yellowperil Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 Your first post said your heater stopped working though and you were slowly loosing coolant. ---------- Post added 31-03-2016 at 15:13 ---------- Now its leaking like it is "fast" you should easily be able to trace the leak. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Obelix Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 Hi. It's a Vauxhall Corsa 1.2 Petrol or diesel? Year of manufacture? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Revel Posted March 31, 2016 Author Share Posted March 31, 2016 Hi. It's a Vauxhall Corsa 1.2 Your first post said your heater stopped working though and you were slowly loosing coolant. ---------- Post added 31-03-2016 at 15:13 ---------- Now its leaking like it is "fast" you should easily be able to trace the leak. Yes but doesn't coolant from a leaking heater core sit in the passenger footwell? Bone dry in there, and the leak is coming from nowhere near the passenger side. ---------- Post added 31-03-2016 at 15:17 ---------- Petrol or diesel? Year of manufacture? Oh. Petrol, 2005. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Obelix Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 Firstly since you've driven it a few times and overheated it I would be amazed if the head isn't badly warped. Those engines do not take overheating well and the head twists easily as the clamping force from the head bolts is not large, so the head will move when overheated. If the heater matrix itself is broken then the water pools inside the car. However a common place to fail is the pipe into the bulkhead from the engine bay and the leak is outside the cabin then which is what yours sounds like. You need to isolate the leak firstly, and then refill and get the air out the coolant system and try. You may find that the head only leaks after warming up - you might find it still seals fine, you don't know until you've fixed the leak and taken if for a gentle drive with the engine up to temperature. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yellowperil Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 All depends where the pipes to the matrix run. Hopefully it will be a split rubber pipe to the matrix/core. Like i said though, if its leaking fast now you should easily find it if you look under. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smithy266 Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 As a temporary measure, leave the radiator pressure cap off, so there is no build-up of water pressure in the system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Obelix Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 As a temporary measure, leave the radiator pressure cap off, so there is no build-up of water pressure in the system. Very bad idea if you do that you will end up with the coolant jacket boiling. These engines run the coolant above the boiling point and rely on a pressuriesed system to control boiling, especially if you have a low antifreeze concentration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
therascal Posted April 1, 2016 Share Posted April 1, 2016 (edited) Basically a couple of months ago, my heater stopped working and my coolant was slowly disappearing. I ignored it, knowing that I would be getting a new car in June, and just refilled my coolant reservoir every 2 or 3 weeks which fixed the problem. I had my MOT done last Tuesday, which passed except for a couple of other irrelevant things. I am shocked that the MOT didn't pick the leak up, because the coolant system is supposed to be a part of the test, right? So I figured it must just be a very small leak and didn't say anything to them. Since then my car temperature has been red-lining and my heater again stopped working. I've put about 4 litres of coolant in my reservoir since the MOT, and the car overheats literally 20 minutes after adding coolant. The problem has worsened to the point where I cannot drive the car without the smell of something melting underneath the bonnet. I have been searching the car night and day for any possible leaks under the bonnet. I've replaced the reservoir cap and put in radiator/hose repairer, to no avail. I have now finally found the leak. It is directly underneath the driver side, and it is very obvious now I've found it. I cannot understand why the mechanics at the garage didn't pick it up. A friend gave an educated guess and said it was the heater matrix, because it's located behind the dashboard pretty much above where this leak is. But the heater does work when there is actually coolant inside the car, so I am really hoping that it's just a cracked pipe... Does anybody know what it is, and how much it is likely to cost? I just need this car to last me until June when I buy a new one, and after having spent £700 on this car this year alone, I'm really not happy about shedding out another small fortune. Pictures below.. Thank you. http://postimg.org/image/768bxouod/ http://postimg.org/image/r9ncvzxal/ http://postimg.org/image/mcedomkp9/ http://postimg.org/image/6s6zy3akt/ So basically you are trying to blame the garage who did not notice the leak, a major problem which you yourself should have sorted out before it caused any major damage to the car engine. Its a good job your friend gave you an educated guess as you obviously are not. Edited April 1, 2016 by therascal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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