Sharp

Thanks Steve, I've topped up in the order you've said and the hoses are all equally warm now (though the thermostat is out). Nothing showing on the temperature guage now but it is sat still and guessing with it all going through the radiator that is also to be expected? Going to take it for a short run and see what happens.

I think I might have found the issue, although grateful for any advice. Thankfully I have a stove in the back! I've never done this test before but I presume the smaller disc on the left is meant to retract somehow. I've brought it up to temperature and couldn't notice any change then took it out, cooled it off and dropped it into boiling water and again no noticeable change. Presuming this is the problem (again, I have no idea so advice welcome), then (a) could this have done some damage? I've been on the motorway and not sure how long it was like that till I noticed the fan blowing cold and (b) can I run it without the thermostat in? A bit of googling suggests that it's not a great idea as the stat impedes flow and provides some back pressure. I've had it running without for ten minutes and it's warm, radiator water is now warm too, not smoking/steaming but still gurgling when I rev it.

The header tank is warm to the touch, the top pipes from the thermostat are hot but the water in the radiator is cold (having felt the big top hose feeling empty and then taking the radiator cap off to feel the water). It's still smoking/steaming from the header tank. Could the problem be a faulty thermostat? Is it possible to run the engine without it and see what happens?

Thanks Stephen. Temp guage seems to be working ok. I'm not sure why the cap has blown off though and concerned there might be an issue that caused it.

I am on holiday and driving up the A9 past Perth and noticed the heater blowing cold. When I opened the bonnet the expansion tank cap was gone and the tank empty. When I fill it up it goes a bit murky and smokes. Head gasket was done about 15-20k miles ago What are my options? 300tdi. I'm about 3 hours from home. VID_20230224_150638.mp4

Thanks for that FridgeFreezer. I ended up ordering "ExcLent 100Pcs 1N4001 1A 50V Diode" off amazon, more by luck than good management but it looks like they might have been the right ones?

Thanks for your help!

Thank you for this. Is this the correct placement? What do people normally use for this purpose? I can't seem to find many options for purchasing diodes with spade connectors. Is it acceptable to use something like the below and solder it onto a couple of connectors or to use an led? https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/264588472065?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=YRTmJau9QrW&sssrc=2047675&ssuid=Dk2aGYJqTmq&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

Thanks for the comments everyone, still finding my feet with the electrical stuff!

Something like this? https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/400517898772?hash=item5d40ba2214:g:KcIAAOSwHkReqyZV&amdata=enc%3AAQAHAAAA4DxhwTM%2F7%2FwblP2%2FR07t96jDRX0qa4nHPkvKY9sN0NZnfi7orINmzmv5MNIL4ScWfC1Bs7XIqsbZyVZcyTtU83bEnbx%2F9LdgwLMxY57enOZcZL3moiuYKzIcuMT2nAFn6Bpxp%2BFE2%2BsCJaxsSMM7TglM3Fn7A04SW9fOnpWEWJQISwY%2F7LWyKjnH9IAL21c6L9OpRTDBhXuPEvJwUlZeVT3YHtGhic5pewgMmySRrzJJv60GikuPHdwR%2BXuHAb%2BksjqpuM2cpjEEU7KJNWC12qxKwETd7fMEIWBEMAwTAHxR|tkp%3ABk9SR5D5h9nOYQ

I want to: 1 - feed my radio from my leisure battery 2 - have a second switch in the rear of the vehicle to switch it on. My radio has a permenant live feed and an ignition live feed. My plan is to have one live feed from the leisure battery to where the old permenant live went, and another running through a relay activated by (1) the ignition live that was previously feeding the radio, and (2) a switch in the back. I basically just want to be able to turn the radio off from the back and not run my starter battery down by listening to music. Will this work?

If you have chance and can find a way to do it, it would be well worth trying to test the box whilst you still have easy access to it. Also, depending on where you got the box from, try giving the paint a rub with your thumb. YMMV but I wish I'd given mine a pressure wash and painted it properly whilst it was off the vehicle. (I have not had the best luck with refurbished boxes and I'm not alone, seems like luck of the draw and it took me a couple of goes to get a decent one.)

Plus 2 for that tool, does the job well with the kunifer pipe.

Seeing as no one else has answered, this is a bit of guesswork and just what I would try so no guarantees. Hopefully someone who understands wiring better will be able to help. Sorry, I don't know why you have three brown wires, my guess is the right hand one is your permanent live and the double brown wire might be redundant after the engine swap. I wouldn't just connect both of them as presumably it has a second connection on the original ignition so that it is not always powered and you might fry something if it's always on. You can check what the wires are with a multimeter: The permanent live should read 12V all the time, the ignition live should read 12V when the ignition is on in any position, accessory feed should be live when in positions 1 and 2 and the starter feed should be live when the key is turned to position 3.

Just to follow up: I ordered some 3.2mm hose and that fixed the proplem. Thanks for the help.

Thanks both. Upon closer inspection there looks to be diesel around the injectors so it looks like you're correct with your diagnosis. I've ordered some pipe up

I'm assuming fuel draining back into the tank somehow. If it's sat for a while (few hours or so) and I turn the key it fires up then immediately dies as if it's burned whatever was left and then run out, after about 10 seconds of cranking it starts up and will start up again straight after. Not experienced any loss of power while driving. Could a faulty lift pump cause this? I had the tank out and fitted a new fuel filter a few months ago but has been running ok since then. The other day I took the key out of it quite quickly and it kept running for a few seconds but hasn't done that since.

Just to update on the outcome. After changing the filters, filling the fuel filter with injector cleaner and taking it for a few hard runs it passed the emissions test with a figure of 0.46.

Another vote for that flaring tool. That was the tool I got the first time I needed to do brake pipes and it's been great.

The bolts should have loctite on them, so even a little bit of heat will help. I can't remember the size, but a 12 point imperial socket sometimes fits better than a 13mm. Perhaps a 1/2 inch? Good luck with the irwin extrators, they've saved my bacon a few times but when I took the old calipers off my 110 for the first time I had to resort to the angle grinder.

Thanks for everyone's help. I've ordered a bottle of RedX diesel system cleaner - sounds like wonder stuff! Is the consensus to put it into a new filter then, instead of straight into the tank? The diesel is probably about 8 months old and there's about half a tank, would it be worth draining it out and putting some fresh in or some premium diesel?

Thanks again for everyone's suggestions. I'm not sure if it's relevant but I recently changed the head gasket and as far as my untrained eye/ear can tell it's running pretty well for a 300tdi. It's got 178k on the clock. The results are 3.64 - 3.93 - 4.45 - 0.85 - 2.18 - 1.7 (mean value 1.89). It says "plate value - 1.68" on the vehicle details section

Thanks for everyone's help. They've been doing the MOT on the landy since I got it and seem pretty straight. I have the results but they're at home so I'll post up the figures when I get back from work. I have put new filters in but after the test so hopefully that will help too, I think the air filter that's in is nearly 2 years old. It's always looked clean when I've done the oil so I've just blown it out and refitted so it was probably due a new one. The EGR has been blanked off.

My 1998 110 300tdi failed it's MOT on emissions after having been sat off the road for about 6 months*. I had given it what I thought was a decent run to the test centre but apparently not and wondering if anyone can give me some advice about what to do. On the way back I drove it at 60mph in 3rd with the pedal to the floor for a few 0.5 mile stretches. I didn't see any black smoke pouring out the back and it's not smoky when it's running. Does that sound like I've given it a good enough blast or not? Is there anything else I can do to help get it through? The exhaust itself is in good condition with two new sections and it's had a change of oil and new oil/air/fuel filters. * "Exhaust emissions exceed level of metered smoke for a turbo charged engine (8.2.2.2 (b))"