ZT-T 190 loosing coolant - slowly!

[d_a_n1979]

Where the hell am I losing coolant?

I've had the ZT-T now since, erm... Sept/Oct (can't remember)

Anyway

I've had to top up the expansion bottle a few time and have used/topped up 1.25L of coolant!


The expansion bottle is dry with ZERO signs of coolant spilling over when hot
The 'V' is bone dry and with no signs of a leaking thermostat whatsoever
Underneath is bone dry with no signs of coolant leaks/coolant residue etc...


Where's the slow loss going?!

Could it be going internally; if so how & where?!

Cheers

[Fusilier]

Where the hell am I losing coolant?

I've had the ZT-T now since, erm... Sept/Oct (can't remember)

Anyway

I've had to top up the expansion bottle a few time and have used/topped up 1.25L of coolant!


The expansion bottle is dry with ZERO signs of coolant spilling over when hot
The 'V' is bone dry and with no signs of a leaking thermostat whatsoever
Underneath is bone dry with no signs of coolant leaks/coolant residue etc...


Where's the slow loss going?!

Could it be going internally; if so how & where?!

Cheers

Dan

It could be from the water pump, had the same happen to me a few years ago, about 18 months after having belts and water pump done, and was losing a bit of coolant, and the pump that was fitted faulty, and it was losing coolant got it replaced, and it still is ok

when it is dry outside, Put cardboard under the front and remove engine undertray, and that will give you some sort of clue as to where you are losing coolant

Stu

Stu

[d_a_n1979]

Dan

It could be from the water pump, had the same happen to me a few years ago, about 18 months after having belts and water pump done, and was losing a bit of coolant, and the pump that was fitted faulty, and it was losing coolant got it replaced, and it still is ok

when it is dry outside, Put cardboard under the front and remove engine undertray, and that will give you some sort of clue as to where you are losing coolant

Stu

Stu

I thought that but a) the car has no undertray and b) I've left it on the flat drive with an old sheet to catch any spills and nothing!!!

The only 'leak' that's obvious is a small oil leak from the gearbox housing which I'm hoping isnt anything sinister but it's very slight as it never drips; it's 'just there'!

[ProfDave]

I think mine is leaking into the oil cooler slightly as I am seeing some mayo type deposits in my oil catch tank and the stuff collected is quite watery.

Have you seen anything mayo like in your breather pipes? Could be a leak into the oil in the cooler...

[d_a_n1979]

I've never touched the breather pipes; daren't as they're generally so fragile!

No signs of mayo elsewhere either!

[Ched]

It could be the inlet manifold gasket, easiest way to check is a cold engine and remove the outer plugs,if you see water droplets it's probably them, rear bank is usually the culprit.
It could also be the expansion cap.

[Ched]

I think mine is leaking into the oil cooler slightly as I am seeing some mayo type deposits in my oil catch tank and the stuff collected is quite watery.

Have you seen anything mayo like in your breather pipes? Could be a leak into the oil in the cooler...

Take her for a run to Cardiff and back at a decent speed then have a look, too many short runs are no good for an engine .

[ProfDave]

Take her for a run to Cardiff and back at a decent speed then have a look, too many short runs are no good for an engine .

doing a trip to Bath tomorrow. Will take a jug of coolant too incase its a leak. Do not appear to be using much. Undertray on and a Shannon tube now so not much chance of external water getting in

[ProfDave]

It could be the inlet manifold gasket, easiest way to check is a cold engine and remove the outer plugs,if you see water droplets it's probably them, rear bank is usually the culprit.
It could also be the expansion cap.

good call

this was the issue on one of my other 75s

got new seals for £3!!

[DMGRS]

I agree with Dave - first thing is the cap or cap seals (depending on if you want a new cap, or just the usual suspect seals).
75/ZT Coolant Cap Seals (http://www.dmgrs.co.uk/collections/thermostats-and-waterpumps/products/rover-75-mg-zt-coolant-cap-o-rings-viton-to-fix-esr1480)
75/ZT Coolant Cap - OEM (http://www.dmgrs.co.uk/collections/thermostats-and-waterpumps/products/rover-75-mg-zt-coolant-cap-oem-esr1480-fits-all-petrol-diesel)

[d_a_n1979]

I agree with Dave - first thing is the cap or cap seals (depending on if you want a new cap, or just the usual suspect seals).
75/ZT Coolant Cap Seals (http://www.dmgrs.co.uk/collections/thermostats-and-waterpumps/products/rover-75-mg-zt-coolant-cap-o-rings-viton-to-fix-esr1480)
75/ZT Coolant Cap - OEM (http://www.dmgrs.co.uk/collections/thermostats-and-waterpumps/products/rover-75-mg-zt-coolant-cap-oem-esr1480-fits-all-petrol-diesel)

Yeah I'll be ordering a few bits off you on Monday Mat

Not sure if it is the cap though as there's no tell tale signs of coolant residue at all around/on the expansion tank!

[d_a_n1979]

Just wanted to bump this back up

Got the replacement rad cap and seals off Mat; swapped it over and topped up the coolant (around 350ml); bled the system properly, ran the car, topped up again, around 150ml and ran it for a good week now...

Coolant still needed to be topped up, it's going somewhere but where?!

There are NO signs whatsoever of any coolant leak from anywhere

The cars been up on the ramps and it's bone dry under there and no signs at all...

What's going on?! :(

[kaiser]

There are a number of places:
Inlet manifold. Goes into the cylinders and gets evaporated. Can cause mayonnaise under the oil filler cap
Thermostat housing and pipes. Drops in the V and evaporates. Look carefully with a torch after removing the sound damper with "V6 Quadcam" logo.
Water pump, runs along the engine inside the cam belt housing and evaporates, if anything does not, you will see traces of that near the pulley.
Two coolant pipes in front of radiator, they do corrode.
Liners, maybe traces of water in the oil, check on dipstick. In serious cases mayonnaise under oil filler cap.
Crack in cylinder block. Depending on where, water in oil is possible.
Leaking oil cooler.
General leak anywhere hot, where the water evaporates and is not easy to spot.

These engine run rather hot and have many covers and are not easily accessible. You can loose water for a long time without noticing any traces unless you really look carefully. Especially if the leak is small, it can evaporate before you will see anything under the car. Look for stains.