Ali, i successfully did the bypass myself under direction from Chili. As anyone who has ever met Chili would know, he loves to talk and will give you all the you need ok, so it took me maybe 20 mins.... but hey, if i can do it anyone can do it!!!!!
that would get me to do it quickly aswel, couldnt think of anything worse, chili ranting in one ear and a car that you couldnt take anywear cos coolant would leak everywhere and it would overheat, talk about stuck between a rock and a hard place, its almost worth the rebuild:biggrin:
Does this keep on leaking coolent until i fix it? Because i havnt turned the heater or aircon on at all, and it seems to be getting more and more wet...
Yeah, but is that how its supposed to be? I hate heater cores, and who ever designed this stupid thing on a zed was a bastard.
Any coolant that SHOULD be in the cooling system that ISN'T can't be a good thing - IMO bypass or replace asap I had a leak in the top heater core hose so I did a bypass - very easy if you have small hands.
Its possible that the leak in your heater core is around the same spot I had mine (near one of the inlet tubes on the end tank of the core, right where I could of reached it), and if so it will be a simple task to repair the core without removing the dash at all. What you need to do is remove the black box of electronics from infront of the core so you can actually see it, and remove the coolant pipes to the core in the engine bay. Then attach some hose to the drivers side copper pipe for the core (in the engine bay), then blow down it to see if the heater core tap is open or closed. If closed, put the pipe on other copper pipe, and add some water down the pipe. Then with your head under the dash so you can see the heater core, get your trusty assistant to blow into the pipe while blocking off the other pipe with a finger (if tap is open). If your lucky you will be able to see the pin hole leak, and if your really lucky you will be able to reach it. There may be some foam in the way, you should be able to wipe it away with some cloth to see the end tank better Now the technical part. Clean area around leak and dry it. Buy some metal mend putty, knead a small amount until mixed properly, then plug up pin hole leak with putty like I did. No more leak I feel that this method is sound for repairing the core. I inspected mine out of the car before repair, the leak appeared to be caused by a casting imperfection (a small thin spot in the tank wall) that had slowly bulged out over the years then finally split, and not from corrosion as I had expected. The metal putty I used was good for temps up to 150 degrees, which the tank is never going to see.
After closer inspection i have leaks on passenger side and drivers side. What does this mean besides the obviouse that its bad....for all the smart arses. ps: Gazza where in NSW are you mate?
5 days later ... leak, leak, leak ...... ... :biggrin: :biggrin: :biggrin: it is sagas like this that gave the beatles their inspiration for their song .. "it's getting wetter all the time" .. lol
Leaks on both sides is normal and not indicative of anything, just means you've been turning corners in both directions while driving. You need to access the ecu and check how much coolant has reached it and take some measures to protect it (such as the bypass) before it gets shorted and becomes fried junk. You also will need to pull up the carpets and mop up the coolant in the underlay (and probably rinse it out with clean water). The carpet has plastic on the back of it so you cant tell how wet it is underneath just by feel, and because of the plastic the coolant cant be dried by leaving the doors open for the car to air out, its a seats out and carpet pulled up job Im afraid (not as hard as it sounds). Im in Scone, which is located between Newcastle and Tamworth
Been there done that Yep had the same drama over a year ago. Except we had a blow out, coolant peeing out inside the car, simply had it disconected for a few months then replaced, thought our carpets would be stuffed but they are still sweet 2 years later. The car has been sitting for 1.5 years. Replaced the heater core & cost us $60.00. Sucks not having a heater though.
