1 hour ago, Tomjones1995 said:

Hi its me AGAIN. So very sorry about this. Driven 35 miles this morning, then sat on drive revving it to 2500-3000rpm for an unrelated vibration test i was doing, switched the engine off and thought il check the coolant seeing as its been about a week and there's froth everywhere, it had filled the header rank and over flowing when i opened it. This isn't normal is it?

 

No, not normal at all.

10 minutes ago, sepulchrave said:

 

No, not normal at all.

What shall I do now Sep, any ideas please? It was supposed to of passed a sniff test but then why is this happening

46 minutes ago, Tomjones1995 said:

What shall I do now Sep, any ideas please? It was supposed to of passed a sniff test but then why is this happening

 

You know exactly what I'm going to say, I don't believe the radiator story, there would be no pressure in the cooling system if there were a hole.

Like I said the sniff test is unreliable after adding kseal.

You need an independent inspection by a VAG specialist and possibly trading standards.

20 minutes ago, sepulchrave said:

 

You know exactly what I'm going to say, I don't believe the radiator story, there would be no pressure in the cooling system if there were a hole.

Like I said the sniff test is unreliable after adding kseal.

You need an independent inspection by a VAG specialist and possibly trading standards.

Just to cover everything, if there's a pin hole leak in the rad then it won't have any pressure in it even after running? They also said the sniff test passed and if the kseal impaired the sniff test, wouldn't it test positive for hydrocarbons? I've literally been to every "reputable" garage within a 30 mile radius of my home. 

8 minutes ago, Tomjones1995 said:

Just to cover everything, if there's a pin hole leak in the rad then it won't have any pressure in it even after running? They also said the sniff test passed and if the kseal impaired the sniff test, wouldn't it test positive for hydrocarbons? I've literally been to every "reputable" garage within a 30 mile radius of my home. 

 

Let's get back to square one:

 

Is there pressure in the expansion tank before you start the car in the morning?

 

Can you see evidence of leaking coolant on the radiator or a drip of coolant under the front when it's running?

 

Does the coolant level drop after taking the car for a blast?

20 minutes ago, sepulchrave said:

 

Let's get back to square one:

 

Is there pressure in the expansion tank before you start the car in the morning?

 

Can you see evidence of leaking coolant on the radiator or a drip of coolant under the front when it's running?

 

Does the coolant level drop after taking the car for a blast?

I haven't checked for a little while but there was some pressure in the mornings after the HG change hence a second sniff test from s different garage. I asked for a sniff test before they put kseal in it but they didn't do it only pressure tested and I've only got there word for it that they did it this time. No evidence of leaking coolant when running but I do have an undertray so don't know if that would catch it and no the coolant level doesn't drop after taking it for a blast. It was just above max after driving this morning and the rest was froth and alot of pressure. Thanks

Edited 14 February, 20197 yr by Tomjones1995

48 minutes ago, Tomjones1995 said:

I haven't checked for a little while but there was some pressure in the mornings after the HG change hence a second sniff test from s different garage. I asked for a sniff test before they put kseal in it but they didn't do it only pressure tested and I've only got there word for it that they did it this time. No evidence of leaking coolant when running but I do have an undertray so don't know if that would catch it and no the coolant level doesn't drop after taking it for a blast. It was just above max after driving this morning and the rest was froth and alot of pressure. Thanks

 

Ok, take it for a good run before parking it up overnight then check for pressure in the morning before starting.

18 minutes ago, sepulchrave said:

 

Ok, take it for a good run before parking it up overnight then check for pressure in the morning before starting.

Okay, il do it tonight and let you know tomorrow, thanks Sep. Sorry to drag you through it all again

1 hour ago, Tomjones1995 said:

Okay, il do it tonight and let you know tomorrow, thanks Sep. Sorry to drag you through it all again

 

Something it's better to just start from scratch, the waters can get very muddy in a long thread like this one.

4 hours ago, sepulchrave said:

 

Something it's better to just start from scratch, the waters can get very muddy in a long thread like this one.

Just an update. I went back to the garage this afternoon and they reckon its residual kseal in the system. I'l still check the header tank tomorrow though. The froth didn't smell of diesel to me but it was very strong and unpleasant.

Okay, I've been out this morning to check for pressure. There is some but I don't think it's too excessive, I videod it so you guys can see. If you refer to the previous video I took in November last year after the hg, I think the pressure is less. Thanks youtube.com/watch?v=YVS2uQ2xB0g

 

Edited 15 February, 20197 yr by Tomjones1995

12 minutes ago, Tomjones1995 said:

Okay, I've been out this morning to check for pressure. There is some but I don't think it's too excessive, I videod it so you guys can see. If you refer to the previous video I took in November last year after the hg, I think the pressure is less. Thanks youtube.com/watch?v=YVS2uQ2xB0g

 

 

There shouldn't be any pressure at all.

 

Part of the reason this has dragged on so horribly is your denial, we're up against it at every turn in this saga.

 

You're doing it again, denying that there's a problem, looking for a different answer, in essence what you're saying is that the HG problem is not as bad as it was because the pressure is less?

Hey sepulchrave, have you ever heard of this - "Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIP) heat treatment applied to the head to reduce porosity of the aluminium surface"?

 

On another forum I use a guy said this is one of the possible failure modes on the 1.9 tdi's. I'd never heard of it, but I suspect you will/may know more?

36 minutes ago, sepulchrave said:

 

There shouldn't be any pressure at all.

 

Part of the reason this has dragged on so horribly is your denial, we're up against it at every turn in this saga.

 

You're doing it again, denying that there's a problem, looking for a different answer, in essence what you're saying is that the HG problem is not as bad as it was because the pressure is less?

So the system should pressurise when running and then dissipate entirely over night? Absolutely no trace of pressure at all? If so where does it all go? It is denial yes, I agree because it's supposed to of had a head gasket and the head skimmed so it is unbelievable its not right again.

35 minutes ago, Wino said:

Hey sepulchrave, have you ever heard of this - "Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIP) heat treatment applied to the head to reduce porosity of the aluminium surface"?

 

On another forum I use a guy said this is one of the possible failure modes on the 1.9 tdi's. I'd never heard of it, but I suspect you will/may know more?

 

I haven't heard of it, years ago we occasionally had to replace a PD head casting when it failed pressure test, however we didn't investigate failure modes, it being difficult enough to persuade taxi owners of the value of a pressure test.

We insisted and refused to touch any head unless it was tested first.

3 minutes ago, Tomjones1995 said:

So the system should pressurise when running and then dissipate entirely over night? Absolutely no trace of pressure at all? If so where does it all go? It is denial yes, I agree because it's supposed to of had a head gasket and the head skimmed so it is unbelievable its not right again.

 

Yes and yes.

 

The pressure comes purely from the thermal expansion of the coolant while running, your situation is that you have combustion gas being added to the water jacket while running, this gas does not get released until you remove the expansion tank cap even though the coolant has contracted again.

This is the reason it's called an expansion tank although it's really a header tank.

 

Was your head casting pressure tested before it was machined and was it actually even machined? Does that work appear on the invoice?

1 minute ago, sepulchrave said:

 

Yes and yes.

 

The pressure comes purely from the thermal expansion of the coolant while running, your situation is that you have combustion gas being added to the water jacket while running, this gas does not get released until you remove the expansion tank cap even though the coolant has contracted again.

This is the reason it's called an expansion tank although it's really a header tank.

 

Was your head casting pressure tested before it was machined and was it actually even machined? Does that work appear on the invoice?

I see, okay. It just says 'machining' on the bill, nothing else. I asked Him and he said he took it to be machined and "gas tested" somewhere else and that's all he knows, he was supplied the thicker 3 hole gasket by them and that's it.

26 minutes ago, Tomjones1995 said:

I see, okay. It just says 'machining' on the bill, nothing else. I asked Him and he said he took it to be machined and "gas tested" somewhere else and that's all he knows, he was supplied the thicker 3 hole gasket by them and that's it.

 

Ok, so we must assume it was done.

 

I suggest you flush all that k-seal crap out of the cooling system, if there were a hole in the radiator you wouldn't have pressure in the cooling system in the morning, that pressure means it's sealed and there are no leaks. This should cure the foaming.

 

As things stand you have some headlift although it is less than before because you had PD150 bolts fitted, you aren't blowing coolant out of the tank because the level isn't dropping, as long as you release any residual pressure each day then there won't be a build-up resulting in coolant loss so you can continue to use the car almost indefinitely. You may notice that the heating will cool over time as the matrix traps gas, cure this by dropping all the coolant into a bowl then pouring it back in to push the gas out.

 

I know you don't have any more money so this is the best I can do for you, I am sympathetic which is why I've stuck with you throughout your denial.

 

I strongly suggest that you come to us whenever you have a problem so we can tell you how to fix it yourself without getting fleeced by incompetent mechanics, this is how I and most others here learned to do these things ourselves when we were young, I still work on all my own vehicles but with age comes a reluctance to roll about in the dirt so with anything needing work under the car I'm happy to pay a professional with a lift, this basically means exhaust or clutch only, I do everything else.

 

 

7 minutes ago, sepulchrave said:

 

Ok, so we must assume it was done.

 

I suggest you flush all that k-seal crap out of the cooling system, if there were a hole in the radiator you wouldn't have pressure in the cooling system in the morning, that pressure means it's sealed and there are no leaks. This should cure the foaming.

 

As things stand you have some headlift although it is less than before because you had PD150 bolts fitted, you aren't blowing coolant out of the tank because the level isn't dropping, as long as you release any residual pressure each day then there won't be a build-up resulting in coolant loss so you can continue to use the car almost indefinitely. You may notice that the heating will cool over time as the matrix traps gas, cure this by dropping all the coolant into a bowl then pouring it back in to push the gas out.

 

I know you don't have any more money so this is the best I can do for you, I am sympathetic which is why I've stuck with you throughout your denial.

 

I strongly suggest that you come to us whenever you have a problem so we can tell you how to fix it yourself without getting fleeced by incompetent mechanics, this is how I and most others here learned to do these things ourselves when we were young, I still work on all my own vehicles but with age comes a reluctance to roll about in the dirt so with anything needing work under the car I'm happy to pay a professional with a lift, this basically means exhaust or clutch only, I do everything else.

 

 

I have had it flushed once already after the kseal so I'm not sure why the bloody thing is still in there. By dropping all the coolant into a bowl, do you mean empty and refill with the same coolant? If so, where do I empty it from? Is there a plug under the rad?

I really appreciate you sticking with me throughout all of this, as you have probably guessed, I have nobody I know who's mechanically minded that I can trust.

 

If I have any further questions, i'l start another thread as this one has become ridiculously long.

 

Many thanks,

Tom Jones

 

16 minutes ago, Tomjones1995 said:

I have had it flushed once already after the kseal so I'm not sure why the bloody thing is still in there. By dropping all the coolant into a bowl, do you mean empty and refill with the same coolant? If so, where do I empty it from? Is there a plug under the rad?

I really appreciate you sticking with me throughout all of this, as you have probably guessed, I have nobody I know who's mechanically minded that I can trust.

 

If I have any further questions, i'l start another thread as this one has become ridiculously long.

 

Many thanks,

Tom Jones

 

 

Yes, and yes, there is a drain tap where the bottom hose meets the radiator.

 

Good idea, start a new thread for any new problems.

4 minutes ago, sepulchrave said:

 

Yes, and yes, there is a drain tap where the bottom hose meets the radiator.

 

Good idea, start a new thread for any new problems.

Thanks. I 100% agree about their still being head lift because I just thought, yesterday I was revving it and I checked immediately after and the froth was everywhere like when a little child blows into drink via a straw, it bubbles like crazy so I'm guessing its the exhaust gasses bubbling the coolant/ kseal crap and I think the hg gas locked my heater matrix too before the hg. No more garages me thinks