. . . and then the car filled with steam . . .

[theRuler 0]

morning chaps long time no speak.

 

i got a "situation"

 

just before i arrived at work today, there was a big pssssssssssssssss-shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh-ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff ing noise. my fan switch was set to "3" (1, 2 and 3 dont work) and i though wow fan position 3 has started working again!

 

no such luck

 

the woooshing sound got louder, and then the whole car filled with steam.

it was coming from behind the clocks. well from all around the clocks, and there was water running down to the drivers footwell.

 

now i'm not a mechanic, but i'd say there's a chance that something could be wrong.

 

i had to pull over and let the steam out, and wipe the windscreen a bit, then i made the last dash (about 200 yards) to work.

 

i presume i am looking at a popped heater matrix. i had one go before on a mk2 golf. thankfully that time only on the drive and vw replaced it for free due to some fault recall.

is there a similar recall for my 94 corrado vr6?

[GIXXERUK 0]

yup sounds like the heater matrix , not sure about a recall tho

it could possibly be a perished hose or bad connection to the matrix....if you're lucky

[Andi 2,147,483,647]

There was a recall, but due to the car being 10+ years old now, they are very unlikely to uphold it.

They only need to keep it open for 6 years IIRC, so it's a bit late...

 

Better get ya' spanners and screw-drivers out. It'll be a long night...and day...and night... ;)

[theRuler 0]

damn.

my 1988 mk2 golf matrix was replaced by VW in 2000. i'll try vw - never know!

failing that i'll nip out of the office with a screwdriver and get the plastic bits off and have a look.

 

is it hard to change the matrix? the last one i did myself was in a mk1 golf!!

[HiAsAKite 0]

Sounds like the heater matrix.. I had the same happen to me...

 

First off.. get all the carpets out the car and wash them anbd dry them out to get all the coolant out.

 

Make sure the coolant hasn't fired any of the electronics (I was unfortunate in having my immobiliser located next to the matrix when mine went... cue one fried immobiliser).

 

You can buy a replacement matrix from GSF for £35 or so...

 

Now the tricky part... to replace the matrix properly, you need to take the dashboard out.. though there are people who've managed it without taking the dashboard out..

 

 

I haven't yet done this since this is a 4-8 hour job to take out and replace...and I want top make sure when it comes to putting it back its all wired up correct...

 

Best of luck getting sorted.. in the interim you can bypass the matrix (which is what I'm running with at the moment)

[theRuler 0]

top info there mate!

 

bypass the matrix? i think i will have to do that to get home from work today.

 

take the dash out? sheeeeesh. still, a good chance to give everything a good clean. while its out i can change all the bulbs that have gone. maybe even fixed the fan switch.

 

thanks for the help guys.

[vr6storm 0]

iirc the heater matrix valve recall was only for early Corrado production..........the only recall there was for the VR6 was something to do with the wiring of the radiator fans

[GIXXERUK 0]

when you do it mate, it might be handy to take pics and do a "how to" and mail it to dinkus.....for future ref for peeps

as i said you may be more than lucky and find a burst pipe

[theRuler 0]

good idea!

will do.

[HiAsAKite 0]

Yep.. to make the car drivable again you just need to bypass the matrix and fill it up with coolant again....

 

Incidentallly... I assume you turned the engine off as soon as (well.. within 10-20 seconds or so) the steam and water started pouring out and haven't driven it since... (please say yes.. otherwise you may have run the engine with no coolant...:()

[theRuler 0]

hehe yes. i was like 30 seconds from work and i after i pulled over to let the steam out, i hoofed it to work. tbh there isnt that much water in the footwell, so it still has some.

 

i can still smell antifreeze. which side do the pipes join the matrix?

[GIXXERUK 0]

theRuler, when are you fixing this ? i could scan you some pages from the bentley if it helps but i wont get it back til wednesday (out on loan at the mo)

[HiAsAKite 0]

If you look in the engine bay.. at the top of the bulkhead between the engine bay and passenger compartment there are two coolant pipes approx 30mm in diameter going into the top of the bulkhead.. these need to be disconnected and connected to one another...

[theRuler 0]

well i gotta do the bypass thing so i can drive home from work.

 

as for the matrix switch, i aim to do it ASAP!!

 

i have a manual on cd (i think it's bentley) i'll see if it helps.

so long as it doesnt say fitting is a reversal of removal i'll be ok

[theRuler 0]

If you look in the engine bay.. at the top of the bulkhead between the engine bay and passenger compartment there are two coolant pipes approx 30mm in diameter going into the top of the bulkhead.. these need to be disconnected and connected to one another...

 

tremendous info there.

i was picturing doing the bypass right at the matrix, inside the car (like a bone head)

 

when it's all cooled down i'll go out and survey the job. we have a "maintenance" dept here, so they should have a suitable bit o pipe.

 

damn if it wasnt for this forum i'd be walking home. and its 10 miles. and i aint exactly daley thompson either. more like twenty-a-day-ley thompson

[Henny 0]

I was going through the history I got with my Grey '91 G60 this weekend and I found the original recall letter from VAG... I'll scan it and post it up for you tonight... 8)

 

I'm pretty sure that it won't cover VR6's though.... :|

[Tempest 0]

original recall letter from VAG...

 

Could come in handy in my attempt to have mine replaced by VW as a precaution before the thing explodes. Last time I contacted them (even phoned VW HQ in MK), they just told me that my Rado wasn't on their records because it was a US-spec one, and it was too old anyway :-(

 

Tempest

[theRuler 0]

yeh nice one henny!

[Henny 0]

Tempest, I think with a little bit of photoshop editing, you'd probably be able to pull it off... ;) :lol:

[Jim 2]

Did someone say Photoshop? I'm handy at this kinda thing :D

[Tempest 0]

I think with a little bit of photoshop editing, you'd probably be able to pull it off

 

:lol: Worth a try for sure.

 

Tempest

[theRuler 0]

right then i just fitted the bypass pipe, joining the 2 pipes together. put water in and run it up to temp.

 

then i noticed this:

 

the light shaded bit shows water that seemed to be collecting there. like it was being sprayed out from by the belt and all them pulleys

 

here's a shot of where the head meets the block. looks moist. the water seemed to be misting from there, although the belt was spraying it

 

heres another pic

 

and as i was undoing the clips, i slipped with the grips and the clip sprang open and twanged my thumb. i cant feel it yet.

[Tempest 0]

I've just decided to approach VW MK HQ again, this time in writing, having read about the success some Germans had with approaching Customer Services over in Germany, where some folk recently had their matrix explode on them, and again got themselves in some very dangerous situations (almost always with severe damage to the C, hitting central reservations on Autobahns etc.) due to total lack of visibility.

 

I emphasized the hazard an old non-replaced matrix forms, and its inherent potential for serious accidents possibly with major personal injury.

 

Let's see what they say ...

 

Tempest

[The Hub 0]

To me this doesnt sound like the Heater Matrix.... people who have experienced this before have always reported flooding in the Passenger well, not the drivers side??? Having done the matrix replacement, I can see why it would go into the passengers well and wouldnt go anywhere near the drivers side.

As for the recall, IIRC it only covered up till 93 and even so when you go to the dealers the computer shows up as "no recalls outstanding" usually! Worth a try anyway!

If you do need to do the Matrix replacement, use this guide as I used it to do mine and had never done work like this on any car before. Takes a while but isnt hard.

 

http://www.corrado-club.ca/forum/ultima ... 112#000003

[chubbybrown 0]

I tried the its up for recall and computer showed nothing outstanding.

grrrrrrrrrrrrrr