Skip to main content
Gerry | Vanagon
Checking account...
← vanagon.com home · Continue the discussion in the forum
Subject:Re: Purging Cooling System
From:J. Meade
Date:Sat, 14 Jan 1995 18:59:02 -0600 (CST)

Well, I got some air out of mine earlier, as I said, and now the heater 
is running cool again and there is no fluid coming out of the radiator 
even though I've run it with the nose in the air for 15 minutes.  Is this 
not enough?

As far as having a head gasket leak, I'd not be surprised, but I really 
want to do everything humanly possible to eliminate every other 
possibility.  I just don't want to spend the money right now unless it's 
the last alternative.  The expansion tank seems to keep all its fluid, or 
at least you can rationalize that the little bit it goes down went to 
fill one of the air pockets I let out.

The temp gauge now will not run over the light in the gauge, that is, 
less than half reading.  Before this morning, it would run about 3/4 
gauge.  So, I, too, wonder if there is a problem with the system being 
too cool to circulate properly.  

Anyway, my bottom line is I can't figure out why all of a sudden I can 
get no more coolant from the radiator bleed valve.  

BTW, I can still smell the coolant leak in the rear radiator, but that 
sucker will run HOT!  The front one kind of comes and goes, mostly goes.  
Oddly, the rear heater leak is not in the hose connections, not in the 
bleed cap screw, or in the other connectors (mine was built after the 
fixes, anyway).  It must be in the core somewhere.  I can't find it, so 
assume I'll have to remove the heater.  Any other alternative? 

Jim - Farmer - Iowa City, IA, 
jnmeade@blue.weeg.uiowa.edu