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Ceejay

Posted: Sat Aug 15, 2020 11:43 am

Joined: Aug 15, 2020
Posts: 2
Trade Rating: 0

Hiya, rude of me for a first post but there's a lot of expertise here and I need some advice if possible?

I've got an '03 1.1L 206 that was gifted to me at the start of lockdown so I don't have to use public transport (I'm not NHS, police etc. but I am an essential worker so I continued working).

Problem, it uses water, about half a litre a week.

There's no emulsion in the coolant reservoir or oil that I can see (haven't drained it, just in the filler cap and on dipstick) but the reservoir is always pressurised, even when cold after being left overnight which worries me and makes me think the head gasket/head may have an issue.

What I've checked so far:

Temperature gauge, hovers just under half way when driving, creeping up, just over halfway when in slow or stopped traffic and comes back down quickly when driving again

Heater blows hot (when the engine is hot obvs) but there's sometimes a trickle of water on the passenger mat, I'm guessing the matrix and O-ring seals need replacing which isn't a difficult job but I don't want to go to the trouble if I really need to do the head gasket, I can live with a bit of water on the foot mat for a bit.

Any hints on how to diagnose definitively would be appreciated because it's really not worth chucking a lot of money at?

ekjdm14

Posted: Sat Aug 15, 2020 1:51 pm

Joined: Jan 06, 2020
Posts: 176
Trade Rating: 0
Location: Cheshire

To be honest the best check for this type of suspect HG failure is to either ask a local tame garage to put their emission probe in the top of the header tank (just in the air space, not actually in the coolant!) while the engine's running and see if it detects any CO. There's also a "sniffer" type chemical you can add to the coolant that changes colour if combustion gases are present.

I'm fairly hopeful that it's just going to be a matrix leak, but one thing to check apart from that is, does the car have AC that works? If so, the water in the passenger footwell can be a blocked drain from the heater/evaporator box. Another favourite source of leaks from TU cooling systems is the plastic thermostat housing, it warps and cracks over time so worth checking thoroughly around the gearbox end of the head for evidence of dried-up coolant crusties.

Also, check the cooling system is properly bled, I've had an airlock still allow the heater to work but cause the thing to locally overheat and blow coolant out after a while. (Basically, overfill the reservoir to the brim, leave cap off, start engine and loosen bleed screw on heater hose until pure liquid comes out, and then let it run through until the level is right before tightening the screw back in)


	'02 1.4HDi Mercury Grey 102k (waiting for it's time to shine once more) '03 GTi 180 Aegean Blue 92k (suffering gearbox/diff issues) '53 Obsidian Black XUD9TE/veg fuelled b-road toy (in surgery for MoT workarounds) '56 SW 1.4i Verve Aegean Blue 70k (new £50 project with roasted lump) +'95 Citroen Xantia 1.9D auto (on loan to inlaws) +'99 306 2.0SE cabriolet +'97 306 1.9LXDT French Car Forums

Ceejay

Posted: Sat Aug 15, 2020 4:55 pm

Joined: Aug 15, 2020
Posts: 2
Trade Rating: 0

Think they sniff for HC but I know what you mean (long time ago I worked at a garage equipment supplier, serviced, repaired and sold diagnostic gear) I'll investigate the chemical test things, I have a vague memory of those.

The car does have working AC but I'm pretty sure it's coolant on the mat because when I've mopped it up with a tissue it's coloured which suggests anti-freeze.

Interesting on the airlock, I'd heard these cars are a bit of a b***er to bleed so I'll have a go at that tomorrow, I might even find a workshop manual so I can find the bleed screw Smile

Thanks, some things to work on there.

I'll be doing the work myself, so if it's the head any tips on where to get it tested/skimmed? (I'm V.nearly Cheshire too)

I may also bung in a bottle of some stop leak stuff and run it until it dies

ekjdm14

Posted: Sat Aug 15, 2020 7:28 pm

Joined: Jan 06, 2020
Posts: 176
Trade Rating: 0
Location: Cheshire

If it's the same as all the others I've looked at the bleed screw should be in one of the heater hoses behind the engine.

You could double check it's definitely coolant in the footwell by running with A/C off (or in ECO if it's digital) on a cooler day & see if the drip stops or not. I almost suggested some Bars Leaks or similar, that could be an option if all else fails. If it comes to whipping the head off, Dave at EMS in Crewe hopefully is still in business. Been a couple of years since I've had any machine work need doing but would thoroughly recommend him. He's a one man band type of place that still deals in crank/cam grinding and all sorts, working out of a unit on Kents Green Lane, back end of Crewe.
Hopefully won't need that though, to be honest depending on the mileage and how well looked after the rest of the engine is, it might be cheaper/more sensible to replace the whole engine with a good runner if the head gasket has actually gone. (We just sold a complete 1.1 engine/box last month out of a 90k '53 plate car for £60, so shouldn't cost too too much).

fingers crossed though it's just the heater being incontinent, not seen a great many TU type engines with major head issues aside from the usual oil leaks, normally it's thermostat housing and fan wiring issues that scare people off but they're a pretty tough little motor really. (In honesty, the only TU I can recall having serious problems was the 178k 1.4 car we bought years ago just for the new tyres that were on it. That was running fine albeit bathed in oil, until we fed it stones/glass/screws and nails & even then it was still running when the scrap man collected the remains, just managed to punch a screw through the water jacket!


	'02 1.4HDi Mercury Grey 102k (waiting for it's time to shine once more) '03 GTi 180 Aegean Blue 92k (suffering gearbox/diff issues) '53 Obsidian Black XUD9TE/veg fuelled b-road toy (in surgery for MoT workarounds) '56 SW 1.4i Verve Aegean Blue 70k (new £50 project with roasted lump) +'95 Citroen Xantia 1.9D auto (on loan to inlaws) +'99 306 2.0SE cabriolet +'97 306 1.9LXDT French Car Forums

clicon357

Posted: Sun Aug 16, 2020 10:24 pm

Joined: Jul 11, 2011
Posts: 95
Trade Rating: 0
Location: Kent

This is where the two hoses for the heater matrix go through the bulkhead in the engine bay.

On my 1.4i petrol the bleed screw is on the top hose, about the size of a tyre cap. You can just see the bleed cap sticking up about 2" from the bulkhead behind the shiny black pipe on the right.

It's NOT a tyre cap so FFS don't lose it! If bleeding when the system is hot I'd wear one of those thin, disposable, grippy rubber gloves that you can feel a bit through rather than get scalded. Nothing like hot water to make you drop that cap on the gravel drive.

I recently changed the heater matrix pretty much by following this:

youtu.be/eMHAGK2PsXM

Matrix was about £25 I think. Pattern part but all good. I did fit extra M5 nuts and bolts inside where the matrix attaches to the two pipes.

After doing I saw what I thought was moisture glistening at the new heater matrix joint but was just the silicone grease I smeared there upon assembly to ease things back together.

I have though put another two fixings in to back up the single original screw that was there. 3 screws; one (the original screw) needs a T20 on a long extension, another an 8mm socket on the same extension and the 3rd an Allen key! Better that than taking the dash apart. You'll need 2 more M5 square nuts btw. (Just realised the pic below shows what looks like a 4mm hex bit in an M5 cap head screw for one of the fixings! Whatever you have/can get in and reach with whatever tool).

If I were you I'd take the glove box out as shown in the video then get your head up there and look for signs of leaks. A decent low profile head torch is very handy for this.


	..........I can\'t help it I just like French cars!

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