1989 1.6 turbo diesel coolant leak

[lentulus]

hi there - my first post on here,so here goes....
I have traced a coolant leak to the housing for the glowplug relay temperature sender,on the front face of the cylinder head.
Am wondering if anyone has advice on what to expect by way of a repair , before I get stuck in....

cheers,steve.

[noggintom]

Hi there,

If it is coming from the sensor then it maybe as simple as a perished rubber o-ring that seals the sensor to the engine. I replaced the sensor and it came with the rubber o-ring so I assume it has one. It is not too difficult to remove the sensor (the VW clips can be fiddly and access a wee bit difficult), whip it out and see how the O-ring looks. If that is the problem it should be a fairly simple repair.

I would replace the sensor anyway if you do not know how old it is, they are not so expensive. My glow plugs came on for longer after I replaced the sensor so I guess they wear over time.

Good luck!

[lentulus]

Thanks for the encouragement n-tom.Only now getting onto the job( with the luxury of a pit to work in). And it is not looking good........ First,had to saw off the half nut holding the turbo oil pipe clamp in position.The housing 'studs' were easy to get out.The housing cracked in two places and the large sealing ring all but destroyed.The mating face on the alloy cylinder head badly pitted.The copper band around the 'waist' of the sensor itself also fractured in three places.
However,spares are cheap and available (vw part 068121144 is the housing or flange and washer,and vw 251919501A for the sensor).Now I can see where the exhaust manifold is blowing,just under the sender and flange...... oh dear.