Coolant system problems - blown head gasket?

[Calpol91]

Right... I recently had my heater matrix changed (wednesday) as it was blasting steam into my cab... Got the van back on thursday, ran it all day friday, then got home and a neighbour pointed out there was water leaking from "somewhere"

It was coming out of the overflow on the coolant bottle, without thinking a ripped the lid off to a fountain of coolant jetting out. Pressurised obviously. I thought maybe its not been bled right so i had a go at doing it myself. Was ok for abit but came back in the morning to no water in the tank. (After topping up while bleeding)

Topped up, got to where i needed to be and pressurised again. With the lid off, water "glugs" out due to air escaping thru the bottle.

Ive been told by the mechanic that the head gasket has blown, but im not 100% its never overheated, no difference in power, nothing seems different as far as the engine is concerned. I drove 60 miles before the matrix was done without a problem. It wasn't pressurising before the matrix change but the matrix was definitely done.

What do u guys think?

---

Oh and its an r reg 1.9d i know that wont make a massive difference but just gives a better idea.

[Gadgetman]

If the head gasket has failed, there will be a few classic symptoms...

1. Compression drops at one or more cylinders. Easy to test for.
2. Oil contaminated by coolant. Turns milky or gunky.
3. Coolant contaminated by oil. Brown gunge in the system.
4. Pressure loss in the cooling system. Test equipment for this is a bit more expensive.

Also expect the exhaust to be nasty...

[Calpol91]

Pressure LOSS? I have more pressure?!

[ron]

A blown head gasket will increase pressure.Does the cooling fan cut in? Is the thermostat ok?Check these first as they are cheaper to repair/replace.I always change a thermostat after any overheating.Double check it has been bled properly

[Gadgetman]

That shouldn't happen.

The bottle and overflow should normally handle the normal expansion of the liquid due to heat.

I can only think of two situations:
1. The overflow is blocked somehow.
2. you have lots of air trapped in the system somehow.
(Air in the system allow the liquid to change into steam, which increases the pressure drastically)

How many points did you bleed it at?
(I don't know the Diesel versions. On my 1.4i, there would be on top of radiator, the thermostat housing and at the heater.)
Sometimes you have to bleed more than once to get it all.
(Bleed, run engine until thermostat opens, bleed again)

[brodfather11]

There's an air bleeder for the heater between the master cylinder/brake fluid container and top of the suspension strut.
(1.9D R reg has a tyre valve cap.) Try that first with the heater control set to hot and engine running. Probably the new heater matrix has still got some air in it.

As Ron says "simple and cheaper things first". :thumbsup:

[ricc]

A blown head gasket will increase pressure.Does the cooling fan cut in? Is the thermostat ok?Check these first as they are cheaper to repair/replace.I always change a thermostat after any overheating.Double check it has been bled properly

the losing pressure is on a pressure test of the cooling system, without the engine running.

sounds like your head gasket has been gone for some time ... the blown heater shooting steam into the cab could be a clue?

i bought a fourtrak with a blown head gasket .. it blew the coolant out ...no sign of any oil in water or water in oil... ran perfect for about 20 miles then needed half a gallon of water to bring the temp gauge off the red.... only ever used it for short local journeys ..still doing the same when i flogged it on after 9 years use. though it did seem to be getting hot quicker towards the end.