this is the beginning of a beatiful relationship!!

[Squig]

if the stat isn't working then you, in effect, don't have a radiator...
Not absurd at all.

[cavy130sri]

oh, and i just had the new one put in too. shucks, it'll just have to wait till next week, along with the other jobs.

i just discovered in the last two days, that i have a whirring noise coming from timing belt, or the one below it, i forget its name. none of the wheels the belt runs around are stationary, yet it sounds as if there is.????

ne ideas folks, and cud this be a big problem?

[Squig]

tensioner bearing?

[cavy130sri]

will that be on the or part of the alternator??

[cavy130sri]

its all good squig, i found out they are different things.

well i got a new stat on order from courtney sport, 29 quid, including p+p. thanks to advice from a posted reply on here somewhere, it myt b on another site, but the point is it just goes to show that a little help from other enthusiasts goes a long way.

with the stat ordered i went out and bought 10 ltrs of red coolant today, from a vaux dealer. i also wanted some oil to do an oil change, so the friendly chap at vauxhall did me a great deal. also got a new filter while there.

i also got some 'gunk' engine degreaser, and went out a little while ago to clean up the engine bay. i got it all power washed off, and went to stat carla, but she didnt want to know. so i am hoping that after leaving her a while she will start again, once everything has dried off a bit.
i know im a fool for not running the engine while power washing the engine, i do know better, but thought i myt get away with it

tomoz will be an oil change, i myt add this is a few months early, next annual one due in january, but i am going to be on the road, moving about alot, so better doing it now, imo. then i myt give the coolant waterways a good flush out, and top up my water with the coolant i bought, ready for my new stat, that should arrive monday.

[planetc]

When you do the head gasket again have the head pressure tested, they crack sometimes if they have ongoing problems that are not fixed promptly. Also worth noting, some engines have an oil gallery behind the water pump that has a brass plug in it iirc, if this is loose then oil can find it's way into the coolant.

[cavy130sri]

thanks for that planetc, i had the head pressure checked last time, the guy said its not porous. i will take a look for this brass plug you are talking about. incidently wot is this (iirc) i keep seeing mean?? anyone?

i got the oil change done today and flushed the coolant channels, before putting in some red coolant, i didnt manage to get the whole ten litres in, nor half a five litre drum, for that matter, but she has some in now, so i'm happy. i believe i will have to do another full flush with forte coolant flush, once i have my working stat in place.

oh yeah she did start this mornng after leaving her a night to dry properly, definately wont wash the engine, without it running again, lol.

been doing a bit of buying today, got a coolish set of cheap mats, in readiness for seeing some cavys at blackpool this weekend. hope to see you there.

[cavy130sri]

my stat arrived today, just tested it and it works fine so will be fitting after tea. pics will follow once done.

[planetc]

IIRC....If I Remember Correctly.

Blackpool sends a shiver down my spine. No offence meant to anyone here that lives there but we had a bad experience in Blackpool years ago and swore we would never return.

[Gaz]

I went loads of times as a kid and watched it slowly turn into a shithole.

Ive not been in years just because its not worth it.

[Robsey]

Well I hope you all have sympathy for me when I go there (Blackpool) one evening this week (probably Thursday Night).

Wife insists that we have to see the lights

Ho Hum, 2 hrs queuing in traffic, for same-old same-old lights.

By-the-way... I use the M60, M66 and M65, not the M61 to get up there... saves ages of standing traffic on the 61

[droofer]

Well I hope you all have sympathy for me when I go there (Blackpool) one evening this week (probably Thursday Night).

Wife insists that we have to see the lights

Ho Hum, 2 hrs queuing in traffic, for same-old same-old lights.

By-the-way... I use the M60, M66 and M65, not the M61 to get up there... saves ages of standing traffic on the 61

you'll have to take a mag, and rest it on the steering wheel.(when your parked up of course).
hope you have fun driving through the rings, and the coronation street lights!.

[cavy130sri]

i got a ss and a bro that live there so i've seen the lights a few times now.

here is a few pics i took while changing the stat, if u note the worlds smallest nut on the bottom of the stat, i was being extra careful with it, but it was getting dark, and just as i was putting it back on, i coughed and dropped it, . took me ages to look for it, but i gave up and went to the bosses workshop to hunt for a replacement, eventually did find the one on now.

even though i did the job a bit hafhazardly, the engine is looking better, as you can see.

[cavy130sri]

what a weekend!!!!!

i went from perth up to macduff for the weekend. took a trip to inverurie to collect my bro on sunday night, a trip of around 26 ish miles. having pulled upto a set of traffic lights just before inverurie, i saw a lot of steam rising from my bonnet then noticed the temp gauge had shot up and i was getting cold air blowing at my reddening face. so i pulled over. i discovered that the hose from the inlet manifold to the cylinder head was split. for a temp fix i cut the split bit off, knowing there was plenty to put back on. it held, woohoo, but onlt til the next day, the monday, when i had to get back to perth.

it split again, but this time when i put the hose back on, it crumbled as i tightened the jubilee clip, .

i tried the local vx dealer but they do not stock them, they cud order one but wudnt arrive till the next day. i had a wee think and a ring around, and eventually went to the auto care centre, who were very helpful and gave me a small pice of 12ml hose to try and fix the problem. i had to make up an inset using the bit of hose that i had kept from the sunday night, just to make it fit, but after 40 mins playing around, i started her up and it fell off again.

i had a new plan to use a smaller hose to fit inside the original hose, and hope that it wud stretch over the connector it had to go on. it was not subtle enough, so i had to use that bit of original hose that i used for the insert, and tried to hold it to the end of the thinner pipe, then place it over its connector. and would you believe it, it worked, WOOHOO!

i drove off, happy at my atchievement, but the EML cmae on constantly, which i put down to it getting soaked, and didnt worry too much about it. But i only got as far as aberdeen, where on one of the back roads. i got a face full of cold air, she juddered at a junction really badly and i had to pull into a posh driveway and try and sort the problem once more. i soon discovered that i had not replaced (I forget what its called but it goes onto the air pipe, its something important i know that much, lol) so i propmptly took the SFI box off yet again and then tried to rejoin the hoses. it got too caked in wet gunk, which is still present in my coollant system, so i cud not hold it any longer with the jubilee clip. so i decided to stick a match to her, but cudnt find any in my tool box, but i did find a small length of pipe, a little thicker than the stuff i bought at the auto centre, and with a lot of heating on the inlet manifold and cursing i managed to stretch it far enough to go straight onto te connector, where i then inserted it into the original hose and clamped with a jubilee clip. which got me all the way to perth, WOOHOO!

i have promptly ordered the hoses i need and a few others from roose motorsport, which should arrive tomoz.

needles to say i did not take any pics, i did go out just a minute ago to try and give you all a better idea on what i have done but it is too dark and cold out, but i will take some of the new hoses tomoz to compensate and you will have a better idea of what im blethering on about,

[planetc]

once upon a time they all lived happily ever after, 10 words, same story

[cavy130sri]

once upon a time they all lived happily ever after, 10 words, same story

sh1t happenz.

right i got an update. i am sick to death of this bloomin machine leaking oil into the water. so it is now in a mechanics garage in bits. the chap sent my cylinder head up to perth to get some repair work done. basically the area around some of the water galleries are corroded to sh1t. he will sort for me quite cheaply so i am glad to get it done. i wud have taken pics but i was down there, at the garage last nyt and forgot the camera.

i'll be going up tomoz to take all me hoses off and give them a right good flush out, so will have to buy a big tub of fairy liquid and soak em overnight again.

the hoses did arrive on time, they are these...

[cavy130sri]

i have also ordered the two large hoses that run to the top and middle of the rad, they havent arrived as yet but pics will be up when they do.

i think i may have a few pics of my make shift hosiery... sox about the poor quality, i was up a bit too close. i guess i was never meant to be a pro phtographer, lol.

[cavy130sri]

well i took some pics of the hoses that arrived... (see below)

i got the car back in one piece, i did go down and help put it all back together, and thankfully carla started up after a few tick overs, but now works perfectly. the guys up at perth did a great job rebuilding around the very corroded waterway, on the side where the battery is.

the mechanic asked if i wanted my piston seals to be changed, he had to change two of them, but i declined the rest coz i wanted to get off home sooner, rather than later.

so far i have driven 450 odd miles down to somerset, for a job which was to last two weeks, but i was very disappointed with the conditions of the animals, and decided to leave and come home for christmas instead, which was a drive of a further 600 miles i think, and (touch wood) she works fine and the coolant level, although went down once, understandably, has remained at the max line, woohoo!

so now hopefully, i shall have no more problems in the engine department.

[btcctroy]

i don't quite understand what the problem was with ur cylinder head. the common problem is the high pressure oil way cracks over the top of the water way.
the reason for it cracking is the head material is too hard and the gallery is too close to the oil way.
aluminium doesn't corrode to consume itself as steel does but corrodes then protects the underlying aluminium.

are you sure the head gasket wasn't the cause first time round?

or was it the block that corroded.

i have the same late redtop engine but replaced mine with a coscast head when it went porous.

Glad its all up and repaired

[cavy130sri]

i'm not sure of the problem you are talking about, and i don't, unfortunately, recognise the pics you have posted. in the one, that is not very good quality, that i have added, on the right side of the pic, there is a rectangular waterway in the centre, which if you look closely, you may see is very corroded, almost touching the piston lining, which was also corroded.

i am hoping that the problem is solved. the problem being that the corrosion was so bad that the hole was so great that the oil was simply filtering through into the waterway.

[cavy130sri]

here are the two other hoses that connect to the radiator...


it is all back together, and i will get more pics up of all the hoses in their proper place, in the next few days.

[btcctroy]

i'm not sure of the problem you are talking about, and i don't, unfortunately, recognise the pics you have posted. in the one, that is not very good quality, that i have added, on the right side of the pic, there is a rectangular waterway in the centre, which if you look closely, you may see is very corroded, almost touching the piston lining, which was also corroded.

i am hoping that the problem is solved. the problem being that the corrosion was so bad that the hole was so great that the oil was simply filtering through into the waterway.

The pics are are of a redtop head thats been cut in half. Very common problem for oil in the water.

if the water way was holed through to the the cylinder lining you'd lose water in the cylinder bore which would cause syptoms of head gasket failure eg misfire, or pressurization of your coolant system

oil in water is a problem where the oil is at greater pressure to the water or otherwise youd would have water in your oil.

the high pressure oil feed is sent to the head via the center head bolt channel.

i'm not being funny i just cant see this fixing the oil in water contamination.

just keep an eye on it pal

[cavy130sri]

i'll be keeping an eye on it don't worry.

i wish i had taken a before and after to show you, but im afraid i didn't. if it all goes wrong again it'll be the head in the bucket and try to find a new one.

thanks for your info tho sriguy, i stilll don't recognise the head in the pics but i see what you are getting at mate.

[torsion]

Nice job done mate hovewer hearing some parts cant be obtained anymore annoys me

Which brand Rad. did you use?

[Gaz]

Which brand Rad. did you use?

Get a valeo its the same as vauxhall/opel