After driving to the mall and back, a distance of about 20km, I could hear bubbling after I switched off the engine. I can see coolant gushing out of the expansion reservoir tank. The temperature gauge shows normal.
I've been driving the car daily to work/back,about 10km each way and all seems OK. Temperature normal, no bubbling, no puddle on the ground. In the mornings before driving off, the reservoir level is slightly lower than low, sometimes I add a bit of water to bring it to low. In the evenings, the level is about 2cm above the high.
What possible causes should I look at other than possible radiator caps going bad!
therafter1,
Mar 28, 1:09pm
If you don't know what you are doing take it somewhere and have it checked, could be cap, could be blocked radiator, could be faulty thermostat, could be head gasket / cracked head . probably work out cheaper in the long run to have proper inspection by someone that knows what they are looking for and how to look for it.
Age, make and model of vehicle will help posters to assist you.
bellky,
Mar 28, 2:02pm
wifiabc other than fitting the correct new caps you should do like thereafter says and get it checked. Also the difference in levels between morning and evening is due to the temp of the coolant - warmer coolant has more volume obviously.
wifiabc,
Mar 29, 8:27am
Thanks. How much could I expect to pay for a mechanic to check it out!
intrade,
Mar 29, 8:39am
did you change the cap for a new correct one like we told you in your other thread!
therafter1,
Mar 29, 10:05am
Most good reputable workshops will carry out the assessment for you for little or no charge. If during the assessment they determine what they believe the problem to be they will give you an idea as to the cost to rectify the problem. They should also advise you that during the course of the procedure to repair the problem there could be a possibility that other problems associated with the repair may be discovered. If that is the case they should advise you that further related or unrelated problems have been discovered and it will be in your interest to have those problems rectified and it will be for you to decide if you wish them to carry out the additional repairs.
If you take your vehicle to a workshop for an assessment and you then decide to either repair it yourself, or have it repaired elsewhere, then the workshop is completely entitled to charge you for any time and costs that have been incurred up to that point.
The expectation in relation to how much they will charge you for an assessment will be entirely dependent on the hourly charge out rate charged by the workshop that you choose to carry out the assessment, so before authorising them to carry out the assessment ask them what their GST inclusive charge out rate is.
therafter1,
Mar 29, 10:11am
In the interim with the symptoms that you have described I would very strongly suggest that you desist from running / using the vehicle. Running vehicles without / insufficient coolant creates a huge probability that fatal damage will quite probably be caused.
therafter1,
Mar 29, 10:15am
In this or your other thread you have still not given any indication as to year, make and model of vehicle. There are an awful lot of vehicles running around that have inherent problems, and there are an awful lot of posters on this MB board that have a lot of experience. With the provision of those details you are assisting them to assist you, without those details everything posted in relations to your queries could only at best be described as a 'stab in the dark'!
wifiabc,
Mar 29, 5:59pm
Thanks everybody for the advice and suggestions. The car is a 1992 Toyota WindomV6.
I've not replaced the radiator caps yet. It seems to have 2 radiator caps,. One near the front, directly on top of the radiator and one next to the engine near the expansion reservoir.
thunderbolt,
Mar 29, 6:10pm
Now that we know the model, I would be getting a Tee Kay check ASAP.
Odds are you are looking at a blown head gasket.
thunderbolt,
Mar 29, 6:11pm
Have a look at both caps, only one is an actual radiator cap, the other is a solid cap (no spring mechanism)
therafter1,
Mar 29, 8:03pm
The chance that the problem could be related to the radiator cap on one of these exhibiting the described symptoms is remote at best. Veh description in the OP would have saved a bit of typing.
wifiabc,
Mar 30, 8:32am
What's a Tee Kay check!
yvette1,
Mar 30, 8:35am
Checks for combustion gases in the coolant which confirms head gasket leakage
daryl14,
Mar 30, 8:29pm
Get a mobile mechanic around to look at it before you drive it again. If you do drive it, it may be for the last time.
sr2,
Mar 30, 11:12pm
All I can say is that if I'd had the brains some 30 years ago and invested in a company that supplied radiator caps and thermostats I'd be a millionaire! After more years in the industry that I'll ever care to admit, (particularly to you fellow bastards on this MB!) I can probably only count on the fingers of one hand the number of times an overheating issue was a result of a thermostat/rad cap problem.
bwg11,
Mar 31, 7:31am
Yep. A shiney new radiator cap is a real warning sign to look further when buying or assessing older tradeins.
a.woodrow,
Mar 31, 7:40am
It has either a blown head gasket/s or a cracked head/s. Either fault are pretty much uneconomical to repair, mostly due to the labour component and the value of the vehicle. If you really want to keep it, find a second hand motor to fit. if you're not in a position to replace it then your only option would be a head gasket repair in a bottle and cross your fingers and toes. This might buy you enough time to replace it.
wifiabc,
Mar 31, 12:52pm
I'm waiting for the workshops to re-open after the easter holidays to let the mechanic have a look. Fingers crossed that it's just radiator cap or thermostat because the temperature gauge is showing normal, oil at dipstick looks normal, no white smoke.
I top up the reservoir a bit and drove to church - 4km, keeping an eye on the temperature gauge. It rises slowly to normal after about 1km and remains there all the way to church. Pop up the bonnet and check the reservoir, level went up a bit but no boiling. Is that a good sign that it may not be the dreaded Blown Head Gasket !
If the car has a blown head gasket, can I still sell it! How much is it worth with a blown gasket!
a.woodrow,
Mar 31, 12:57pm
Yes it'll have a blown headgasket/cracked head Yes you can sell it It's worth sub $500 as is
intrade,
Mar 31, 12:59pm
its a good sign so far. hope you did some praying in church that it is just the radiator cap.
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