Coolant Alarm Yes or No??

Technical questions and answers about the Mazda Bongo

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Do you have a low coolant alarm fitted to your bongo?

Poll ended at Sat Oct 18, 2008 10:52 pm

YES
49
60%
NO
33
40%
 
Total votes: 82
Becks-bongo

Coolant Alarm Yes or No??

Post by Becks-bongo » Wed Oct 08, 2008 10:52 pm

I am trying to decide weather to have one fitted at Woodlands or not.... and I am a bit of a sheep...Baaaa
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The Great Pretender
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Re: Coolant Alarm Yes or No??

Post by The Great Pretender » Wed Oct 08, 2008 11:03 pm

Yes...................... But it isn't a cure all problems......................A fact sheet should be out soon.
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mister munkey
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Re: Coolant Alarm Yes or No??

Post by mister munkey » Wed Oct 08, 2008 11:04 pm

As a lazy bloke, I will fit one on any other vehicle I ever get. Peace of mind & insurance against that "I'll check the levels tommorow" state of mind becoming expensive.
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Re: Coolant Alarm Yes or No??

Post by lizard » Wed Oct 08, 2008 11:17 pm

mister munkey wrote:As a lazy bloke, I will fit one on any other vehicle I ever get. Peace of mind & insurance against that "I'll check the levels tommorow" state of mind becoming expensive.

and it beeps. :)
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Re: Coolant Alarm Yes or No??

Post by daveblueozzie » Wed Oct 08, 2008 11:18 pm

i have a coolant alarm i fitted myself last year, it gives me a reassurance that when i start my engine in a morning i still have coolant in there to do the job its supposed to. and to know that with any luck ,it will tell me in time that i am losing coolant as i am driving.
it does not replace checking the levels ,but it helps me being a lazy person not to worry if i miss checking now and again.
Lost without my Bongo.
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Re: Coolant Alarm Yes or No??

Post by The Great Pretender » Wed Oct 08, 2008 11:22 pm

As a lazy bloke like you m m..........I get the wife to check it........... :lol: :lol: #-o

Ok i'm off........................... :wink:
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haydn callow
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Re: Coolant Alarm Yes or No??

Post by haydn callow » Thu Oct 09, 2008 10:04 am

Every Bongo should have one.....but then I have my self interests at heart.
To be serious....go to http://www.coolantalarm.co.uk and click on testimonials.....have a read and make up your own mind.
http://www.coolantalarm.co.uk
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Re: Coolant Alarm Yes or No??

Post by Magwa » Thu Oct 09, 2008 12:02 pm

Er no but I poured K seal into the system and the level is the same now as the day I did it
( 10k miles later)
I am religious about checking the level before and after a long journey
( I've owned a K series engined Landrover Freelander......Oh I know!)
& I can smell antifreeze at 100paces which helps!
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Re: Coolant Alarm Yes or No??

Post by dandywarhol » Thu Oct 09, 2008 5:14 pm

No but I have fitted a Mason alarm. I also regularly check the level and think the Mason alarm covers more possible overheating senarios.
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waycar8
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Re: Coolant Alarm Yes or No??

Post by waycar8 » Thu Oct 09, 2008 6:29 pm

dandywarhol wrote:No but I have fitted a Mason alarm. I also regularly check the level and think the Mason alarm covers more possible overheating senarios.

Agreed 8) 8) , i too have the masons alarm, you can fit it yourself in under 15 minutes, just a case of undoing a few screws to get to the clocks and putting it at the back of the temperature clock on the dash by undoing the 3 small screws fitting the wires and putting the screws back in.

both alarms have the merits but the masons alarm comes up on top IMO, as it shows the temperature gauge in its true engine temperature state, weather your driving and you have an air lock and starts to overheat, it will alarm and show the reading of how hot the engine is, if you had the coolant loss alarm fitted it will only alarm if theres no coolant in the header tank after you have overheated and lossed coolant.

the coolant loss alarm will alarm and tell you when you first got in to your bongo and turned on the ignition, if you have had a coolant leak through the night and the header tank is empty, the masons alarm wont!(But the masons alarm will go off after you have started to drive and the engine has heated up anyway),and the coolant loss alarm will also tell you if you blow a hose whilst driving, but theres the chance even thoe you have blown a hose and lossed your coolant there can be back pressure causing the header tank to stay full of coolant and the alarm wont go off!

loads op people have both fitted but i only have the masons alarm,bacause for the price of the masons alarm compared to the coolant loss alarm especially with the masons alarm that helps to stop a cooked engine/head by monertering the actual heat in the engine does it for me, the coolant loss alarm just tells you if you have lossed coolant out of the header tank so the masons alarm comes up on top for me.

Cheers Wayne
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Re: Coolant Alarm Yes or No??

Post by petebee » Thu Oct 09, 2008 6:58 pm

haydn`s coolant level and the Mason temperature alarm are must have gadgets as far as I`m concerned.

Full peace of mind motoring.
Becks-bongo

Re: Coolant Alarm Yes or No??

Post by Becks-bongo » Thu Oct 09, 2008 7:10 pm

Maybe i should have put mason as a choice... but i have never heard of them.. and am unsure what they do!

am looking forward to reading the fact sheet.....
Wedge

Re: Coolant Alarm Yes or No??

Post by Wedge » Thu Oct 09, 2008 7:12 pm

Are Bongo's really that prone to overheating?

Is there a design flaw or something?
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waycar8
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Re: Coolant Alarm Yes or No??

Post by waycar8 » Thu Oct 09, 2008 7:42 pm

depends how you look at it, at the end of the day they are 10+ years old, so the coolant sytem is well used and so are the hoses and the rad is sometimes blocked up over time ect ect, also alot of people dont know about bleeding the bongo using the bleed hose under passenger seat, not bleeding it right will end up with airlocks leading to overheating ect ect, and with the head been ali and has had 10 years of hammer, its easilly cracked after an overheating issue thus resulting in an expensive repair up to 1500 quid, so prevention is cheaper than the cure.
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Lloydy

Re: Coolant Alarm Yes or No??

Post by Lloydy » Thu Oct 09, 2008 8:07 pm

Yes you should fit one.

They dont cost the earth, are easy to fit and give peace of mind. Mine has already indicated a problem and enabled me to fix it before it was too late!!

Its not rocket science. The gadget tells you if your coolant level is ok.... We all need to know that!

I know you can look, and i do, but its still saved my engine!

Lloydy.
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