Steam through the vents

[asdf 0]

I picked up my 16v corrado yesterday (my first vw) and today sitting in traffic the temp went upto 102 and steam started coming through the vents. Underneath the header tank there seemed to be some water so i think that was where the steam was coming from. What could be wrong?

[Alex_G60_Fanatic 0]

was the steam drifting up and out the vents by itself or did you have the heater fan turned on?

 

how much water did you have in the tank? Sounds to me like you have sprung a leak somewhere... did you take the car up to temp when you bought her?? let the fan turn on ect... 102 degrees is hot enough to give you steam if you have a dodgy heater matrix, radiator or water hose...

 

Was it a private sale?

[asdf 0]

Yea i took the car upto temperature when i brought it. It was a private sale but it was cheap so i brought it knowing that things will probably need fixing. The steam came through when the fans were off although when i turned them on there was less steam. The area under the header tank seemed to be wet so i think its leaking out of the tank then landing on the hot stuff under the tank then going through the vents. The top of the engine wasnt any warmer then it should be (on inlet manifold or the block) and when i lifted the bonnet no steam came out atall. I dont think the car is overheating as such i think its just the hot water turning into steam.

[Alex_G60_Fanatic 0]

Yea i took the car upto temperature when i brought it. It was a private sale but it was cheap so i brought it knowing that things will probably need fixing. The steam came through when the fans were off although when i turned them on there was less steam. The area under the header tank seemed to be wet so i think its leaking out of the tank then landing on the hot stuff under the tank then going through the vents. The top of the engine wasnt any warmer then it should be (on inlet manifold or the block) and when i lifted the bonnet no steam came out atall. I dont think the car is overheating as such i think its just the hot water turning into steam.

 

if your sure thats where the waters coming from then id agree with you. Id spend a day checking the hoses going too and from the header tank and if you have the time, maybe drain the water out and remove the tank itself.

 

If there is a leak then the water coming out will be at or near boiling point when the cars hot. Dry up the area under the tank and get some paper. when the car is cold turn her on and place the paper in various places you expect it to leak, help you locate your culprit.

[asdf 0]

Well i just checked the header tank and there is oil in there. Im guessing its the head gasket but there is no other signs of it (engine oil is fine both on dipstick and inside the filler and the car isnt smoking atall. Going to take it to my mates garage now and get everything flushed and see if it happens again then if so ill put a new headgasket.

[Alex_G60_Fanatic 0]

Well i just checked the header tank and there is oil in there. Im guessing its the head gasket but there is no other signs of it (engine oil is fine both on dipstick and inside the filler and the car isnt smoking atall. Going to take it to my mates garage now and get everything flushed and see if it happens again then if so ill put a new headgasket.

 

 

lol... just like that!!! you've had the car how long?

 

Give the water tank a sniff, does it smell of exhaust fumes? TBH dude.. .had you not just give the previous owner a phone. A new head gasket isn't exactly cheep and you've only had the car 2 days! :confused4:

[asdf 0]

Im going to flush the cooling system and replace with water/coolant and drive around and see. Ive done headgaskets before on other cars (a few on bikes too) so its not a big problem to do it myself. Anywhere good online to order the gasket from? Also is there a guide on how to do it anywhere?

[Alex_G60_Fanatic 0]

Im going to flush the cooling system and replace with water/coolant and drive around and see. Ive done headgaskets before on other cars (a few on bikes too) so its not a big problem to do it myself. Anywhere good online to order the gasket from? Also is there a guide on how to do it anywhere?

 

Do you have a workshop or some where to skim the head after you've removed it then? you can get new head bolts and gaskets from VW, I wouldn't mess about with cheep replacements. just give your local dealer a bell with your chassis number handy.

 

But really mate... removing the head is no small task. And once you've skimmed the head then you can't re-skim it. It's a slippery slope of mayhem... you'll never have a good seal ever again either, no matter how much effort you put in to get a good seal the head will never sit right again. High oil consumption and minor leaking will become a common occurrence...

 

You Know what... How much did you spend? Id be tempted to fix the water leak and re-sell for another one. There is a few in the for sale thread that might temp you. If not then just be careful you diagnose your gasket problem. Last thing you wont to do it get the head off to find you didn't need too!

 

good luck with your pal tonight!

 

Oh, and welcome to corrado ownership!!!! :lol:

[asdf 0]

Well i just got back from the mechanic place and he said it probably isnt the head gasket (or if it is its only just starting to go) but he did point out something at the front of the engine near the bottom and said these go sometimes which could cause the oil in the tank. Im not quite sure what it was but he called it a something exchange and he said something goes on with oil and water down there. Going to flush the whole coolant system out and take it back to my mechanic mate's garage tomorow for a compression test and this other test he mentioned with a bottle which you place over the header tank and it turns to crystals. What psi should i be looking for in the cylinders?

[Alex_G60_Fanatic 0]

hmm good question... I own a G60 so im not to hot on these particular engines. Is it the 2litre? or the 1.8? I think that you should be looking for anything below 7.5bar as being bad... I'll have a look in my bently manual to see what that says on the subject.

 

That thing with the crystals basically measures CO and CO2 emissions (exhaust fumes) like i said in a previous post but more high tech! :lol:

 

Have you tried searching for the subject in the top right hand search bar? Maybe you'll find your crazy "something exchange" and recommended compression test figures

[asdf 0]

Thanks for all your help btw. Its the 2.0. And to answer your previous question there is no smell of exhaust gas in the header tank. Im sure most people in my situation would sell it but ive wanted one for ages and im not the type of person that gives up that easy. Ill have a look with the search now and see what comes up.

[Alex_G60_Fanatic 0]

Thanks for all your help btw. Its the 2.0. And to answer your previous question there is no smell of exhaust gas in the header tank. Im sure most people in my situation would sell it but ive wanted one for ages and im not the type of person that gives up that easy. Ill have a look with the search now and see what comes up.

 

I would have given up if the head had gone! but if your garage thinks the engine is sound and that the problem is minor then crack on buddy. There are far to few of these glorious cars on the rd without having another one dying on us. Stick at it and let us know how you get on.

 

Ohh and POST SOME PICTURES!

 

We love to see the competition! :grin:

[asdf 0]

Ill post some pictures soon. At the moment there is about as much gap between the wheel and the arch (some horrible standard alloys and standard suspension) as my range rover so its not exactly a looker. Just deciding on which wheels/suspension to buy once ive sorted out this engine problem.

[Alex_G60_Fanatic 0]

Ill post some pictures soon. At the moment there is about as much gap between the wheel and the arch (some horrible standard alloys and standard suspension) as my range rover so its not exactly a looker. Just deciding on which wheels/suspension to buy once ive sorted out this engine problem.

 

Lol your worried about the ride height! :lol:

 

you obviously not seen mine! Looks like a JCB

[asdf 0]

Well ive found out that the steam through the vents is a different problem to the headgasket that has gone. Headgasket is getting sorted anyway. Ive read something about the heater core causing this steam to come through the vents. Also i read something about how to bypass it but i couldnt find any information on how to. Is there a guide anywhere?

[Vince@Stealth 0]

Steam through the vents is almost definitely heater matrix leaking.......

This can be very dangerous in 2 ways,

1: Driver / passenger feet can get covered in boiling hot water.

2: Instant heavy misting of the winscreen, incredibly dangerous at any speed.

 

Oil In water tank will be caused by internal leak in your heat exchanger (oil cooler).

I have never seen a headgasket cause oil and water mix on 16V's,

always the oil cooler, so start with that and the heater matrix first.

[-=Kris=- 0]

Steam through the vents is almost definitely heater matrix leaking.......

This can be very dangerous in 2 ways,

1: Driver / passenger feet can get covered in boiling hot water.

2: Instant heavy misting of the winscreen, incredibly dangerous at any speed.

 

Oil In water tank will be caused by internal leak in your heat exchanger (oil cooler).

I have never seen a headgasket cause oil and water mix on 16V's,

always the oil cooler, so start with that and the heater matrix first.

 

I'd agree with vince on this one... simply because the same thing happened to me... 70mph on the outside lane of a dual carrigeway the heater matrix decided to blow, windscreen misted up instantly and i coudn't see sh*t... steam bellowing out the vents and dash... opened the windows and we looked like we were on our way to a dope smoking contest... had to ace ventura the car to safety before i could let the bugger cool and perform a matix bypass...

 

luckily i didn't get boiling water on my feet... just the bloomin electrics! :bad-words:

[millerman 0]

all hail kris the heater matrix guru :lol:

im hoping i never have to deal with the full misting at motorway speeds although try loose steering wheel nut on motorway :shock:

[asdf 0]

Steam through the vents is almost definitely heater matrix leaking.......

This can be very dangerous in 2 ways,

1: Driver / passenger feet can get covered in boiling hot water.

2: Instant heavy misting of the winscreen, incredibly dangerous at any speed.

 

Oil In water tank will be caused by internal leak in your heat exchanger (oil cooler).

I have never seen a headgasket cause oil and water mix on 16V's,

always the oil cooler, so start with that and the heater matrix first.

 

 

Ive been lucky and not had any water in the cabin. I did suffer from the windscreen steaming up instantly just as the traffic lights went green as i had just moved off the line which wasnt a nice experience. Ive only just brought it so i want to get it back on the road as soon as possible so im going to bypass the heater matrix (once i find out how) as i dont use the heaters anyway. My mechanic mate said that it could be the oil cooler as these are known to go. He did a compression test and he said that it was all fine so it may not be the head gaskset. If it is the oil cooler is this an expensive fix? Also would that cause the engine to overheat?

[asdf 0]

Well i bypased the heater thing today and while testing out my bypass (before i decided weather its worth spending money on it fixing the oil cooler) my bypass failed.

 

 

Looks like there was more oil in my cooling system then first imagined.

[-=Kris=- 0]

Holy crap!

 

It looks like ur engine went mud wrestling and lost!

[-=Kris=- 0]

Oh... and as alex mentioned...

 

 

Welcome to the joys of Corrado ownership! :clap:

[Alex_G60_Fanatic 0]

Dude... I'm famous for buying crap cars as anyone who knows me or has seen my thread can testify, But this valver takes the biscuit... you know. If your serious about fixing this car up you may want to think about getting a second car :wink:

[asdf 0]

Ive got a few other cars so its not a problem. v8 range rover for the daily, a mr2 (dont ask why), a 205 gti (in progress of fixing and tracking) and a few others in various states of repair.. Im going to have to rethink my heater bypass and order one of these oil cooler things and get to work on it.

[asdf 0]

Bit of an update. Ive cleaned the engine bay and properly bypassed the heater matrix now. The mechanic has looked at the engine and is certain its not the head gasket and its the oil cooler (i think he said. The thing at the front of the engine where the oil and water go through. He said these are known to go and this would explain my problems). What is this part called? Once i know that i can get it back on the road. I have thought about selling it a few times but i rememberd how much fun it was to drive while it worked (best part of 45 mins :) )

 

Thought id take a picture of it too as i havent taken any yet.