Topic

Hi
So a while ago i had a hose explode on my F,i was lucky as i just parking outside a friends house,i put a new one on and bled the cooling,i'm no stranger to knowing how to do it but ever since i have had problems of overheating.
After going back to basics and bleeding the rad then the heater then the rear pipes when i run the engine on tick over it gets up to thermostat opening but before the rad fan kicks in the ride tide rises in the header tank and i have to turn the engine off and the fluid level will drop again as the coolant cools,should i just think that the head gasket has gone and change it?,i put a new one in 35k miles ago just after i bought the car due to the timing belt going before i got to changing it,the 35k miles i have done since the rebuild have been trouble free and done with a smile on my face,but the thought of doing all that work again is not very appealing.

It sounds as if the coolant is finding weak points in the system. I had the same problem happen to me a few years ago. My TF over heated after a drive out, it turned out that I required a new expansion bottle cap. Once that was replaced and the system could get up to full pressure that's when the under floor pipes blew.
Like yourself its blew a pipe first and now it's finding other weak points.
If their is no trace of oil in coolant or vice versa try changing the expansion cap first. Just because it over heats does not mean your head gasket has failed.
I hope you solve the problem soon.


Steve

as Stevew said try a new cap first, before you did deeper.

yep,iv,e put on a brand new cap,one thing i have noticed is where hot coolant returns to the header tank from the jiggle valve on top of the coolant hose sometimes when i rev the engine the flow stops

When you bled the system did you have the interior heater on full ? . It does sound as if you still have air there and when you rev the engine it will move the trapped air around causing airlocks.

When I changed the coolant in my TF I raised the rear of the car about 4 inch, I don't know if it helped but I never had a problem once it was bled.

Steve.

Tgee wrote: wrote:

yep,iv,e put on a brand new cap,one thing i have noticed is where hot coolant returns to the header tank from the jiggle valve on top of the coolant hose sometimes when i rev the engine the flow stops

That is normal behaviour.

If the cap is not leaking pressure, then you obviously have gas/air in the system for the level to rise in the header tank. The best way forward is to get a 'sniff test done'. Most garages can do this, it's quick and easy and will confirm combustion gases or air in the coolant.

Otherwise you can spend countless hours bleeding air out of the system when it is actually combustion gases leaking in passed the head gasket.