She's steaming!

[A Van]

I would be surprised if its the brakes, they would be red hot and would take some while to cool down, also the steam thing doesnt quite add up and the car would likely drag slightly to that side.

A

[Dan6457]

hmmm true. Unless he's got the tracking set wrong to compensate for the dragging brakes :lol: It might be your otterstat leaking and dripping down, then when accelerating it goes onto your cat or cat bypass pipe.

[A Van]

Yes but he says he isnt losing any coolant??

[PJ Grady (Europe)]

Hi Carl,

At a guess, I'd say that your car is overheating and that the steam could be coolant under pressure going down the bleed tube and dripping onto the exhaust.
I'm pretty sure there will be a coolant drop, but maybe not enough to be immediately obvious.

As Nick T says, a coolant pressure test would be a good idea (local garage can do this) and worth checking the thermostat too to make sure it's working OK - although they're only about £15 or so to buy a new one).

Once thermostat and coolant pressure checked - let the car idle and see when fans kick in.

Drop me a mail if you need any help...

Darren

[PJ Grady (Europe)]

One other thing that I remember from your car is that the otterstat is mounted the other way up (i.e. sensor sitting in the op of the pipe facing downwards).

In a lot of cases, this is OK, and is easier to access (and you don't have to drain the collant to swap them out). However, if your collant runs a little low, the sensor is no longer fully submerged in the coolant, which could mean the fans don't get the signal as quickly as they should.

If you are having overheating problems, it wouldn't be a bad idea to get the otterstat positioning changed so that the sensor faces upwards into the pipe - so will always be submerged - giving an accurate reading of coolant temperature.

Simple enough job that you could do yourself/local garage - but will require a coolant change (as it'll all leak out when you unfasten the pipe).

Hope this helps...

Darren

[bozzzydmc]

Good point Darren .

I just slack off the 2no hose clips and quickly rotate the metal pipe on the rubber hoses and tighten again. If your quick you loose only a dribble :wink:

[Glen & Sam]

hi all

been there done that and i must agree it works as you will find that the leads have a tend to fall off and that stops the fans working plus the bleed kit does work as i have it on mine at the moment

[Carl Hammond]

Some more top advice there thanks guys.

Right, I will try and get the car down to me local garage at the weekend for a coolant pressure test (guessing this a straight forward job for a garage then?) and report back to you.

From what everyone is describing, it certainly all sounds related to the same problem which is good, I guess!

By the way, I went to check the car last night and noticed a few spots of engine oil on the garage floor, not a lot but could it be related? :?

Cheers

Carl

[Guinney1971]

a few spots of oil on the floor is probably a leaking oil pressure switch.

Common fault! :roll:

[Carl Hammond]

Hey Claire,

Yep, I think it's her way of telling me she's knackered after her big weekend! (sigh) :lol:

It was nice to see you again, hope you have a speedy recovery as possible.

Kind regards

Carl

[Peter Filsell]

Hey Carl,

As you know im not going to be about for a week but if you are still struggling, I'll pop on by and see if we can do some fault finding!!!!

[Carl Hammond]

Well it's definitely a water leak, I took the car out last night to see if I could get her to steam again, only had to get to the end of the road and sure enough she started! :roll:

Hopped straight out and opened the engine cover, almost immediately noticed a few spots on the top left hand side of the exhaust. Then noticed the coolant hose runs directly above that, felt around the pipe and it appeared to be slightly damp towards the area with the jubilee clip (nearest the otterstat).

The thing is it doesn't look I have lost any more coolant judging by the level in the bottle, so it could it just be that I'm losing the odd drop every now and then? Not sure why this would happen during acceleration though? :?

It's pretty alarming whilst driving along to suddenly see steam coming out of ur engine cover! However, I guess even the tiniest drop of water straight onto a red hot exhaust would cause that kind of reaction though, wouldn't it?

Looking for some reassurance to calm me down a bit guys! :oops:

Thanks

Best regards

[NickT]

It might just need a clean around the end of the pipe.
The aluminium pipe might have corroded slightly.

NickT

[Chris Hawes]

What's the quality of the hose and hose clip like? If the rubber seems sound the hose clip may only need tightening slightly. Be careful not to over tighten so as to not cause any damage to the hose...

[Carl Hammond]

Hi Chris/Nick.

It looks like there is slight corrosion on the pipe towards the otterstat, the rubber hose at first glance looks ok. I will take a piccie when I get a chance and see what you guys think.

The thing is I am supposed to be doing a prom tomorrow night for a friend. I don't have very far to go (about 60 miles round) and was wondering if I can get away with a quick 'patch up' jobby to see me through?

Maybe water proof tape around that area of the pipe if it is just a few drops I am losing? Also, to keep the engine nice and cool perhaps I should just wire the fans so they run continuously?

I do have some time in the morning to run her down to me local garage, is it still worth getting a coolant pressure test done?

Cheers

Best regards

Carl