Expansion Bottle - Coolant Level

[mainline 2 1 Cars]

Hi,

 

I've got a 1.6 XU GTi, last week on the way back from a mates house the hose which runs from the bulhead to the top of the engine split, pissing the entire contents of the cooling system all over the road and the electrics

 

I've replaced the hose and drained all the coolant from the system.

 

Now the problem, my car is fitted with a black expansion bottle. Not useful since I can't see how full the system is / should be.

 

I thought it was alright, but on the way to work this a.m. the radiator warning light came on. I've topped it up a bit more, but still i can't tell if it's enough / too much.

 

I've been using a home made header tank and letting any air out with the bleed valve, but still, i'm a bit stuck.

 

Is it okay to fill the system right to the top and hope that some of it escapes or is that going to make one of the hoses split again?

 

I did a search and couldn't find anything.

 

Cheers

Ian

[jackherer 543]

fill it til it overflows then idle it with the cap off for a while.

 

205GTIs are very easy to bleed, they pretty much do it themselves.

 

Its worth taking the level sensor out and cleaning it up too as they are very unreliable at the best of times.

[Super Josh 4]

Its worth taking the level sensor out and cleaning it up too as they are very unreliable at the best of times.

 

As Kieran says, it's worth cleaning the sensor. They become clogged with silt, especially in hard water areas. I ended up replacing mine for a bit of reliability

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Josh

[sonofsam 5]

The last time I filled my coolant system, had 7 or was it 6.5 litres of mixed coolant and water waiting

to go in, so I knew roughly how much would fill the system completely.

Could only manage to a quarter of that in there(before the expansion tank level was at the brim)

So I had to run the engine and refill the expansion tank as it drained to get it all in there,

let it idle (and run the interior blowers up) for a while with the cap off as said to bleed it.

Keep an eye on the temp gauge while doing this and make sure your fan come's on too.

 

I'd always thought the coolant level was supposed to be at the raised ridge on the outside

of the ph2 bottle? If you stick your finger in the tank, you can just about feel down to that level atleast.

 

I cleaned up my sensor about 5mm on the end of the prongs, till the copper/brass shines

through, did mine with emery cloth as it was well gunked. Still dont know if it works, as

the plug to that sensor is green and corroded beyond repair