4wd troubles

my 4wd is using 2 litres of water a day just doing a few kms....around town...cant see any leaks and its not going into the engine...........its not sucking water from the plastic overflow bottle.....nor putting water into it.. does not lose any water sitting still overnite.....could it be the radiator cap?

is it running ruff? i used to have a ford that did that. it had a crack in the head and was sucking the water in then spitting it out the exhuast! if its not leaking and the water is disapearing then its gota be going somewhere!

I would recomend you take the vehicle to a radiator or other workshop that has a little pump that is attached to the radiator, get them to pressure test the system and most likely the leak will show up.
Cheers and hope it is a simple as that
Ron

Sounds like the head or head gasket to me too!!!

Is there condensate in your exhaust gases?

Mick,

It sounds like compression is leaking into the water jacket while the engine is under load forcing the water out of your radiator cap. You probably need to replace the head gasket.
When removing the head make sure that the engine is stone cold or it will warp.

Remove the radiator cap when the engine is cold.....start the engine and look into the radiator.....see if there are any bubbles or streaks of oil in the water.
Good luck.

Talk about car problems, about 2 monthes ago was coming home from a weekend away engine light comes on and i think whats this i just put in oil and water and i thought ok ill stop at the servo which was a couple of k's away then the light comes back on so i pull over and then the car die's get out of the car and theres smoke billowing out and oil and water pouring onto the road had to get towed home, car 1 dead, 2 weeks later in gf's car coming into maryborough notice temp gauge high seconds before pulling up bang top of radiator blows off where the top hose connects, only small part left to reconnect the hose so i kept topping it up and screwing the hose on every 2 k's it would blow again, got it back to mums borowed her car to go back to melbourne picked up a radiator and put that back in and i notice the water level dropping and theres no leaks check the dip stick and the oil went from black to poo brown so i did the head gasket on that as well, now ive been catching a train and bus to work for 3 weeks, does anyone know what would cause my gf's car to over heat so fast if i attempt to do the head gaskets myself im worried that whatever caused it to overheat in the first place might do it again.

thanks 4 that!

In my 44 years as a mechanic, I have seen many a motor ruined by the time the temp guage starts to say HOT!!! If you rely on a temp warning light or guage then you will have trouble. The only time they are useful is if your radiator is partially blocked and it will read higher than normal, or if your thermostat is stuck open and and it will then read colder than normal. Of course you still have to see the guage with the abnormal reading and this means constantly checking it.
If a hose bursts, then usually the damage will be done by the time you or the guage register a problem.
Preventative maintenance is the only answer guys. Honestly, how many of you check under your bonnet weekly? When did you check your tyre pressures last? I fixed an overheating problem on a car once by blowing the tyres up to the correct pressure. The poor old thing was working too hard with flat tyres. Fixed the fuel consumption problem at the same time...
Claimpeg, I wouldn't guess what is wrong with your 4x4. Get it checked properly before more damage is done. I wouldn't be still driving it untill I had done so.
The Panther

Hello Claimpeg,
With the symptoms you have described my guess your 4WD has an aluminium head and electrolysis between copper from your radiator and the aluminium has corroded a small hole in a head exhaust port and the water is disappearing out the exhaust. Do you reguarly use inhibitor in radiator water?
Heads can be welded if this problem occurs but is expensive.
Good luck

Nightjar

.

How many check their Anode?

One`s hot water unit will last a lot longer too.

Mick,

Claimpeg, what did you do about your " noisy tappets"?

https://golddetecting.forumotion.net/general-discussion-f1/noisy-tappets-t2159.htm

I had a new cylinder head arrive yesterday ($600), as whoever owned the vehicle before me drove the engine into the ground. They hadn't changed oil often enough, wasn't looking after coolant etc. As a result, overheating, broken rocker arm, sticky lifters etc
The head I took off was cracked in more places than one.

They say "if its got tits or tyres, it will give you trouble"
ie; both need maintaining, a rub and a good inspection every so often


Its time to put your hand in your pocket claimpeg, and take it to the mechanic or the wreckers if you have holes in your pockets....

Cheers, Ferris.

tappets are lots quiter, dont know why....its an old car, i will try a new radiator cap...no water in oil, or exhaust..hope its not something expensive....cant afford it.

I work for a courier company... i drive little Hyundis, the owner has had them about 10 years...never give any trouble. So cheap on fuel too.

Gday Claimpeg


I had a similar thing going on with my troopie radiator, the thing wasnt overheating or anything its just that when I got out of it even after doing a few klms I would get a whiff of the inhibitor, it wouldnt have been using a couple of litres of water like your is but probably needed a cup or two every now and again.

What I discovered it was in the end is that the radiator had a crack in the soldering at the front of the top tank, under the fan shroud where it could not be seen and the coolant was just seeping down the front of the radiator between it and the condensor so it could not be seen from the front either, as the radiator warmed up and pressure built it would just open up the crack enough to let the cooland seep out.

It wasnt bad but these things rarely get better on their own so I had the radiator out and re cored and re soldered just in case, but I could have probably fixed the crack myself if I had to just by removing the paint from the seam and re melting the solder into the channel with the pencil torch or oxy.

Anyway I hope its only a simple fix for you, but look for the obvious and simple things first.

cheers

stayyerAU

Heres a curve ball one, the floor or or flooring in your car is not getting wet? If it is it could be the internal heater radiator is stuffed and leaking.
Have had that one happen to me before, it's a cheaper fix if it is. Just reroute the plumbing.

Cheers

.

found it...it had a leak in the top tank...thanks for help!

Good to hear Claimpeg. It just is not possible to diagnose a vehicles problems on a forum. You are fortunate that yours has been a minor repair. Still, check all your hoses and belts at the same time, AND, if you have been topping it up with plain water, make sure the correct strength of inhibitor is now applied. Happy travels in your ... (whatever make) 4x4.

Panther

As panther said, good ya found your leak and that it is external to the donk.

The green cordial for the radiator is needed. If ever buying a car, check the colour of the coolant, if its a vivid green colour, it's a good sign! (But they also may have just had it serviced the day before after 10 years of nothing.... )

Nulon have concentrated corrosion inhibitor which i have found to be cost effective- i think a litre? (might be a half litre) bottle makes up to 10 litres of green cordial for about $12- good value in comparison to the pre-mix stuff.
As for the noisy tappets.... a engine low on oil can start making noises like that also.

Cheers, Ferris.

its an old car, i may sell my detector (i"ve only used it about 6 times this year anyway) and buy a cheap small car. they seem less trouble and go forever!

I am going to drive a commodore station wagon vs chain drive at red dirt roads like the road warrior on our expedition. everything else will be backpack.