NOODLE Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 (edited) 2jzge not long had the headgasket done cars been great the last 4 months since having it done. I check the coolant and oil levels weekly and tonight on the way back from taking the gf to work the dash sounded like somone was bashing its way through from the firewall. I know that sound is from an air lock the problem im having is finding where its starting when the levels seem ok? Theres a H shaped pipe connecting the pipes from the engine to the pipes for the heater matrix. Im not sure whether its standard or not but thats where im starting. Edited November 18, 2012 by NOODLE (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J_Supra_07 Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 Prob a silly question but Have u Tried leaving the cap off the rad to let the air? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Havard Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 My money would be on a small crack in a pipe somewhere that possible opens up under load or the matrix itself. It may have taken a while for it tio get to the point it is now and simply filling from the reservoir will not remove the air lock. Ideally you need to fill the system from tthe back at the H point. I did a mod on my old NA so I could keep an eye on that section of piping. I cut the highest pipe and put in a T shaped piece of copper pipe with a removable fitting so I could check and fill the system from that point. I can put some photos up if you want but I will have to go for a rummage in my old pictures. H. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Porky1978 Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 Theres a H shaped pipe connecting the pipes from the engine to the pipes for the heater matrix. Im not sure whether its standard or not but thats where im starting. Didnt think something that shape would fit under the bonnet tbh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Havard Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 Didnt think something that shape would fit under the bonnet tbh I am surprisingly flexible..!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dnk Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 (edited) How much coolant has your system lost ? Edited November 18, 2012 by Dnk (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevie_b Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 My money would be on a small crack in a pipe somewhere that possible opens up under load or the matrix itself. It may have taken a while for it tio get to the point it is now and simply filling from the reservoir will not remove the air lock. Ideally you need to fill the system from tthe back at the H point. I did a mod on my old NA so I could keep an eye on that section of piping. I cut the highest pipe and put in a T shaped piece of copper pipe with a removable fitting so I could check and fill the system from that point. I can put some photos up if you want but I will have to go for a rummage in my old pictures. H. Yes please for the photos H. I've been thinking about fitting something similar to mine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dnk Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 (edited) 2jzge not long had the headgasket done cars been great the last 4 months since having it done. I check the coolant and oil levels weekly and tonight on the way back from taking the gf to work the dash sounded like somone was bashing its way through from the firewall. I know that sound is from an air lock the problem im having is finding where its starting when the levels seem ok? Theres a H shaped pipe connecting the pipes from the engine to the pipes for the heater matrix. Im not sure whether its standard or not but thats where im starting. Are you sure this is a H shaped pipe ? on my TT the two matrix pipes (inlet/outlet) are linked together with a plastic piece which is just to hold them apart and give them support Just to add the coolant system flows round a set path and to have a link between the inlet and outlet matrix pipes can only cause problems Edited November 18, 2012 by Dnk (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Havard Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 (edited) This was a bit of as bodge job on my NA. I did plan to get some stainless steel stuff that would look a lot neater but never actually got around to sorting it. After fitting this piece I filled the system from the back and never had a problem with airlocks again. Prior to this I had spent weeks trying to get the heater working properly and had mixed results, one minute it worked and the next it didn't. I thought I had a small leak but after doing this I never had to top up again. My theory is that I never actually got all the air out, I just moved it to more static parts of the system. In the end it would end up at the same point. I soldered the fittings from some stuff I had left over from doing our heating at home. You could do this with some stainless compression fittings and some stainless pipe to make the same shape. http://imageshack.us/a/img607/4373/pict1155.jpg http://imageshack.us/a/img607/7008/pict1156.jpg http://imageshack.us/a/img824/6563/pict1157z.jpg http://imageshack.us/a/img201/3139/pict1158.jpg http://imageshack.us/a/img6/3683/pict1159z.jpg http://imageshack.us/a/img27/4994/pict1160b.jpg Edited November 18, 2012 by Havard (see edit history) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nikue Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 When my daily runabout a Merc w211 270 cdi started dripping coolant in the passenger footwell I baulked at the possible cost to replace the heater matrix or the associated pipework. I then came across some coolant stop leak from Euro Crap Parts for several quid. All I can say is this stuff worked a treat !!! Heating works fine and no more leak. If your coolant system has a leak causing the air lock this is a must try solution. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Havard Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 When my daily runabout a Merc w211 270 cdi started dripping coolant in the passenger footwell I baulked at the possible cost to replace the heater matrix or the associated pipework. I then came across some coolant stop leak from Euro Crap Parts for several quid. All I can say is this stuff worked a treat !!! Heating works fine and no more leak. If your coolant system has a leak causing the air lock this is a must try solution. This is only a temporary fix. I also thought that this type of stuff had effects on gunking up other parts of the heating system, valves, pump etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TubbyTwo Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 I would prefer to fix the problem properly than mask it. Years ago i used this stuff and ended up paying for a now rad, thermostat, water pump and sensors as this had litterly stuck to everything. It was a nightmare for the garage to actually flush it out of the system. so for me a £3 bodge ended up costing me over £400. Fix it properly the first time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOODLE Posted November 18, 2012 Author Share Posted November 18, 2012 This was a bit of as bodge job on my NA. I did plan to get some stainless steel stuff that would look a lot neater but never actually got around to sorting it. After fitting this piece I filled the system from the back and never had a problem with airlocks again. Prior to this I had spent weeks trying to get the heater working properly and had mixed results, one minute it worked and the next it didn't. I thought I had a small leak but after doing this I never had to top up again. My theory is that I never actually got all the air out, I just moved it to more static parts of the system. In the end it would end up at the same point. I soldered the fittings from some stuff I had left over from doing our heating at home. You could do this with some stainless compression fittings and some stainless pipe to make the same shape. http://imageshack.us/a/img607/4373/pict1155.jpg http://imageshack.us/a/img607/7008/pict1156.jpg http://imageshack.us/a/img824/6563/pict1157z.jpg http://imageshack.us/a/img201/3139/pict1158.jpg http://imageshack.us/a/img6/3683/pict1159z.jpg http://imageshack.us/a/img27/4994/pict1160b.jpg Cheers harold i will give that a try, Cheers guys i will look at all the possibilities, i just hope its not the head again :-/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevie_b Posted November 18, 2012 Share Posted November 18, 2012 Thanks H! To add my 2p worth to some other posts: - as Dnk says the "H" piece doesn't flow water between the inlet and outlet. The middle piece is a solid brace to keep the pipes in roughly the right place. - I too would advise avoiding the coolant additive. It's often known as radweld or radseal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOODLE Posted November 18, 2012 Author Share Posted November 18, 2012 Ive managed to add the T peice on to the pipes i might get rid of the H pipes and replace them with newer pipes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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