nanananananana-angus Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 My engine overheated and popped between the Maybury and Barnton roundabouts last night,in rush hour traffic,feckin nightmare. Anyway I managed to nurse the car home,had to stop to let the engine cool down about 4 times,knocked on doors of strangers to borrow kettles of water. Anyway I checked the coolant reservoir this morning and it's empty.Does this mean I have a definate leak somewhere or does the coolant dissapate or evaporate over time? Also, should I be wary of any other damage that may have resulted from the overheating or from my nursing the car home? I haven't much of a clue about combustion engines so excuse my ignorance if my questions are stupid. Thanx. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EuanD Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 It could be one of the coolant pipes has split or it could be your head gasket is away or worse still a crack in your head. The coolant should not evaporate over a short period of time. I would get the car booked into a garage so as they can do a pressure check on the head to see if any further damage has been done. Normally when a car overheats the head gasket will go and the head it's self warps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nanananananana-angus Posted October 2, 2009 Author Share Posted October 2, 2009 It could be one of the coolant pipes has split or it could be your head gasket is away or worse still a crack in your head. The coolant should not evaporate over a short period of time. I would get the car booked into a garage so as they can do a pressure check on the head to see if any further damage has been done. Normally when a car overheats the head gasket will go and the head it's self warps Cheers bud,I was kinda hoping that I wouldn't have to take it to a garage,being skint and all, but it looks like I'm going to have to bite the bullet. Re the coolant,are you saying it does evaporate over time?If there is a leak somewhere would it not be obvious, like an oily stain on my drive for example? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fat Bob Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 Open your oil filler cap, if it looks like your engine is using mayonaise instead of oil, thats as good an indicator as you'll get that the head gasket is away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cigaro Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 Open your oil filler cap, if it looks like your engine is using mayonaise instead of oil, thats as good an indicator as you'll get that the head gasket is away. Spot on. Happened to my Corsa:( Drive a Rover now and I'm extra vigilant of coolant levels, and how I drive it whilst the engine is cold because they have a bit of a reputation for HGF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EuanD Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 Open your oil filler cap, if it looks like your engine is using mayonaise instead of oil, thats as good an indicator as you'll get that the head gasket is away. As correct as this is it's not always a full proof as you can get mayo in normal operation due to a build up on condensation Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.