yes it is i cant spell
and its more than likely gone due improper antifreze mix and water has eaten aluminum
Technical is it the head gasket??
- Thread starter kerry the hairdresser
- Start date
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Technical is it the head gasket??
yes it is i cant spell
and its more than likely gone due improper antifreze mix and water has eaten aluminum
Possible, but I've yet to personally encounter that.
Compression tests are the way forward, very helpful.
Luke.
Luke.
Fiat head gaskets are poor quality.
Found rust spots and pitting on gaskets from engines with between 28k and 48k, So, It starts early.
Found rust spots and pitting on gaskets from engines with between 28k and 48k, So, It starts early.
kerry the hairdresser
New member
undate on kerrys little car.
thanks for all the replies
i believe the cause of head gasket failure was no servicing.
kerry and the lady that owned the car before her (another hairdresser) have just put go jouce in it and driven it.
i am still waiting for kerry to find the money to buy parts needed to rebuild it.(she tells me if she is busy this weekend i can go order parts monday)
head has been checked at garage he says its flat so no need to skim.
thermostate opens when put in water. so ok i prsume.
is there a way to test water pump??
any other parts i should check??
i told kerry after reading your forum that when its running she should sell it because if fiat engines are so bad at overheating and headgasket blowing in england must bo worse over here in spain.
She says she loves her little car and once i have put it back togeather it will be good for another 9 years (fingers crosed she is right)
by the way my spelling is crap as well
Thanks mick
thanks for all the replies
i believe the cause of head gasket failure was no servicing.
kerry and the lady that owned the car before her (another hairdresser) have just put go jouce in it and driven it.
i am still waiting for kerry to find the money to buy parts needed to rebuild it.(she tells me if she is busy this weekend i can go order parts monday)
head has been checked at garage he says its flat so no need to skim.
thermostate opens when put in water. so ok i prsume.
is there a way to test water pump??
any other parts i should check??
i told kerry after reading your forum that when its running she should sell it because if fiat engines are so bad at overheating and headgasket blowing in england must bo worse over here in spain.
She says she loves her little car and once i have put it back togeather it will be good for another 9 years (fingers crosed she is right)
by the way my spelling is crap as well
Thanks mick
I'd skim the head anyway -- as well as making sure it's dead flat it provides a much better base for an effective seal. Likewise I'd replace the stat (Motorad do a low temperature one which may help) and the water pump (899 ones are notoriously bad) as a matter of course.
The other thing to check is that the fan actually comes on.
Looked after they're just as reliable as anything else: Polish and Sicilian summers are just as hot as Spanish ones.
The other thing to check is that the fan actually comes on.
Looked after they're just as reliable as anything else: Polish and Sicilian summers are just as hot as Spanish ones.
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If kerry is correct and it has been neglected as well as replacing the pump there will be muck in the engine cooling passages, and heater matrix and cooling radiator and a flush with a proprietary flushing compound is the minium you should do.
Really removal and reverse flush with a garden hose, or both flush and removal.
If the fan runs properly it should be ok.
Noel
P.S. mine had lots of foreign material in its coolant and it had been looked after, somewhat.
Really removal and reverse flush with a garden hose, or both flush and removal.
If the fan runs properly it should be ok.
Noel
P.S. mine had lots of foreign material in its coolant and it had been looked after, somewhat.
They do seem to rust up, even with a really good inhibited anti-freeze. The proprietary flushing agent stuff Noel mentions is only about £3 a bottle here.
Lastly if you live in a hard water area such that kettles need descaling at all, then you should use soft water or distilled water or demineralised water in coolant mixed with the correct ratio of antifreeze.
Other wise the cylinder head will cover itself with calcium carbonate insulator and run a little hotter.
Dont worry about your english either I learnt all my spanish from US films.
Noel
Other wise the cylinder head will cover itself with calcium carbonate insulator and run a little hotter.
Dont worry about your english either I learnt all my spanish from US films.
Noel
andymacdonald30
New member
My first post on this forum
And what do I find
The same problem that my seciento is suffering with
Twice in the last week it has been difficult to start almost as if the battery is flat
Then when it does start up the engine is running rough and missing
After a couple of mins the engine runs ok but it is chucking out smoke/steam like it going out of fashion
But then the next few days it was fine started ok, ran ok, no steam.
So even if it sounds like the one mentioned above
Why would it be bad one day and ok the next?
Mad eh
Any clues any one
Andy
And what do I find
The same problem that my seciento is suffering with
Twice in the last week it has been difficult to start almost as if the battery is flat
Then when it does start up the engine is running rough and missing
After a couple of mins the engine runs ok but it is chucking out smoke/steam like it going out of fashion
But then the next few days it was fine started ok, ran ok, no steam.
So even if it sounds like the one mentioned above
Why would it be bad one day and ok the next?
Mad eh
Any clues any one
Andy
Maybe it ran out of water?
Running rough, difficulty starting, lots of water in the exhaust are all pretty good indicators of a blown head gasket. Only way to be sure is to do a compression test....... etc.
andymacdonald30
New member
Deff has not run out of coolant
But has had a tiny leak somewhere up the side of the rad
I check it every couple of days and it has never been below the top up tank
But I will get a comp test done and see what happens
it is just weird that it comes and goes like this
I would have thought if the H G had gone it would stay gone
But has had a tiny leak somewhere up the side of the rad
I check it every couple of days and it has never been below the top up tank
But I will get a comp test done and see what happens
it is just weird that it comes and goes like this
I would have thought if the H G had gone it would stay gone
Could be something else, but a compression test will be the best start to a diagnosis.
andymacdonald30
New member
Yea will get it done
I have plenty of experience with motors and have run accross many problems in the past
But this one has me a bit puzzeled
When the misfire/steam from the exaust is going on the engine warning light is on
but start it up the next time and it runs fine and the light is out
Had me thinking it was just a sensor at first but the more I think about it the more I think it can only be the HG
aNDY
I'd suggest because you did not fix it when it steamed up the first time.
If it had a leak you needed to fix that immediately rather than driving it, and topping up, the cooling system needs to pressurise to increase its efficiency, otherwise you risk damage to the head gasket and the head.
Noel.
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kerry the hairdresser
New member
The antifreze/coolant in spain is sold in 5 litre bottles ready mixed in 10%, 30% or 50% mix so hard water should not be a problem.
The radiator engine and heater matrix have all been cleaned and flushed and there was a lot of rusty **** in there.
the fan was comming a lot before if overheated so i presume that the fan switch is fine.
is there any way to test water pump while the car is in pieces?????
thanks again for all the replies.
Hi
The way I test is to replace with new, walking is so difficult if the seal fails. Ditto thermostat.
If you cant affort new immediatley, when you rebuild and start the engine, the heater hoses should get hot almost immediately while the engins is warming, up then the radiator hoses should get hot, then the hoses should get really hard... Dont burn your hands or go near the rad fan...
This is a test of the whole system, you may have failed to clean out the muck/rust sufficiently, or the thermostst may be broken, if this does not happen. The simplest way is to replace the radiator, but expensive.
Noel
The way I test is to replace with new, walking is so difficult if the seal fails. Ditto thermostat.
If you cant affort new immediatley, when you rebuild and start the engine, the heater hoses should get hot almost immediately while the engins is warming, up then the radiator hoses should get hot, then the hoses should get really hard... Dont burn your hands or go near the rad fan...
This is a test of the whole system, you may have failed to clean out the muck/rust sufficiently, or the thermostst may be broken, if this does not happen. The simplest way is to replace the radiator, but expensive.
Noel
andymacdonald30
New member
Got a recommendation from my local garage (Who I do trust) for a Chap who will fix the H G
He is picking the car up wed am and will bring it back in a couple of days
Estimated cost 300 quid Inc the belt and water pump
Now I don’t think that is too bad at all
He is picking the car up wed am and will bring it back in a couple of days
Estimated cost 300 quid Inc the belt and water pump
Now I don’t think that is too bad at all
