Bongo Fury

On sunday night when I got out of my bongo after a 1 mile drive water was pouring out underneith right in the middle. I filled it up with two litres next day but havent driven it yet. The mechanic (who is a bongo specialist) says just drop in a new motor. I already have had the head pressure tested about 200miles ago due to water pouring out from the left wheel arch, in the end they just replaced a gaskit seal, then an oil leak, another seal, now this. Its got 63613miles on it.
Whats the feeling on recon engines, will it be the same bongo, is this to drastic?
Any thoughts.....
Cassx

Hi,

Sorry to hear you are having problems.

This isn't necessarily straightforward to anwser. It all depends on if your current engine has overheated and been damaged, then to what extent. Also what is the root cause here, sounds like pipework/water pump etc are letting the water out first. This too needs to be sorted.

If your engine has been cooked, it may well be better to change the engine. I know discount trucks often recommend this as overall it can be a safer bet.

Hope this helps.

Andy

The first thing to do is identify where the water is coming from. If its a split hose worth £20, then as long as no other damage has occurred, it would be much better to replace it & get the coolant system properly flushed, refilled & bled. Hoses do deteriorate with age, so if one has failed you should consider replacing some of the others too. A 'new' engine won't come with any new pipes, so you'll still have to replace any that are tired.

You can spend anywhere from £1000 to £2000 on having a replacement / recon engine fitted, so it could be in the garages interest to sell you that option rather than fixing the original fault.

The Bongo cooling system requires suitable knowledge to maintain, so check that your garage do know what they are talking about.

Hope you get if fixed cheaply & easily.