflow tube up in the air. Start the procedure while the engine is cool and no pressure in the system, for obvious reasons. But you need to idle the engine until normal operating temp is reached and the thermostat has opened, as the bleed valve is above the thermostat. No point doing it with a cold system. Then let the air out of the bleed valve with plenty of coolant in the orange juice (or whatever bottle.)
'Ah well, I suppose it had to come to this.'
The radiator guy you spoke to is an idiot, you need to bleed the system holden dont just put things there for no reason, air pockets need to be bleed out
The best way is to have the front of the vehicle on ramps or jacked up so that the radiator filler is generally higher than the rest of the engine. Let gravity do the work. No special tools or equipment required.
Listen to these guys on here calling this guy an idiot.He does radiators on fleets of heavy vehicles etc,and theres always shiploads of cars there..Its not a small buisness,so Id listen to him before someone on here who may or may not know anything about it,or just knows what they have read somewhere.And if it were true that you HAVE to undo the bleeder screw,then why havent I had problems with all the commodore cooling systems I have done over the last few years ,which would be around 20 or so,probably more.None of these had any problems with hotspots or air pockets or whatever after being filled.I think you are doing something wrong if you have problems with it.
Last edited by Brett_jjj; 27-11-2010 at 10:22 PM.
SILVERFOX
Bullshit. The system needs to be bled. Why, pray tell, do they have a bleed screw then?
'Ah well, I suppose it had to come to this.'
Who knows why, why doesnt it cause trouble if its not used?Thats what Id like to know.
SILVERFOX
As stated earlier, air pockets can create hotspots, for the little effort involved to bleed the system, I certainly do it. But hey it's your car, do what you want.
To the OP, my post number 14 is the correct way of bleeding the system. If your keen, you can repeat the simple process after a couple of days' driving to ensure the air is all out, as sometimes a bit of air can still work it's way to the top.
'Ah well, I suppose it had to come to this.'
Seems to me there's no difference listenig to that radiator guy or someone on here who is wrong! If bleeding the air out was not nessecary then there would not be a specific tool or a bleed valve plain and simple. I've seen plenty of these cars in a mechanics with a drink bottle stuffed in the radiator as well. Infact the VT to VY manual tells you to bleed it via the bleed screw using a bottle or tube in the top of the radiator to raise the level. You go ahead and do yours whatever way you want but bleeding as described is the proper way end of story.
Last edited by wortus; 27-11-2010 at 10:46 PM.
All I can say is if it was nessesary to do it,then why havent I had trouble then,answer that..Everyone goes on about "oh but its the right way to do it ", so is using a tension wrench on most nuts and bolts,but tell me how many people actually do that unless its the engine head etc.I havent seen many.I suppose you will say you do and everyone you know does as well because its "the proper way"
Last edited by Brett_jjj; 28-11-2010 at 12:19 AM.
SSM11K
lmao @ this thread...
I had done heapsss of V6's without bleeding any, from VN-VT. All without any issues, basically just fill up the radiator, start engine, top up as much as possible, fit cap, go for a lap around the block, remove cap - carefully, letting the pressure out slowly, top up radiator. Check the next day.
As advised by other plant mechanics at my old work, they never use to use them (the bleed screw) and never had any problems.
All sweet. Until I tried it on the VY, now they're the same thing, but for some reason it wouldn't work, got a BIG air bubble, temp gauge all over the place etc... Bled from the bleeder screw/valve, all sweet. Done it that way ever since, on any V6.
I use an old "top radiator hose" cut off the straight section. (off a VP) It jams nice and snug into the radiator and blocks off the overflow hose. When its all bled, just tilt it to one side and let the rest drain into the overflow bottle - no waste!
Just face facts there's a right way and this is published. By the way I use a torque wrench to tighten up the sump plug and the wheel nuts and have seen mechanics do that as well. Who knows why you had no trouble and who cares. Do us a favour and go away, not arguing with you anymore mate!
Last edited by wortus; 09-12-2010 at 11:56 AM.
Donating Member
The original poster asked for the correct method for bleeding the system, not whether it was necessary or not. Why do so many threads have to turn into arguments?
I thought I was wrong once but I was mistaken.
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