Coolant Leak - Drivers Side - 15-186?

[Bongolia]

I have had another look tonight (armed with my new knowledge ) and it is indeed 61-213 that Bongolia mentioned.

http://bongoland.co.uk/product/hose-61-213/

I'll order one up and take it with me to the garage. Still a bit stumped as my hose seems to be in two sections (thin/fat) whereas the replacement one is a single piece?

Hey, ho. Just need to hope the garage can drain and refil the coolant. It was going to need done sooner or later

Thanks all.

You may find that the protective sleeve needs to be removed from the old pipe and slid over the new.

[wonkanoby]

think original had a second piece over it as protection against rubbing

[mikeonb4c]

think original had a second piece over it as protection against rubbing

Good point and if so it would make sense to replicate that as (on the diesel at least) there is more than one hose that is vulnerable to puncture from erosion caused by rubbing.

[Northern Bongolow]

it needs the double skin protector, during start up and stopping of the engine rocks about and can cause the pipe to rub on the starter motor.
when fitting it make sure you fit in the correct way round, it looks symmetrical but it actually has one longer leg to make it stand off the starter motor better.

[Eye Guy]

I've ordered up the hose and found the correct clips.

Now I'm wondering whether I could do it myself? Then I would be confident that the bleed process was done right.

If I disconnected that hose would it be full of coolant? Would I have to drain the whole system? I am fairly mechanically minded and think I could manage the clips etc.

Thanks.

[Bob]

Whoever does it I'd drain the system, flush, then bleed/refill with fresh coolant anyhow.

This should be done every 2 years as the corrossion inhibiting properties of the coolant 'Wear out' over time, plus sludge can build up.

[Eye Guy]

Thanks Bob,

Would I just let it drain from where I remove the hose? Or is there a better way?

Flush with a hose as described by Haydn? Or do I need some special flushing system?

Thanks.

[Bob]

Pretty sure there's a drain valve on the bottom of the rad, O/S from memory.

Flushing backwards with a hose should be ok, if its good enough for Haydn I'm not arguing.

[Northern Bongolow]

if you think of a leak in the following terms it may help you decide weather to bleed it or not.
its not so much the leaking water out thats the problem its the air it sucks in that causes the grief.
when the bongo, or most cars run they create internal pressure inside the coolant system(pressure cap fitted on rad or expansion tank) this pressure is needed to raise the boiling point of the coolant, so when the engine is warmed up a bongo operates at around plus 5-10 pounds pressure, this pressure pushes out coolant from any leak, when the engine is stopped and the coolant cools the pressure drops, as it cools it drops to nearly nil in a healthy system, if you have a leak it then starts to suck in air, this air that gradually collects over several cycles is the air lock that can cause problems, air locks stop coolant flow then the engine can locally boil and dump the coolant out of the overflow as it quickly turns to steam and rapidly expands.
so how long has it been leaking, how large is the leak, how much air is inside the system, if you dont know then you must bleed the system .

[Eye Guy]

Thanks for the info. Totally understand what you're saying about bleeding.

Am I incorrect in thinking that there are two options available in this scenario?

Option 1: Change hose - top up coolant - bleed

Option 2: Drain system - flush - change hose - replace coolant - bleed

Or is option 1 a fantasy and Option 2 the only 'real' option? In the bleeding (!) videos at the start Haydn comments that the Bongo they are working on has had a hose replacement and therefore didn't need a full coolant change.

[Northern Bongolow]

the bongo in the vid was mine, and my wife shot the vids.
we simulated a leak for the vid, the main thing to think about is what coolant is in the bongo to start with. if the coolant in a known brand etc then you need just top up and bleed, a lot of the bongos in the early days were coolant unknown, or japanese coolant, this jap coolant was known to turn to jelly when certain british coolants were added afterwards as top ups. .
to play it safe, if you dont know the brand or more important the chemical make up or the age of the coolant replace it.
in the vid i had in and topped up with 5 year red O.A.T based coolant as the manual recommends O.A.T coolant. google it. some just use 2 year blue though.

carplan premium red or this is good from euro c*&p parts.
.ll
http://www.eurocarparts.com/ecp/p/car-a ... GwodFqMFHA

[Eye Guy]

Wow this forum is ace. Thanks so much NB!

I have had the van 18 months and the age or make of the coolant is unknown to me, other than it is red.

Looks like a full drain and refill then.

Thanks again.

[haydn callow]

O.k. Bear in mind if you refill with red coolant the chances are your coolant alarm will start playing up after a few days and this will persist for a few weeks (depending on mileage). The reason is because the red coolant lays down a coating to protect the inside of the engine, whilst doing this it coats the alarm sensor screw which causes the alarm to trigger. You can just live with this for a couple of weeks then remove the screw and wire brush it clean.....or use blue coolant and not have the problem.

[Eye Guy]

Hi Haydn,

I'm on my second coolant screw! I replaced one last year when the red coolant coated it and the alarm started sounding.

When the alarm gave a wee chirp last week (one of the things that alerted me to the leak in the first place - phew) I removed the screw and gave it a clean. I have the two screws now, so can swap them about if needed.

Cheers

[haydn callow]

We can send you some more if you contact Jo....ask for the extra long ones