Valerian 0 Posted January 1, 2006 Well i've spent most the afternoon out in the drizzle fitting a new thermostat. Put everything back together....warmed the engine up.....coolant starts leaking out from under the car.....leaking from elbow. Took the whole thing apart again......can't see any problems apart from the elbow looks slightly deformed......put it all back together......hey presto it's still leaking. When i took it apart someone had applied a little sealant to the joint previously.......now it's dark so i've given up. Why on earth did they make the elbow from plastic? Looks like i may need to order a new one from VAG now. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VEEDUBBED 0 Posted January 1, 2006 I don't thik it's the elbow mate,did you check the rubber 'o'-ring fitted ON the elbow?,might have fallen off or got twisted/kinked etc,and you were working in twilight... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Valerian 0 Posted January 1, 2006 Could be .....it's quite tricky trying to hold it all in place upside down (although from what i could see it seemed to be in the right place).....i was wondering about using some sealant to hold the o'ring in place whilst reassembling. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VEEDUBBED 0 Posted January 1, 2006 That's right mate,or if not some thick grease,also,when you put the bolts back in,it helps if you first put a 10mm nut inside your socket and then some masking tape around the bolt's head in order that the bolt can't tilt during the tricky relocation,i know what a pig of a job it can be,but to have to do it twice... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Supercharged 2 Posted January 1, 2006 Always replace the plastic parts when doing anything on the cooling system, they go brittle and warp with age so changing the O rings is not enough! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Valerian 0 Posted January 1, 2006 Always replace the plastic parts when doing anything on the cooling system, they go brittle and warp with age so changing the O rings is not enough! when the elbow is bolted down (or rather up) to the housing it's quite evident that it's not mating entirely flush......looks to be warped......i did notice this before i took it all apart the first time.....would explain why it had sealant around the joint. Still can't see why they use plastic though. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Supercharged 2 Posted January 1, 2006 Still can't see why they use plastic though. I'm sure it's just to do with cost... the dealers usually mention it when you buy a waterpump or stat for an old car but some aren't as good as others... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Valerian 0 Posted January 1, 2006 I better order one then .....already waiting for a cambelt tensioner.......this will be another week i won't get to drive the C again ......ah well Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VEEDUBBED 0 Posted January 1, 2006 Valerian,i'm sure i've got a spare elbow(not kinked) and i've got about 6 spare 8v tensioners,if you like i could post off those components,there only wasted sitting in a box anyway.. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Valerian 0 Posted January 1, 2006 Pretty sure the 16 valve tensioner is different to the 8 Valve one......Dealer will have the tensioner here for me Wednesday.......i guess the elbow will be here about the same time if they are working tomorrow. I think it would take longer to get here from Italy.....lol.......but many thanks for the offer. I'm just a bit cheesed off at the mo coz all i've done is fix things on the C since i got it ......it's not been very well cared for in the past hence i bought it cheap. The weather and time of year is another frustrating factor. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Valerian 0 Posted January 2, 2006 Weather has been pretty good today so had a look to see where it was leaking from and BLOW ME.....I'de left a pipe clip off one of the pipes in my rush to put it all back together *wack* Thanks for your support though guys Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
