[gary85]

Hi,

I have a corsa 1.2 16v x12xe, it usually loses coolant once in a while but recently the rate has increased. I topped it up with coolant on Monday before i went to work, when coming back from work today friday i could feel a bit of hesitation when nearing home the engine management light came on about less than half a mile. I hooked it up to my diagnostic equipment got this code: P0115 - Coolant Temperature Voltage Low (02) - Not present but i think why this came on was due to the fact it ran out of coolant as this was the case. I topped it up again.

I only did 200miles before the coolant ran out, also i took it to a mechanic in December as i was concerned about it losing coolant and he said that it did not need a new head gasket?
Could it be the water pump, leak or something else?

also on a further note my horn recently stop working, the joys of owning a corsa


Any help or advice would be a appreciated, thanks

 

[zapmole]

maybe the thermostat? can you see any crystals forming around any hose joints that would show any leaks also any wet patches on the floor after leaving your car there overnight?

 

[gary85]

I looked at it today could see no wet patches on ground, i reset the faults codes and the code didnt come back. Under the coolant tank its a bit wet but could this be just normal? ie condensation.
I checked the oil dipstick and there was the yellow stuff, there was pretty of yellow stuff under the oil cap, could it be the headgasket?

Thanks for your advice

 

[taurus]

Whilst I try not to jump to conclusions, especially when everyone assumes their HG has gone, there are signs here that you need to check.

The wetness under the header tank - if the HG goes between a combustion chamber and a coolant channel then the cylidner will pressurise the coolant system, which can force coolant out of the header tank. So wetness underneath needs exploring. It may just be a leak - you hope so! But it won't be condensation.

The gunk by the oil filler cap may simply be the result of short journeys, but if it's on the dipstick as well there's more cause for concern. Especially when linked to an increasing loss of coolant.

You could ask your workshop to check for coolant for combustion gases - a simple test that won't take long.

Also, take your spark plugs out. Water getting into a cylinder will steam clean the inside of it, including the spark plug. So if one plug looks cleaner than the rest you may have a problem.

 

[gary85]

Hi taurus,

Yes there is gunk on the dipstick, i checked the spark plugs 3 of them do appear to be cleaner than one of them.

I will upload photos to show this,

Thanks

 

[gary85]

Hi

I uploaded 4 photos of the spark plugs and dipstick if anyone would like to look at and give some advice.

Photo 1: Spark Plugs
http://rapidshare.com/files/456622617/P1442_09-04-11.JPG

Photo 2: Oil Cap
http://rapidshare.com/files/456622618/P1443_01__09-04-11.JPG

Photo 3: Dipstick
http://rapidshare.com/files/456622619/P1443_09-04-11.JPG

Photo 4: Oil switch, replaced this part when light came on but there seems to be oil leaking from it.
http://rapidshare.com/files/456622620/P1444_09-04-11.JPG

Many thanks

 

[taurus]

No pictures at this end

 

[gary85]

Did you try using the rapidshare links taurus?

 

[gary85]

Heres the images:

 

[gary85]

Heres the links to images

http://img94.imageshack.us/i/p1442090411.jpg/
http://img9.imageshack.us/i/p144301090411.jpg/
http://img857.imageshack.us/i/p1443090411.jpg/
http://img824.imageshack.us/i/p1444090411.jpg/

 

[rocksta]

I would get down a garage asap and get them to do a compression test and a sniffer test in the coolant to see if there is any gases in there. Another check is to take the coolant cap off and run the engine. If the water starts to rise quickly then put the cap back on can shut off the engine.
If there is a split between the water ways and the chamber then it would cause the pressure to increase in the coolant system.

 

[Black Corsa]

Update

Hi Gary. Just found this thread and was wondering how you got on. My daughter has something similar going on with her car too. Cheers.