for one thing..
if your temp guage never was getting above 1/4 on the gauge ..
assuming gauge is reading correctly ..
and most of the time they do ..
that's running much too cold.

a common failure on a 2.1 waterboxer is a thermostat that fails to keep
the engine up to temp.
Have seen it hundreds of times.
Many people do not realize that cooler is not better...
expecially in winter.
should run right about in the middle.

can't tell which plastic coolant pipe you're speaking off..
one of the main ones ?"   ( about 1  3/4 inch OD , roughly )
they do that on the ends..
common failure mode.
Metal insert slips out of the ends of the main plastic pipes.
two places in front ..
two places up front.

also ..**all** original plastic cooling system parts on 2.1 wbxrs vans
are 'due' ..
like the t-stat housing ..
those just warp and fail eventually.

S.

On 12/21/2014 12:25 PM, Kevin Duvernay wrote:
> Hey guys, first post here hoping to get some help troubleshooting my new
> (to me) westy.
>
> I received the gowesty coolant pressurization pump this week and today went
> to test it out. I tested the cap, it passed. Then I followed the
> instructions for checking for leaks and pressured up the system to 20PSI.
> BOOM, a leak sprung at one of the junctions between the plastic coolant
> pipe and rubber hose, the one at the rear that does not angle up.
>
> So I drained the coolant using the shop vac technique (removed the radiator
> bleed screw and sucked as much coolant as I could out the pressurized
> coolant reservoir).
>
> Then I installed 2 new hose clamps around the leaking junction.
>
> Then I refilled the system and bleed it with the pump according to gowestys
> instructions. It took 2 gallons of 50/50 mix which is roughly about what I
> was able to suck out. I think probably 2-3 gallons is what was taken out of
> the system between the leak and the shop vac sucking.
>
> Now after starting and letting warm up the overflow tank is REALLY full and
> the van got up to half way up the temp gauge from 10 min of idle (its never
> been more than about 1/4 of the way up before.
>
> Any ideas?
>
>