Important! : Please help

  1. Newbie Joined: Dec 2011 Posts: 27
    #1
    Are saxo vtr and nightmare to bleed coolant system iam having a night mare with it can anyone help
  2. Frequent Poster Joined: Oct 2011 Milton Keynes Posts: 869 2000 Citroen Saxo 1.0L
    #2
    You should really use the search button.. but here is what huricane wrote. all credits to him for this:


    Quote:
    Originally Posted by huricane View Post
    As with all guides, read it through in it's entirety at least once before carrying out the job. You will need;
    - Mole Grips/Waterpump Pliers/Slipjoint Pliers
    - A PSA header tank or 2l soda bottle
    - 5l of coolant and a large bucket
    - A set of Allen keys/Allen key socket set and ratchet

    The process;
    Remove the radiator cap from the expansion tank on the radiator, next to the slam panel. Then using a pair of angled grips/waterpump or slipjoint wrench loosen the clip around the lower radiator hose, which runs from the very bottom left of the radiator looking at it from the front of the car. Move the clip off to the left, and then gently grip the pipe on the outlet, moving it about slightly to loosen it as they bond on over time. Place a container under the outlet and pull off the hose.

    At this stage use a good method to clean out any gunk is to place a garden hose up each end of the system and turn it on to full, run it through until the water runs clear and then give it another minute or so.

    Firmly re-attach the lower and and fill up the radiator with your coolant/water mix (mixed at 1:1, pre mixed in a large bucket), until it reaches the top of the tank. Then cut the bottom half off of a 2l soda bottle, and use the top end as a funnel/header tank which you place in the top of the rad reservoir. If you hold it in at the correct angle it wont leak. The proper tank can be purchased from Pug/Citroen for around £20 if you prefer, but both do the same job its only worth it if your likely to do it often.

    There are three bleed nipples. The first is on a pipe at the back of the engine bay on the left of the inlet mani, it looks like tyre valve dustcap. Undo this, and fill the radiator tank and the funnel to the top until water comes out of the bleed valve in a uniform fashion with no air bubbles. Shut off the nipple.

    The next is on the thermostat housing, on the right hand side of the engine, near the front of the bay parallel to the battery. Theres a small bronze coloured nipple, usually they have a small chamferred ridge on the top. Undo this with an allen key, you dont need to undo it all the way, only enough so that you can see a small hole drilled into the thread. Again, fill up the funnel and wait for the water to pour out consistently. Shut the valve.

    Set your internal heaters to full speed and full heat, and start the engine. Keep an eye on your temp gauge, and monitor the heat from the fans. As soon as the fans give out really hot air, shut them off. This ensures there are no air locks in the heater matrix.

    Eventually your thermostat will open if its functioning correctly. You can tell this as the top rad pip leading from the thermostat housing to the top right of the radiator will become hot and full of coolant. Give it a squeeze to make sure it has good pressure.

    At this point, quickly check the third bleed valve, which is located on the top right of the radiator and is a small spinning lug. Take care as the coolant will obviously be very hot. Wait for a constant stream of water to come through, which it should do instantly, and then shut the valve off again.

    The water level should be kept upto a high point in the header tank/bottle throughout the process. You can remove it once the engine is on, but is useful afterwards incase you find a big air lock and the water all dissapears at once from the radiator. Dont worry its normal, just top it up as quickly as possible. Leave the car to run to allow the fan to switch on and off once or twice, and then shut it down. Leave it for ten minutes. Check the water level again and top up if required. Replace the rad cap.

    Throughout the entire process, if the temp gauge does not steadily increase, if nothing seems to be happening or the heaters arent blowing hot air, shut it down and start again as its possible youve got an epic airlock and your head will get warped pretty sharpish. However if you follow the above you should be fine, as you cool bled the system prior to running it there shouldnt be any big air locks.