Club 80-90 Forums

Had a bad experience, my normally trustworthy high top (1985 1.9 petrol automatic), has sprung a very bad water leak.

I originally thought is was the jubilee clip level with the rear wheel-ish that had worked loose on the rubber pipework that moved the coolant from front to back, however, its further back than that closer to the engine itself.

Its only a dribble when not running, but when running is gushing out and spraying when the water gets hot.

Have it booked in at my trusted garage , but he has no chance of getting it done until the 15th May, has anyone had anything similar, is it likely to be more sinister than a leaking hose?(Cant quite see exactly where is coming from without it being on a ramp).

Worried now that I might have caused damage when it overheated as well , the header expansion tank was full but the actual plastic tank in the engine bay had run dry causing a delay in realising the problem, just hope the seals around the engine itself have'nt become flawed?

Just wondered if anyone had experienced similar?

Could be the green head gaskets in the head. My best guess.

Hopefully just a failed clip. The expansion clips are far better than jubilee clips as they expand and retract with the hoses warming and cooling. Get some. Jubilee clips don’t expand and thus bite into hoses and split them.

Hopefully just a split in the rubber. When I had a leak in that area it was the bend in the front/ rear metal coolant pipe where it goes up into the engine bay.
David.

Thanks ,that gives a little hope, wont really know I suppose until its up on the ramp, it did get very very hot as I drove about 5 miles before I knew, saw some previous posts about water jacket gaskets , hope its not that as it sounds a big job... thanks for reply...

Just has a good look whilst its dry outside, there seems to be a leak occurring when the vans running on the right had side as you look down into the engine bay,it looks like its possible that the water casing gasket has failed, as well as a hose leak further along from the engine. My guess is that the hose will be able to be fixed more easily , but the gasket replacement does'nt look easy, having said that obviously when it goes into the garage and on the ramp, it may be more easily got too (living in hope) does anyone know if its a very big job in terms of getting to it?

Had some mixed views from friends on the garage costs likely for water jacket gasket replacement ,(so still unclear), also whilst the work is in progress in the future, is it worth any other work , someone advised changing from a carburetta to fuel injection and electronic ignition,is this possible and are there distinct advantages if I did? Does anyone know? Thanks.

Did you get any indication of problems with the coolant tank in the engine bay, Dalek cap, wiring etc.

No indication at all unfortunately

From a moderately novice perspective, I do not see any advantage of converting from Carburettor to Fuel Injection.

The carburettor system is more straight-forward to look after and maintain. Less to go wrong.
And I may be wrong, but I am sure that the injected vans are not much more efficient mpg wise - if at all.

Driving style, running weight, maintenance and environment will make the biggest differences.

And I am sure that all the vans run an electronic ignition system. - No plugs and points.

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I am going to put a sub-note as my signature below makes me a hypocrite.

I am converting from DF to DJ, because the DF was knackered (blown valve seat), and I managed to get a full(ish) DJ engine a long time ago, from a running van.
Although going from 60 to 112 bhp does also sound attractive.

Also ref conversions, in view of recent posts regarding MOT exemptions after vehicle ages forty, unsure if this alteration affects this, worth raising to see what other members think.

If it is something that was a typical factory option, then it would not affect the historical criteria.

If you threw a Subaru engine in, or a V6 lump, then that would affect it.

How about sorting the leak first ?
Actually get under it and clean everything off and dry it all so you stand a chance of seeing what is the issue .
Fill it up with water (not coolant) and watch where its coming from , before going down it doom and gloom route .
It may well be coming from a hose or connection and running down else where .

Well, bad news! The trusty mechanic tells me that my van is not on a good way. It has deterioration on the head gasket will water leaks from various areas, he also tells me that the metal front to back pipes are leaking and need replacing! Best option seems a new engine , new pipes, and likely new exhaust. Just Kampers want 4k for an engine, £220 for pipes £500 for stainless steel exhaust. That plus labour will cost around £6k without any unforeseen blips!So I have to decide soon , by tomorrow I guess... spend or sell spares or repair, or even scrap!Its the engine costs really as they also want£70 delivery and £600 extra up front which is refunded if I return the engine and its serviceable (another £70 carriage costs),so its a hard one!

Only buy your engine from Andrew @ Campershack.

https://g.co/kgs/AZpGBtN The Campershack
07813 324365

DoubleOSeven wrote:Only buy your engine from Andrew @ Campershack.

https://g.co/kgs/AZpGBtN The Campershack
07813 324365

Ditto