I have noticed that the coolant bottle has been empty on a few occasions even tho I have topped it to the 'max' twice..


Im not sure if theres a leak somewhere and will check. I have checked the oil for water and no sign of 'mayonase'..thankfully.


Any ideas?

Sadly it must e going somewhere. Have you checked all your pipes and radiator for tell-tale signs of leaks? Could there be air in the system which can blow the coolant out if it's not bled. Have you checked the interior floor for leake from the heater matrix?

"Mayonnaise" effect is not a must on a HG failure. Actually it depends where is the leak and how big it is.
Steamy white smoke from exhaust maybe?

You have to look closely for leaks. With engine temp normal(hot) not cold.

• Look near water pump. Both sides (belt/hose), under that area etc.
• The radiator.
• Thermostat fittings (all hoses).
• Back side of the engine two hoses going to heater.
• Heater core.

OK THEN...just checked the car again and the coolant had dropped. So I filled it back to max and sat with the car as it idled for 15 minutes.


Found the leak..its on the right hand side of engine and is what appears to be the thermostat gasket/housing.


Also noticed that although the temperature gauge went to halfway the cooling/radiator fan didn't come on ..its not my car but my daughter and she assures me that halfway is the 'norm'..what should it be before the fan kicks in?...It also has the engine temp warning when starting from cold.

That's a good sign.
Replace the thermostat.

Half way gauge = a huge range, actually it doesn't mean anything. Could be from 70c to 110c.
Fan is activating at ~96c (thermostat opens at 80c or 88c depending on what engine is this)

Thanks for the reply. The car is a 1.4 Dynamic.


Im thinking of having the cam belt and waterpump done soon even though theres 10 thousand miles till its officially due. May get it done at same time.


Any advise of make of thermostat. TBH I use ECP but am open to suggestions

Just had a thought..could I not just change the thermostat gasket?...assuming the thermostat itself is ok..although I don't know if it is..


Do you think the engine temp warning is related?..

What is ecp (eurocarparts?)?

You can replace just the o-ring of course (if you can find one)

About the warning, most of the times it's an electrical issue. Check the battery/ cables / connections etc

Im not too sure the thermostats not working properly tbh. don't know how to test other than immersing it in boiling water.


Is there anyway of testing it in situ?..leave car running on drive until the fan kicks in?..how long dya think that would take?