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MG MGF Technical - Coolant Leak

I have a 97 MGF and my coolant has disappeared. I add a litre and it drains away.

I havew checked under the car and can see drips coming out of the middle (3cm largish) tube near the connection of a rubber pipe to a metal one (sorry can't be more technical).

Also the hose (1.5cm?) that I can see looking up on the drivers side rear wheel seems to be rather green with fluid.

So I seem to have more than one leak but my engine oil is not emulsified.

1. How easy is it to fix these sort of leaks?
2. Could I drive the car to a garage about 6 miles away for it to be fixed?
3. Any guesses on how much this sort of repair may cost?

Thanks and any ideas.

Mike.
M J Radford

Check the water level first before driving six miles. If it is low ie none left in tank then I wouldn't drive more than a quarter mile having first topped it up. If the leaks are hose joints then they are relatively easy and quick to fix. The leak on the drivers side sounds ominous. It could be the head gasket leaking water and the water is running down the outside of the hose. Take the cover off the engine (the one under the carpet in the rear window) and check to see if water is leaking out onto or near the alternator. If it is then don't drive. Get them to collect on a trailer.

HTH

Bruce
Bruce Caldwell

Michael, it sounds as though you may have problems with the metal coolant pipes running between the engine and the front mounted radiator. These are prone to corrosion and failure at the 5/6 year mark.

Replacement is possible DIY - although you might want your local garage to do this work for you. Pipes made of more corrosion resistant aluminium are also available from Mike Satur - along with replacement rubber hoses and superior 'jubilee' type hose clips.
Rob Bell

Yes, coolant pipes sounds likely but the "Also the hose (1.5cm?) that I can see looking up on the drivers side rear wheel seems to be rather green with fluid." sounds like something else.

Just had my pipes replaced again (they have lasted 3 years each time) £135.

Jon Baker


Hi all,

IMO much of the corrosion problems we see can be fixed if the ground return cable from the battery is disconnected at the present place and re-located via a thick cable to the rear close or on the alternator. In this way also the very high electromagnetic field down at the left foot/leg (on LHD cars !) can be minimised. Possibly (but not yet checked ) medium wave radio reception will also be improved. Much the same as now done on some Volvos after reports of very high EMF readings close to the driver....
Another job for the autum /winter!

BR, Carl.
Carl Blom

Regarding the coolant pipes on the underside of the car it was interesting to read MG World,issue 30,page 79.The official response from MG Rover was "..no modifications have been made to the steel cooling pipe components and there are no reported issues on their warranty database. 'The underfloor pipes are powder-coated and conform to both MG and BMW standards for corrosion resistance.In addition,the pipes have passed all of the durability requirements, in summary High Speed ,Pave and 100k normal road durability,without failure'
Well there you have it officially 'there nowt wrong with 'em'
My comment? Please don't change the quality MG/Rover, we do sell quite a few aluminium ones;-)
Mike.
mike

>"..no modifications have been made to the steel cooling pipe components and there are no reported issues on their warranty database.

LOL, why did they change three times in 1995 till 1997 then ? ;)

Powder coated ... ROFL
I see a nurse with powder can in my mind, powdering the raw babies.
Dieter Koennecke

Yes I read that, no warrenty claims, well there wouldn't be if most pipes are corroding AFTER 3 years.
Also it is funny funny how they monitor warrenty claims for coolant pipes but not head gaskets (or so I was told when I had my HGF).

Good luck to you Mike, I'm still waiting for my exhaust to rust away then I'll be intouch !
Jon Baker

I've decided to have it recovered to a Rover garage for fixing tomorrow so I'll update you on their diagnosis of the problem then.
Mike

Garage diagnosed HGF and for the bargain price of £550 replaced the head gasget.

On the way home (40 minutes at slow speed), I noticed that the coolant level dropped by about 2 cm.

This morning I look under the car and I can see a coolant drip at the connection between the fat hose and pipe in the middle of the car. Does anyone know what this hose is called and would it be replaced during a HGF fix?

Any ideas,

Mike.
Mike

Mike,

See my thread on the Technical list entitled "Coolant loss - is it an HGF? - yes it is - no it isn't", as this may be a similar case of jumping to the HGF diagnosis too quickly. Did you get to see the old HG and where it had failed?

Dave
Dave

Mike,

The 'fat hose and pipe' in the middle is disconnected during a new head gasket job. The coolant is drained by disconnecting these joints. So it may be that they didn't put then back properly. They are just spring clips and it is probably worth while having them replaced with 'Jubilee' style clips.

Bruce
Bruce Caldwell

Hi Michel,

I had the same problem some time ago twice. First it was the gasquet of the cylinder head was broken and the water was disapearing under high pressure. The second time it was the water pump that leaked: the water loss was slower. Both problems were solved well by the garage and unter warranty.
Andreas Gloor

This thread was discussed between 14/07/2002 and 23/07/2002

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