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Coolant level / paranoia

2K views 10 replies 6 participants last post by  GTA_Russ 
#1 ·
Hello All,

I've noticed I need to top the coolant level up on my car every 2-3 months, not a great deal just a cupful or so to bring it back up to the max level. Is this normal?

I am paranoid that it could be early sings of HG failing. The oil is honey coloured as always and no mayo under the cap. Is there anyway to check? pardon my ignorance but is that what a compression test checks for?

Kind regards
M
 
#2 ·
A coolant compression test will pressurize the system and show if there are any leaks/problems.

You shouldn't really lose any coolant at all but it seems that you aren't losing much. Have you checked for obvious small leaks from pipes/joints etc ? I had a very small leak just like yours and I could detect drops under the car, seemed to coming from the radiator core. I used some K Seal ( similar but much much better than Rad Seal and similar products ) and it cured the problem, not had to top up for over two years now.

Worse case scenario could be a HG problem but as your oil and coolant are as they should be and not inter mixing I wouldn't panic just yet. The K Seal will cost you about a tenner from eBay and it's worth a try, I can certainly recommend it.
 
#3 ·
Cheers for that. Been doing some research on here today.

The header tank is a bit gunky, so I'm going to flush out system, clean up tank, refill with nice new pucker anti freeze and do as you suggest and stick in some rad weld type stuff.

then keep an eye on it, I've never noticed water under the car but havent ever really looked for it.

are those coolant contaminent detector kits any good? the ones where the fluid goes blue to yellow if it detects stuff in the coolant?

Seen one on ebay for £40
 
#5 ·
are those coolant contaminent detector kits any good? the ones where the fluid goes blue to yellow if it detects stuff in the coolant?

Seen one on ebay for £40
Dunno about these but they certainly aren't cheap ! :eek:

As for the rad weld stuff do look at the K Seal, over the years I have tried many different types of these things but the K Seal is the ONLY one that has ever worked.

Hope that things turn out well.

EDIT. Cross post here and it seems that the Holts stuff worked for Rob, still sticking to the K Seal recommendation though, it's a fairly new product and I think much more advanced than the older generation stuff.
 
#6 ·
Speaking as someone who also has an MGTF (and those people know a thing or two about head gaskets lol) I think it's very unlikely to be HGF with such a small loss. A leak is more likely, or maybe you need a new expansion tank cap.

There's no really reliable test for HGF, better to save your cash.
 
#7 ·
Will keep an eye out for K Seal and have a goof look round for leaks.

Cheers
M
 
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