Replaced the thermostat housing on my V6

LeePrescott · 14th June 2009, 23:23

Well I finally got round to replacing my leaking thermostat housing this weekend on my ZT-190. Many thanks to all the people who have contributed help and advice on this repair as I found the advice invaluable.

I am not a mechanic but thought I would attempt this myself to keep the costs down. Firstly there are no real shortcuts to doing this job and it took me a good 6 hours of hard work. I know people have said they have been able to do this job without removing the manifolds, I decided against this as I didn't fancy having to get the fire brigade to come and cut my hand free as I would have got it well and truly trapped :lol:

I armed myself with the Haynes manual and if you follow the instructions (can be tricky as they do "jump" across different sections) then you won't go far wrong. The one important piece of advice I can give is make sure you label everything up as you remove it. I labelled every connection and pipe with masking tape and boy was that a godsend when it came back to assembling everything. Another useful tip is take plenty of pictures as you do it. This is also invaluable when it comes to checking how a cable or pipe was routed in the first place. Another piece of invaluable information I got from here was to put a very thin smear of engine oil on O rings when re-assembling, you only need the slightest covering and it really does help.

The hardest parts to this job? I would say getting to the two rear bolts for the rear manifold support. As advised on the excellent guides on this site I removed the middle inspection plate on the bulkhead and this itself saved my sanity. The other tricky part I came to was getting the old thermostat and elbow out. The elbow was the faulty component and had cracked but was well truly stuck. It took a lot patience and muttering under my breath to get this out and I had to eventually help it carefully by levering it out with a screw driver (you have to be careful not to damage the engine or yourself).

Other than that no major problems, be very careful when removing the injector rails, I had no issues but I was very gentle with it. Getting to the lower manifold bolts can be tricky but with a decent ratchet extension and flexible ratchet joint it is not too bad.

I bought the entire repair kit from Rimmer Bros and I think I only paid around the £43 ish mark plus VAT and the kit contains everything including new manifold gaskets. I used Halfords advanced antifreeze which was less than £9 for two litres (if you do a full drain as I did then you will need 3.5 litres).

One thing that is also a sanity saver is a magnetic pick up tool. There are so many ways you can loose a bolt in the V of the engine. I picked one up for £5 on Ebay.

One final tip, pinch the turkey baster! This was so useful for getting the collected water out of the engine V. When I eventually got the old elbow out, it shattered and some fragments of plastic fell down into the engine, the baster was a life saver and I was able to retrieve all the plastic shards.

All in all a good job :lol: Not an easy one but one that is achievable.

The main reason I have posted this seemingly pointless thread, is I was in two minds whether to attempt the repair and save money (but doubted my ability to do it) or spend a couple of hundred pounds at a garage. Times are tight for a lot of people at the moment and we are all having to work twice as hard for our money, if like me you have been putting off the repair due to the cost then why not give it a go yourself. If I can do it then virtually anyone can :lol:

Cheers
Lee.

stocktake · 15th June 2009, 18:20

Nice one Lee, told you thse bolts around the back were fun

Fraser Mitchell · 16th June 2009, 19:58

Lee, you are a hero, as this is not an easy job for the home mechanic.

14th June 2009, 23:23	#1
LeePrescott Avid contributor VW Golf sports plus TDi Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Sheffield Posts: 130 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Replaced the thermostat housing on my V6 Well I finally got round to replacing my leaking thermostat housing this weekend on my ZT-190. Many thanks to all the people who have contributed help and advice on this repair as I found the advice invaluable. I am not a mechanic but thought I would attempt this myself to keep the costs down. Firstly there are no real shortcuts to doing this job and it took me a good 6 hours of hard work. I know people have said they have been able to do this job without removing the manifolds, I decided against this as I didn't fancy having to get the fire brigade to come and cut my hand free as I would have got it well and truly trapped :lol: I armed myself with the Haynes manual and if you follow the instructions (can be tricky as they do "jump" across different sections) then you won't go far wrong. The one important piece of advice I can give is make sure you label everything up as you remove it. I labelled every connection and pipe with masking tape and boy was that a godsend when it came back to assembling everything. Another useful tip is take plenty of pictures as you do it. This is also invaluable when it comes to checking how a cable or pipe was routed in the first place. Another piece of invaluable information I got from here was to put a very thin smear of engine oil on O rings when re-assembling, you only need the slightest covering and it really does help. The hardest parts to this job? I would say getting to the two rear bolts for the rear manifold support. As advised on the excellent guides on this site I removed the middle inspection plate on the bulkhead and this itself saved my sanity. The other tricky part I came to was getting the old thermostat and elbow out. The elbow was the faulty component and had cracked but was well truly stuck. It took a lot patience and muttering under my breath to get this out and I had to eventually help it carefully by levering it out with a screw driver (you have to be careful not to damage the engine or yourself). Other than that no major problems, be very careful when removing the injector rails, I had no issues but I was very gentle with it. Getting to the lower manifold bolts can be tricky but with a decent ratchet extension and flexible ratchet joint it is not too bad. I bought the entire repair kit from Rimmer Bros and I think I only paid around the £43 ish mark plus VAT and the kit contains everything including new manifold gaskets. I used Halfords advanced antifreeze which was less than £9 for two litres (if you do a full drain as I did then you will need 3.5 litres). One thing that is also a sanity saver is a magnetic pick up tool. There are so many ways you can loose a bolt in the V of the engine. I picked one up for £5 on Ebay. One final tip, pinch the turkey baster! This was so useful for getting the collected water out of the engine V. When I eventually got the old elbow out, it shattered and some fragments of plastic fell down into the engine, the baster was a life saver and I was able to retrieve all the plastic shards. All in all a good job :lol: Not an easy one but one that is achievable. The main reason I have posted this seemingly pointless thread, is I was in two minds whether to attempt the repair and save money (but doubted my ability to do it) or spend a couple of hundred pounds at a garage. Times are tight for a lot of people at the moment and we are all having to work twice as hard for our money, if like me you have been putting off the repair due to the cost then why not give it a go yourself. If I can do it then virtually anyone can :lol: Cheers Lee. __________________ [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

15th June 2009, 18:20	#2
stocktake Vis Whiz Rover 75 2.5 auto Saloon Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: LEEDS Posts: 20,600 Thanks: 2,057 Thanked 3,056 Times in 1,621 Posts	Nice one Lee, told you thse bolts around the back were fun __________________ Dave... Lost a few stones and a Gall Bladder and part of a bile duct and all of my dignity in the suppository incident

16th June 2009, 19:58	#3
Fraser Mitchell Gets stuck in Rover 75 2.5 V6 Club Auto Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Crewe Posts: 898 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Lee, you are a hero, as this is not an easy job for the home mechanic.