[Carl_S]

Mine seems to be really low, its at the bottom of the expansion tank near the inlet.. does that automatically mean a problem? any ideas?

I had the water pump changed recently, and they were low before.

 

[koh]

is it using a bit of water or does it sit at that level?
bet you didnt change the rad cap at the same time?

 

[Carl_S]

thats right the rad cap wasnt changed, as far as i know, or he would have said - looks the same to me anyway.

seems to be sitting at that very low level.

when i have it back after the water pump was changed a month ago there was plenty of coolant in it.

 

[koh]

if the rad cap is old it could leak a small amount of water out while the engne is hot

 

[Carl_S]

i examined it..(or looked at it - examined sounds more professional)

and the rubber seems fine , and looks shiny and all.

who knows... im asking my mechanic what he things the prob is - if any.

 

[Endorx]

What color is your oil... Milkshake colour and consistency.. Do you have puffs of white smoke???

 

[davegtst]

Wait til the car is stone cold. Take the rad cap off then top up the coolant right to the top, put the cap back on. Now fill the expansion tank up to the max line which is about half way. Drive it about and over time check if the level in the expansion goes down (only check when the engine is cold).
It might be worth putting a new rad cap on it anyway as they cost very little and take seconds to fit, they are the most overlooked part of the cooling system but could potentially cook your engine.

 

[Festa]

Do you put anti freeze (coolant) in the expansion tank or just plain water?

 

[davegtst]

Mix of both at the same concentration as the coolant. If its only a bit water will do fine as long as there is enough antifreeze in the cooling system.

 

[Festa]

Nice one Davey boy. :cheers:

 

[Carl_S]

oil = fine clean

coolant = added best part of liter to get the levels up. will observe - I always use a mixture , not water only.

smoke = none..

rad cap = will get one from nissan..


thanks guys.. will let you know what happens.

 

[davegtst]

Get the rad cap from any Blueprint stockists, it will probably be alot cheaper.

 

[M1 Gts]

surely tho any water that passes the rad cap goes straight to the header tank anyway?

keep an eye on the levels, but if it does appear to be loosing water, 1st check the water pump as these are a popular weak spot. You may find an orange trace (rusty old coolant) or white residue (antifreeze). Next best bet is the core plugs in the side of the block, these tend to start corroding and leaking and are easy to overlook, they're located under the exhaust manifold in the side of the block. You'll need to get right under the car with a small torch to see these. If they are leaking will need changing, but not an easy job with the manifold in place (no room for hands). Got mine from RSP there're 2 sizes only about £1 each.

 

[Carl_S]

Talked to my mech at garage-D, he said there is no cause for concern. He serviced it and replaced water pump - and belts, and had a general look over.

He said so long as you can actually see coolant in the expansion tank its ok.

M1gts, I think (but dont know for sure) that the coolant system on the gtst is not closed, so the rad cap vents to air, which I suppose is why the coolant will find its own, and possibly low looking level n the expansion tank... But im sure someone better qualified that me, can comment on that.

Thinking about letter her go , and getting an old MR2. It's no fun beating everything on the road for the last year except another skyline, and a wierd hissing escort rs2000.