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Coolant dripping - any quick fixes?
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benjamin.gilliver
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Holden Commodore Water Pump VN VP VR VS VT VX VY WH WK 3 8L V6 | eBay
use the force my young apprentice
use the force my young apprentice
PlenumBiscuit
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hmmm well im 99 percent sure its been bled, the gushing sound in dashboard has gone too
So before the water pump was changed no high temp issues, why would a simple and lets say correct pump replacement now see the car heat up when stuck in traffic but immediately cool down once driving off again
To me its might be normal for car just getting used to the coolant
But what else has been modified in the steps of changing the pump, not much hey
I watched a little and the radiator fan wasnt taken out, if thats the speed fan your refering too
Wozza
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Hi
Define hot?..... the gauge is in 10ths so lowest mark is zero and the red mark is 10, if your getting to 5 in traffic that normal it will yo yo from 5 to 3 or 2 as the fan kicks in and out
if its going as high as 6 or 7 then the fans not kicking in or working...with car running switch on the aircon and the fan should start straight away, that will verify if the fan is working(possible it wasnt reconnected when the pump was replaced)...do a search here as the low speed relay some times go's or blows the fuse..... there is info on what and where to check
Define hot?..... the gauge is in 10ths so lowest mark is zero and the red mark is 10, if your getting to 5 in traffic that normal it will yo yo from 5 to 3 or 2 as the fan kicks in and out
if its going as high as 6 or 7 then the fans not kicking in or working...with car running switch on the aircon and the fan should start straight away, that will verify if the fan is working(possible it wasnt reconnected when the pump was replaced)...do a search here as the low speed relay some times go's or blows the fuse..... there is info on what and where to check
PlenumBiscuit
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Found the probable fault
Before waiting for mechanic to repair, I started cleaning engine bits giving a polish
At time I took off plug behind air filter compartment, had a look this morning and its there still hanging off, so yes me a dumb, dumb
So my $900 vs is almost in the clear, no huge major issues amazingly
But, the heater in the dash has signs of leakage as theres spillage on driver side carpet, BUT these might be old stains as it doesnt feel wet or damp, does whole heater have to be replaced or just a gold pipe
Before waiting for mechanic to repair, I started cleaning engine bits giving a polish
At time I took off plug behind air filter compartment, had a look this morning and its there still hanging off, so yes me a dumb, dumb
So my $900 vs is almost in the clear, no huge major issues amazingly
But, the heater in the dash has signs of leakage as theres spillage on driver side carpet, BUT these might be old stains as it doesnt feel wet or damp, does whole heater have to be replaced or just a gold pipe
Cheap6
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That sensor is the inlet air temp. sensor. It won't cause overheating.
The coolant temp. gauge does move a lot for a small change (~10C variation is normal) in engine temp.. (see post #24). Fresh coolant won't have any effect on that.
If there's any doubt about the engine temp. I will use one or more of:
Checking the temp. sensor resistance and relating that back to a coolant temp. Using a voltmeter on a DMM. While not ideal, Jaycar are selling a cheapy DMM that will be acceptable for this for $5. CTS resistance vs temp. is in the how to on switching a cooling fan manually.
A diagnostic tool or cable. The cable is not expensive - maybe $40 to buy and the software to use it is free.
Directly measuring the coolant temp using a thermocouple. A bit more expensive but still under $100.
A leak from the heater core usually means replacing the whole assembly = dash out or cutting the pipes and joining them to the new core with short lengths of hose and clamps. If the heater core is weeping at the soldered joint between the pipe and core proper, I have fixed similar leaks using epoxy; sometimes Devcon, sometimes talcum powder plus epoxy adhesive. The surfaces must be very clean and it will only fix a weep not a leak.
The coolant temp. gauge does move a lot for a small change (~10C variation is normal) in engine temp.. (see post #24). Fresh coolant won't have any effect on that.
If there's any doubt about the engine temp. I will use one or more of:
Checking the temp. sensor resistance and relating that back to a coolant temp. Using a voltmeter on a DMM. While not ideal, Jaycar are selling a cheapy DMM that will be acceptable for this for $5. CTS resistance vs temp. is in the how to on switching a cooling fan manually.
A diagnostic tool or cable. The cable is not expensive - maybe $40 to buy and the software to use it is free.
Directly measuring the coolant temp using a thermocouple. A bit more expensive but still under $100.
A leak from the heater core usually means replacing the whole assembly = dash out or cutting the pipes and joining them to the new core with short lengths of hose and clamps. If the heater core is weeping at the soldered joint between the pipe and core proper, I have fixed similar leaks using epoxy; sometimes Devcon, sometimes talcum powder plus epoxy adhesive. The surfaces must be very clean and it will only fix a weep not a leak.
Jaymz
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Good emergency fix, but you shouldn't use this as a permanent solution to any coolant leaking issues.
VPRob
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Wow, just by spending $900 on a VS and asking for advice you suddenly have a whole slew of new friends. Yes! the contributors on this site are awesome and the collected knowledge is a great resource.
My understanding is that there are 2 ways of replacing the heater core. The "proper" way involves removing the entire dash and sounds like a cow of a job. I believe there is a way of doing it without removing the dash. It's a job I suspect I need to address on my VP but at the moment Bars Leaks is allowing me to postpone my responsibilities in that direction. I am sure you will get more specific advice to your last question from other forum users.
My understanding is that there are 2 ways of replacing the heater core. The "proper" way involves removing the entire dash and sounds like a cow of a job. I believe there is a way of doing it without removing the dash. It's a job I suspect I need to address on my VP but at the moment Bars Leaks is allowing me to postpone my responsibilities in that direction. I am sure you will get more specific advice to your last question from other forum users.