Am I mad? what have i done!

[egremontrusset]

Can anyone help?

A couple of days ago, on a whim, and with a hangover, i bought a 1986 t25 tin top in the Cotswolds. I drove her back to Leeds on the Fosse Way, the sun setting, music playing... she's big and off-white and a bit rusty, but i dont care because she's mine and lovely and she can just about go 65 (70 down hill) and when i get tired i can sleep in her... today reality hit. I know nothing about this beast... i know that it's over heating in bad traffic (steam - not smoke - appeared under the dash for a brief moment) and it looks like water (blue coolant) is leaking out of the head gasket and the exhaust is a bit steamy and water tank is empty and i can see sludge... but no oil.

can someone point me in the direction of great mechanic who can tell me what i've done and what i might need to do. She has a new MOT and is "structurally sound" (i did take a look underneath). I live in Saltaire, near Bradford.

I'm new to this VW world... but i love the site. I didn't know if i should post this here or in the garage section. I have pictures but I can't work out how to post them.
thanks
Dan

[Plasticman]

oh heck,,, copy and paste a link to where you have the pickies stashed , sorry you wouldnt know if its structurally sound or not but wont try to dissolution you yet
mm
oh an hi

[ChrisTriple]

Some dodgy folk in the cotswolds. Its my neck of the woods

Not long had mine either but love her. The girlfriend really loves her.bet she dont help pay

[egremontrusset]

oh heck,,, copy and paste a link to where you have the pickies stashed , sorry you wouldnt know if its structurally sound or not but wont try to dissolution you yet
mm
oh an hi

thanks so much for looking... not great photographs, but you can see the pink of the coolant leaking. this link should work.

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ml9zlgi844win5s/C3vx6HB3f4

[Plasticman]

tis antifreeze indeed, at least there is some in it i suppose needs a check round in there.
very very nice fanlight and window
body is in need of a fair bit of welding but dont fuss it and get it used over the summer.and then have a think,it wont make it any worse really stick you rough location up.
did you give a lot for it
mm

[egremontrusset]

thanks... i drove 200 miles and there was water in it, today there's nothing. I'll put in more tomorrow with anti freeze. There are two water containers, one behind the number plate and one above - is that a reserve? Which one takes the antifreeze mix?

Do you happen to know anyone up here who's good. a garage?

I paid £1800.

[egremontrusset]

Some dodgy folk in the cotswolds. Its my neck of the woods

Not long had mine either but love her. The girlfriend really loves her.bet she dont help pay

i can see the hole in my pocket already... oh well. All part of the fun!

[egremontrusset]

tis antifreeze indeed, at least there is some in it i suppose needs a check round in there.
very very nice fanlight and window
body is in need of a fair bit of welding but dont fuss it and get it used over the summer.and then have a think,it wont make it any worse really stick you rough location up.
did you give a lot for it
mm

and thanks for the encouragement, by the way.
d

[itchyfeet]

Yes you are mad a T3 is nothing but a money pit, what you paid for it will pail into insignificance to the cost of fixing it up and keeping it running.

but whats wrong with being mad the big grin when you drive it will make you look mad anyway.

1st thing is to find out where the coolant is leaking from, crawl underneath hot and cold and look. If you are lucky then you may have a number of easily fixed small leaks on pipes etc, if you are unlucky and it's all coming out of the water jacket seals ( not actually the same as a head gasket, pistons are sealed seperately) then you will need to get the heads removed and new seals installed at some point. It depends how much coolant you are loosing and what length trips you do as you can always keep topping up but you need a good strength coolant for this and the right coolant.

e.g. http://www.eurocarparts.com/ecp/c/Volks ... &0&cc5_866

[1664]

That's a Leisuredrive interior if you were wondering (except for the cupboard behind the passenger seat)

[Mocki]

That water system has been seriously messed with! Looking at the engine bay pics I wouldn't be surprised if you have multiple leaks....? Also that fuel filter needs removing from the line tween the pump and the carb, it should only have one filter, just after the tank under the van....

See you in the wanted section soon I think!!

The top up tank is the one behind the number plate flap the header tank is the other one. The top up tank should be full to the cap when cold, the header tank should be brim full all the time but obviously never undo it when the engine is hot ......

Park it over a sheet of card board and you will see where it leaked, to give you more idea of where to look...
Trouble is hot coolant evaporates so minor leaks are hard to find.....

[egremontrusset]

Yes you are mad a T3 is nothing but a money pit, what you paid for it will pail into insignificance to the cost of fixing it up and keeping it running.

but whats wrong with being mad the big grin when you drive it will make you look mad anyway.

1st thing is to find out where the coolant is leaking from, crawl underneath hot and cold and look. If you are lucky then you may have a number of easily fixed small leaks on pipes etc, if you are unlucky and it's all coming out of the water jacket seals ( not actually the same as a head gasket, pistons are sealed seperately) then you will need to get the heads removed and new seals installed at some point. It depends how much coolant you are loosing and what length trips you do as you can always keep topping up but you need a good strength coolant for this and the right coolant.

e.g. http://www.eurocarparts.com/ecp/c/Volks ... &0&cc5_866

thanks for the link... just bought the coolant.

[egremontrusset]

That water system has been seriously messed with! Looking at the engine bay pics I wouldn't be surprised if you have multiple leaks....? Also that fuel filter needs removing from the line tween the pump and the carb, it should only have one filter, just after the tank under the van....

See you in the wanted section soon I think!!

The top up tank is the one behind the number plate flap the header tank is the other one. The top up tank should be full to the cap when cold, the header tank should be brim full all the time but obviously never undo it when the engine is hot ......

Park it over a sheet of card board and you will see where it leaked, to give you more idea of where to look...
Trouble is hot coolant evaporates so minor leaks are hard to find.....

Thank you so much for the help... steam came up under the dash in traffic so I'm guessing a major leak is there. Maybe the radiator? I'll try the cardboard trick too... if i can't find a major leak I'll take it to a garage 'BrickWerks' is quite near me. http://www.brickwerks.co.uk/about/31. They look good.

http://www.brickwerks.co.uk/about/31

The temp gauge is broken which doesn't help... warning light works , just as well.

[Wychall]

If you are looking for a muchanic nearby then Simon is not far from you, in Holmfirth.

http://www.brickwerks.co.uk/workshop

[egremontrusset]

Great. yes, they look good. I'll talk to Simon.