over heating

[scott1205]

my mates got an old clio (not sure the year but its a Mk1) and its been sat there for about a year and a half and its now back on the road but its over heating after a few miles

as it doesnt hav a guade so its hard to tell how hot it is but the light goes on and the fan kickes in some times

i said the mite be rust in the inside of the rad but i dont know much

any advice would be much appericated

 

[-KarL-]

checked the coolant?

 

[scott1205]

what do u mean the level

he says that hes just put some new water in it

does it need proper coolant

 

[theduck]

has he put water in the water bottle or water in the coolant bottle? these are 2 very different things.

 

[scott1205]

i think he just filled the rad up

 

[scott1205]

i have just spoke to him and he say that he emptied the rad flused it out and then filled in back up with water

 

[theduck]

He shouldnt just be filling back up with water. Needs coolant added to it. There is a coolant bottle towards the back of the engine bay, if he has filled it at the rad then it wont have anywhere near enough fluid in the system so he will need to top it up. Also check the engine bay for white marks as it probably has a coolant leak.

 

[scott1205]

chez mate i will let him know

 

[scott1205]

so if you just put water into a engine it would over heat does puting coolant in make a big difference

 

[scott1205]

and is it expensive

 

[-KarL-]

he needs to top it up here says on the side the min/max levels..

 

[scott1205]

yer i know i have filed mine up but i have never seen his tbh i dont think it has anything to do with the level

 

[theduck]

Water will work, but adding coolant to it makes it work a hell of a lot better. If he hasn't topped it up in that bottle and just filled it at the rad I would put money on it not having enough in the system. As I said previously, it probably also has a leak if it was overheating before hand.

 

[Beef-Mc]

This thread reminds me I need to top up my coolant levles.

 

[stan*]

Water on its own wont make it overheat.

The thermostat is probably fubared, and not opening.

I'd fluch the cooling system while your at it.

 

[scott1205]

how will he know if the thermostat is gone

 

[stan*]

put it in some boiling water and see if it opens.

or for the sake of a couple of quid, just bung a new one in.

 

[scott1205]

chez mate