General Winter Problem - Urgent help needed

[AaronJeff]

As the silly man i am. My mk2 punto has had no anti freeze and it has frozen. I have managed to defrost the engine without any cracks in the head. No leaks of oil or water.

So i am left with one problem. When bleeding the radiator it basically just keeps bleeding. Therefore when i drive after 10 mins it overheats.

The water sits at the max level and just keeps bleeding. So there is either a blockage or an air lock. The blowers are freezing cold.

The car runs perfect and oil is still fine so with that im guessing a head gasket is not in the picture.

So far i have flushed the system and filled back up. Bled rad. Didnt work. Forced water under pressure im the filler cap and didnt work. And as for now i am stuck.

Any ideas at all? Please help!

 

[Ziggy122]

Oh dear.....

im seriously surprised you didnt crack the block when it froze! - Anyway

if the system keeps on filling up and up and up then there has to be a leak somewhere

if the system seems to refuse to bleed - its not uncommon for the punto to get a massive airlock, which is confirmed by the fact you said no heat in cabin as well

its hard to tell if its leaking water - esp if its snowing.... But keep trying to bleed it, i often when doing a bleed end up catching the coolant and reusing it - otherwise like my last bleed it took nearly 3 days of sessional bleeding for the stupid air to escape

Ziggy

 

[Most Easterly Pandas]

There is a leak somewhere letting the air in, a car does not simply bleed for ever.

 

[AaronJeff]

I have had the car running on idle for one hour and the car doesnt look like it has a leek as i cant see it dripping anywhere. How long does it take to bleed usually. I had a good 3 hours at trying yesterday and today

 

[dave]

are you bleeding both places, like it says in the guide?

 

[AaronJeff]

Yes. Opened both bleed nipples with car running. Filler cap open and leave to run until water runs cleanly from both holes. is this the correct procedure?

 

[Ziggy122]

Process i do is this

open both valves
Fill coolant up
keep filling till its flowing free from both valves
Shut them off
Top up if need be (rare) - normally i let excess out via rad bleed valve

run engine upto temperature (fan kicks in) and then wait till it cools

Ziggy

 

[dave]

Yes. Opened both bleed nipples with car running. Filler cap open and leave to run until water runs cleanly from both holes. is this the correct procedure?

its no wonder you cant bleed it if engine is running you are sucking more air in. go read the guide https://www.fiatforum.com/guides/ engine stays off

 

[AaronJeff]

Thatks but im filling up and it just keeps throwing it back out. The pressure drops then pushes it back out

 

[dave]

have you read the guide yet?

 

[AaronJeff]

Ahhh that might be the problem. Ill try that tomorrow. Its a bit late to try now. Ill let you know how it goes tomorrow. Thankyou all

 

[Ziggy122]

Thatks but im filling up and it just keeps throwing it back out. The pressure drops then pushes it back out

Thats correct yes

The weight of the coolant is higher in the filler neck then the bleed valves - so the coolant flow out
If the coolant is flowing with no air bubbles - its bled - shut the valves

Make sure your at max before starting the engine - getting upto temp and checking once its then cooled down

Ziggy

 

[AndyRKett]

What do you mean it keeps bleeding, pour water in bottle open bleed screws either water comes out or air comes out if you are getting neither then 'bleeding' isn't your problem.

You mention its overheating but the cabin is cold which points to a knackered thermostat are the radiator hoses getting warm?

"I'm filling it up and it just keeps throwing it back out" out of where ?

There is a lot of confusion about what you are actually doing

 

[Most Easterly Pandas]

Don't forget to have heater switched to max heat also (although I'm not sure if Punto is flat actuated, or value), but always a good thing to do anyways

 

[AaronJeff]

So basically open the cap and the two bleed valves and let the weight of the water push the air out or do i blow on the filler hole to give it pressure to push round?

 

[AaronJeff]

The hoses are boiling hot. Basically i am opening the bleed valves and pouring water into the filler with the engine running but as i put water in the filler the level drops a bit then the level rises and pushes the water back out of the filler. All that comes out of the bleeders is very hot steam at high pressure and it just keeps steaming from both bleeders

 

[Most Easterly Pandas]

Weight of the coolant from what I can gather, shouldn't need to blow anything.

 

[dave]

Don't forget to have heater switched to max heat also (although I'm not sure if Punto is flat actuated, or value), but always a good thing to do anyways

punto has flaps not a cock :devil:

 

[homeward]

punto has flaps not a cock :devil:

That's why my Punto's called Priscilla....

 

[Azzam]

That's why my Punto's called Priscilla....

i found out the hard way when it back fired......