Which type of thermostat should I fit as I seem to have found three available for the 1.4i Petrol engine 2001. Here are the links for those I've found:

http://www.gsfcarpar...stem/thermostat

http://www.eurocarpa...24d78cd0

The second link looks like the one I removed but there was no clip present to retain in the housing. I obviously don't want to buy a full housing if I don't need to but may have to in order to get the clip and correct thermostat.

I had the thermostat removed today to flush through the coolant system due to a build up of gunk in the reservoir and constant temp light and audio warning. and trying to add some Wonderweld to seal any head gasket leaks. I cleaned out the whole coolant system and cleaned the contacts within the reservoir, added wonderweld and replaced the thermostat (without clip) and housing. Refitted all hoses and filled the system with water. The car was ran for over an hour on short journeys around town and seemed fine, no overheat and no warnings. I know I need to flush out the wonderweld in a few days and replace with coolant.

The wifes friend took the car this evening and phoned to say that the overheat warnings; temp gauge, light and audio had come on, this was after some motorway driving. I told her to let it cool down before starting again. She did so and drove a further 5 miles home keeping below 50mph, with no problems.

It may have been an air bubble or due to the wonderweld in the system, as I know the car should only be driven at moderate speeds with this in.To be on the safe side I think I may change the thermostat as well. Is there anything else I should do?

Edited 14 August, 201213 yr by 2003bhoy

Its worth changing the housing while your at it mate. They can become brittle and get hairline cracks after time, especially if you've had them on and off a couple of times. Probably worth changing the temp sensor as well, as this could be attributed to giving you false alarms. I would have suggested sticking well clear of wonderweld and such stuff though. It just clogs the system up, plays havoc with electrical contacts on sensors, and doesn't actually fix much imo, but its done now so don't worry too much. Alarm could have come on if you had air in the system. Make sure you bleed it properly when you top up with coolant by running til up to temp and revving to about 3k rpm for 30 seconds, every other 30 seconds. Whilst at idle, massage the heater pipes. You can tell if the stat is working the bottom rad hose should be cool until its up to temp, at which point it will open, and the pipe will get hot as the water circulates round it. May be worth checking your fans are coming on when it gets to temp too, as this could also be a cause.