I bought a 97 Ducato 14 a few weeks ago and it is leaking allot of coolant which is dripping from the body below the RHS of the radiator and a little above the oil filter. There is also a load of oil in the coolant reservoir, the oil cap and dipstick don't show any signs of coolant. Been asking around and keep hearing 'head gasket' followed by some scary quotes of up to 7oo quid *shudders* but thought it best to ask here.

Could it be something else causing the problem??

Thanks,

Balaram

Balaram said:

I bought a 97 Ducato 14 a few weeks ago and it is leaking allot of coolant which is dripping from the body below the RHS of the radiator and a little above the oil filter. There is also a load of oil in the coolant reservoir, the oil cap and dipstick don't show any signs of coolant. Been asking around and keep hearing 'head gasket' followed by some scary quotes of up to 7oo quid *shudders* but thought it best to ask here encase it could be something else causing the problem.

Thanks,

Balaram

Click to expand...

HG sounds likely, water and oil should never meet unless the oil and water galleries are joined by a broken gasket...

:yeahthat: Definetely a Head Gasket failure!

its usually the oil cooler. the alfaowner forum has good info about this JTD problem, which is common, but not too difficult or expensive to fix yourself if you can get scrapyard parts.

head gasket failure is very rare on the JTD. i doubt its that.

jug said:

its usually the oil cooler. the alfaowner forum has good info about this JTD problem, which is common, but not too difficult or expensive to fix yourself if you can get scrapyard parts.

head gasket failure is very rare on the JTD. i doubt its that.

Click to expand...

Water cooled oil cooler Jug? Well feck me.... Good news on the JTD HG tho

Thanks for the info... will check out the alpha forum- what does JDT stand for then?

I talked to a big Fiat dealer in Edinburgh and they also said that head gaskets rarely go on Ducato's but still they thought that it probably would be the head gasket which is a bit ironic I thought.

BRAVARulez, is it common to leave loads of coolant lying on the deck when the gasget goes?

My van never overheated to my knowledge and it starting loosing coolant the day after it had an oil and filter change which is maybe a coincidence but at the mo the cooler being screwed is sounding more likely than the HG having gone.

Cheers

Balaram said:

Thanks for the info... will do some research on the oil cooler. I talked to a big Fiat dealer in Edinburgh and they also said that head gaskets rarely go on Ducato's but still they thought that it probably would be the head gasket which is a bit ironic I thought . Anyways excuse my ignorance but what does JDT stand for. Cheers

Click to expand...

jdt? do you mean jtd? that means jet turbo diesel.

beau said:

jdt? do you mean jtd? that means jet turbo diesel.

Click to expand...

uniJet Turbo Diesel, but let's not go into all that again https://www.fiatforum.com/lets-talk-fiat/44864-what-does-j-jtd-mean.html LOL:devil:

another JTD debate may be the end of me. please dont.

Balaram said:

is it common to leave loads of coolant lying on the deck when the gasget goes

Click to expand...

no, it would be unusual to have any visible coolant or oil leak. in almost all cases head gasket leak results in oil or coolant or both entering 1 or more cylinders. in some extreme cases you have coolant leaking from your exhaust, but usually it leaves as steam with exhaust gas so you dont see anything on the floor at all.

if the engine overheats to the point where it seizes, then movement between block and head can often create visible oil or coolant leaks from between the head and block.

Thanks Jug, was hoping someone would say that!!
My Mechanical knowledge and skills are practicaly none existent but am strapped for cash and cant afford to pay to get it done.

I checked on the Alpha owners club for info about the oil cooler but no cigar.

If any one has any oil cooler links up there sleeve that would be much appreciated.

Ta

Exactly what engine is in your Ducato, as I thought the jtd were the next series engine?

It is a 2.5 TD, don't think it is a JTD.

The more I look into this it seems that the head gasket has gone as well as part of the cooling system at the same time- loosing shed loads of coolant!!

hi as mikey said yours is not a jtd its a manual pump i think you have to resign yourself to the head gasket but it would be quite rare unless there has been a leak previously and it has been cooked

Prone to overheating at this age, mine is beginning to. Usually it's down to the radiator, they start to clog up, and the fins rot off. There are alot of threads on motorcaravaning forums on this age van, but usually cured by a new radiator, and ensuring the fans and switches are working.
Worth checking if you get the head done.

Cheers mikey will get it checked out when the head gasket gets done, decidedto pay a decent mechanic to do it to hopefully save on hastle down the road!!