Losing coolant - Help!

[mryder]

About a month ago our Bongo overheated on a trip back from Devon. We stopped and let it cool down. The header tank was empty. Refilled it and drove home without any problems. About a week later the same thing happened again.

Took it to a local garage (recommended by this site) and after much deliberation we agreed to have the radiator replaced. The garage also did chemical tests which came back clear (good news for the head gasket apparently). He said he ran it for hours before i picked it up and it wasn't leaking. I have been doing short journeys to keep an eye on it and it's definitely still losing water, although no obvious leaks.

Can anyone tell us what to check next? any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Mark and Katie (Southampton)

[westonwarrior]

I have been having similar problems of late though I have never over heated
I have found a leak from the bleed pipe which I replaced yesterday as I found it was way shorter than normal

Also was advised by Haden that a comon fault is the metal pipe from the bottom hose back, that gets pinholes and is so hot it bursts out as steam so very dificult to find.

I have my fingers crossed I got it with the bleed pipe but If it continues to lose water thats where Im checking next

I have been checking the water level everyday to ensure It does not go down too far

there is an excelent fact sheet in the members section

[aitch]

you could get a friendly local garage to do a pressure test for you i did this after having a overheating problem I replaced the radiator but had a pin sized hole which only leaked when hot and the pressure test found it. new hose about £15 plus fitting and new antifreeze. problem now cured good luck and keep us informed how you get on.

[Dabs]

Its CHECK YOUR HOSES time Folks,

This cannot be emphasised enough on a Bongo,I always always check underneath the Bongo where I have been parked any wet patches on the floor are a giveaway that You have a leak sounds obvious this but a minutes look round could save a lot of money.(There is also a possibility of mistaking any defrosting aircon also so dont panic).
Reading through the threads regarding coolant loss any leaks are either a sudden rupture/failure of a hose/pipe or a pin hole that usually shows itself up when the engine is up to temperature.I had a pinhole leak that took Me two weeks to trace they are very very fine jets that have a tendency to throw You off the scent a bit as they usually wet other areas and look like its coming from somewhere else.In the end I found mine by using a very bright torch which did highlight it very well,bear in mind that it did not leak when cold so these are doubly hard to spot first sign is water underneath the Bongo.
Its worth the routine!!!

Dabs

[dreamwarrioruk]

any smoke when you put your foot down. only reason i ask was we had a problem with ours when the turbo blew. they are water cooled so we lost all water but had no leaks. the seals in the turbo failed over a long period like 4 months so with no obvious leaks might be worth a look into

[stulegg]

Hey. . . be carefull out there guys with the coolant loss. . . thats what mine did before it went WHOOOOSH. . .gurggle guuurgle guurgle. . . .