rdw Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 Hi, I had an accident in my 2003 TD5 diesel auto - mid December. Ended up sideways in a steep ditch at an angle of 45' with the front o/s wing againt a tree and the rear near side wheel off the ground. It stayed in this position for about a week as the conditions were such it couldn't be recovered. Had the front repaired and when I got it back, the first time I drove it, it lost so much coolant I ended up having it recovered back to home. Topped it up and it only leaks when hot. It's gone back too the repairers and again, I put about 3-4 litres on the garage forecourt. Although the coolant is puddling around the bottom of the rads' we couldn't find the source of the leak. I saw one drip from a connection next to the thermostat. Tried getting the engine up to temperature and found - sods' law - it barely dripped. The hoses were warm as was the expansion bottle but the radiator was cold. The thinking at the garage is that the thermostat is faulty and as the temp and pressure rises it's leaking from the thermostat connections. Does this make sense ? Has anyone experience anything similar ? It was running perfectly before the accident and thinking about it, it was resting with all gravitational force towards the front right headlamp. Is it possible sediment has gotten in to the thermostat and fouled it up to stop it working ? What do other members think ? Regards RDW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Niamh Posted February 5, 2011 Share Posted February 5, 2011 Do a pressure test when cold, if it's losing pressure at least you're searching for the escaping water round a cold engine, if you can't find the leak add tome UV marker and look with a black light. Niamh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dannytd5 Posted February 5, 2011 Share Posted February 5, 2011 I had a simlare one it lost all the water after the engine got warm eg on motoway I found the rad to be gone were the plasic joins the core but I only found out changing the rad by chance Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BogMonster Posted February 6, 2011 Share Posted February 6, 2011 The rad end tanks are a common leak point so the crash probably shook them up a bit. I'd change it but a new thermostat is never a bad investment either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rdw Posted February 6, 2011 Author Share Posted February 6, 2011 Thanks for your replies. When I get it back, I'll try the cold pressure test and see what happens. RDW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rdw Posted February 20, 2011 Author Share Posted February 20, 2011 A pressure test revealed the spring clip on the bottom rad connection had snapped in half. A 75p jubilee clip from Wickes sorted it. I had bought a new thermostat but couldn't see how I could replace it without stripping out the fan and rads. How is it done ? Also, the electric fan is on constantly, I thought I read on here somewhere, that it is fairly redundant in the UK so I have left it disconnected. Any views on this ? Genuine thanks for your assistance - Niamh - Danytd5 & Bogmonster - I think without this site the Landy would have been traded in a long time ago ! rdw Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lynall Posted February 20, 2011 Share Posted February 20, 2011 A pressure test revealed the spring clip on the bottom rad connection had snapped in half. A 75p jubilee clip from Wickes sorted it. I had bought a new thermostat but couldn't see how I could replace it without stripping out the fan and rads. How is it done ? Also, the electric fan is on constantly, I thought I read on here somewhere, that it is fairly redundant in the UK so I have left it disconnected. Any views on this ? Genuine thanks for your assistance - Niamh - Danytd5 & Bogmonster - I think without this site the Landy would have been traded in a long time ago ! rdw I had the same fan problem with my old TD5 and it took ages to find out what was wrong, basically when the engine detects an overheat situation it sticks the fan on all the time the engine is running and i couldnt switch it off until i bought a nanocom. But until i got the nanocom i just pulled the fuse, cant remember which one as it was ages ago. Lynall Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rdw Posted February 21, 2011 Author Share Posted February 21, 2011 Yes, that makes sense, thank you. rdw Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.