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coolant problem any ideas


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Have a 2002 1.9tdi 110bhp octavia. Problem i have is i'm going through loads of coolant water which ended yesterday after 160 miles the tank being empty. Cant see any obvious leaks. I topped the tank up yesterday straight away with water and the tank water looked very dirty considering i put water only in (looks like oil, dipped a clean white paper towel in came out with what could be oil on not a lot but little bits) . After getting home took off the plastic engine cover and the underneath looked very dirty but not sure if this is just old oil. Had a oil change around 3.5k miles ago and checked the dip stick and oil cover and both seem fine ie no water. had a new water pump and belt fitted in feb this year but the problem has been going since before this was done. Car has 167k miles on used daily as its a taxi. Looking on web people going towards head gasket but im hoping not. Temp gauge never budges above half always goes and stays there once warmed up. Did notice yesterday a burning smell but not sure if this is related. Hoping some of you guys on here may have some ideas as you can probably tell by the description here im not the most mechanically minded. Cheers in advance for any infor on my first post.

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Have a 2002 1.9tdi 110bhp octavia. Problem i have is i'm going through loads of coolant water which ended yesterday after 160 miles the tank being empty. Cant see any obvious leaks. I topped the tank up yesterday straight away with water and the tank water looked very dirty considering i put water only in (looks like oil, dipped a clean white paper towel in came out with what could be oil on not a lot but little bits) . After getting home took off the plastic engine cover and the underneath looked very dirty but not sure if this is just old oil. Had a oil change around 3.5k miles ago and checked the dip stick and oil cover and both seem fine ie no water. had a new water pump and belt fitted in feb this year but the problem has been going since before this was done. Car has 167k miles on used daily as its a taxi. Looking on web people going towards head gasket but im hoping not. Temp gauge never budges above half always goes and stays there once warmed up. Did notice yesterday a burning smell but not sure if this is related. Hoping some of you guys on here may have some ideas as you can probably tell by the description here im not the most mechanically minded. Cheers in advance for any infor on my first post.

Go for a drive get it warmed up then park it put a piece of cardboard under it to see if there any leaks...Could be turbo going water could be leaking there or I am afraid head gasget could be leaking down the block,have a really good look at the block...

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Go for a drive get it warmed up then park it put a piece of cardboard under it to see if there any leaks...Could be turbo going water could be leaking there or I am afraid head gasget could be leaking down the block,have a really good look at the block...

The turbo on the TDI has nothing to do with the coolant system (guess this different to the 1.8T). Others have reported that a cracked coolant tank can cause a loss of water - any water-spray marks around under the bonnet. Is the coolant system pressurised when you stop?

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Put something under the pressure bottle to catch water. It is not unknown for a crack to develop in the plastic which only opens up when hot and pressurised.

Mike

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Oil in the cooling system would indicate cylinder head gasket failure in my experience. I hope its not :( Check the radiator cap for oil in that part and for 'mayonnaise' on the engine oil filler cap. Best thing though would be take it to a trusted garage and they will pressure test the system. If an obvious coolant leak isnt found then perhaps they will add a florescent dye to the cooling system let you run the car until you notice the coolant disappearing they will then want the car back to inspect it with a UV light. I have had suspected head gasket failure on my Civic but turned out to be intermittent thermostat fault. It was shutting when car was warmed up and boiling the coolant back out of the coolant bottle but this wasnt indicated immediately cause the fault was intermittent.

Fingers crossed for you that it isn't the head gasket!

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thanks for all the infor and tips guys. Just took the car to warm up brought it back and theres water underneath dripping like a good un. So off to the garage tomorrow it goes and see what else they can find out re oil in the water.

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stick a bag under the tank, I have the exact same issue with mine somehow over pressurizing and dumping coolant out of the header valve, normally happens when going quickly (under stress) and then slowing right down, i found in the bag after a journey, the exact amount that i had lost during the drive! Interesting one but i do intend to get mine presure tested and see if there is possibly some kind of blockage, might change the Thermostat again as it could be shutting off early or something :S

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Where, roughly was the water dripping from, or does the undertray make it hard to see?

The car has no undertray on now thanks to the snow ripping it off. Cant see exactly where its coming from but its coming down from the drivers side of the engine. If you imagine looking at the front wheel suspension and going through the car body behind it then it feels somewhere behind there. Sorry thats probably no help but i'm not the best mechanically, can drive them and clean them but not fix harder things lol

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It's not uncommon for the pressure caps on the coolant reservoir to leak

When it does, the water/steam comes from the tube marked with an arrow so it is not always obvious.

post-2559-0-99087800-1304352150_thumb.jpg

Is the water oily or could it be soot discolouring the coolant?

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Might be the waterpump that's leaking, if it's at the drivers side.

EDIT: Just realised you have had a new pump and it did it before. :giggle:

Might be the coolant ball as suggested then.

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poor car sitting on the drive looking all sorry for itself. Desperately wants to go back out to graft well i think the missus wants me out the house more!! So i've sat bored on the internet and thought about a remap for it currently 110bhp gets upto 140 but not sure if its worth it with using as a taxi??

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