td5 heater problems

hi new to the site and looking for a bit of help.
ive got an x reg 2000 disco td5 bought it in april and have had problems with the coolant system for a while now.
1 st couldnt get any coolant through the thermostat so replaced that
2nd coolant kept leaking from somewhere found it was the rad so replaced this and the intercooler(fins where damaged).
3rd heaters all through this only ever blew cold or luke warm never hot so replaced the water pump heaters blew normal for 2 days and then reverted back to cold again.
the fan seems to be ok was wondering if the heater matrix would cause this(which has now started knocking every now and then)
Hoping its not the head gasket have had a look but no gunk or anything in the oil but the coolant resevoir keeps emptying not sure where its going
Any advice greatly appreciated
Thanks

mgb24175 said:

hi new to the site and looking for a bit of help.
ive got an x reg 2000 disco td5 bought it in april and have had problems with the coolant system for a while now.
1 st couldnt get any coolant through the thermostat so replaced that
2nd coolant kept leaking from somewhere found it was the rad so replaced this and the intercooler(fins where damaged).
3rd heaters all through this only ever blew cold or luke warm never hot so replaced the water pump heaters blew normal for 2 days and then reverted back to cold again.
the fan seems to be ok was wondering if the heater matrix would cause this(which has now started knocking every now and then)
Hoping its not the head gasket have had a look but no gunk or anything in the oil but the coolant resevoir keeps emptying not sure where its going
Any advice greatly appreciated
Thanks

Click to expand...

TD5's often won't mix oil and water. Go for a short drive and then see if the coolant hoses have pressurised afterwards. If they have, then yer most likely looking at HG failure.

1. Did u lift the expansion tank above the bleed hole when u filled it with fluid? .... if not u might have air in the system, take out the bleed nipple and lift the tank untill a clean flow of coolant comes out(engine stopped)...then put the tank back, start the engine and with the bleed nipple half screwed in let it run for a few mins.... when the engine is on normal working temp start the heater and bleed it again(watch out to the warm coolant).
2. Make sure the expansion tank's cap is fully tightened.
3. To make sure it's not a HG failure do a sniffer test on the coolant... u can do it on your own with this UNIVERSAL BLOCK TESTER TEST FLUID 16 fluid ounces | eBay, or go to a garage.

I've just been through this saga and learned a lot about the cooling system ... realised that after many bleedings there still was air in the system and i was dumb enough to not tighten enough the tank's cap ... the td5 cooling system works under pressure / 20psi(1.4bar)

Thanks for the tips
Ive had a few problems as someone reversed into me and only
Just got back from body and paint shop.
But I have had it pressure tested now and the garage ran 2 different
Tests and both came back clean so no HG problems.
So still no where nearer sorting out the problem
Any more help will be much appreciated
Thanks mark

Blocked heater matrix? Have you tried flushing it in both directions until water runs clear?

Ok took it to local lr specialists who were convinced
It was the head gasket so bit the bullit and had out
Done 800 quid and 1week later all was going good
No overheating and nice hot heaters until today driving
at 50mph and lost all power.
Can't really figure out what's going on now so
It's back in the garage
Anyone got any ideas
Thanks mark

mgb24175 said:

Ok took it to local lr specialists who were convinced
It was the head gasket so bit the bullit and had out
Done 800 quid and 1week later all was going good
No overheating and nice hot heaters until today driving
at 50mph and lost all power.
Can't really figure out what's going on now so
It's back in the garage
Anyone got any ideas
Thanks mark

Click to expand...

could be a turbo hose blown off or de-laminated, could be a faulty coolant temp sensor, could be seized turbo wastegate etc. It's hard to say without seeing the vehicle or knowing the other symptoms.

had a phone call from the garage and its the number 2 injector thats gone
so another few hundred quid and fingers crossed that this will be it sorted

What's the relation between injector failure and heater problems???
Ask the man from the garage that before u spent lots of money

Agere! Things are getting mixed up here!

Hi all,
I,v got an ongoing problem with my 98 TD5 Disco.
Been having overheating problems with mine.
Changed thermostat and now after checking radiator aint blocked i,m beginning to suspect the water pump.
The top half of the engine is getting hot but the rad is stone cold.
Took top and bottom hoses off and flushed rad and there's no blockage. Hoses are warm on bottom of thermostat and the top hose on rad is warm.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

u might have an airlock.... to check the pump is easy... start the engine when it's cold and undo the bleed screw(untill u get a coolant flow) ...if the coolant will come out there with a certain pressure there the pump is ok...if no pressure the pump is out . Bleed the system with the expansion tank opened and raised above the bleed hole(u just have to pull it up)

sierrafery said:

u might have an airlock.... to check the pump is easy... start the engine when it's cold and undo the bleed screw(untill u get a coolant flow) ...if the coolant will come out there with a certain pressure there the pump is ok...if no pressure the pump is out . Bleed the system with the expansion tank opened and raised above the bleed hole(u just have to pull it up)

Click to expand...

Thanks, i,ll try that.

Splasher said:

Thanks, i,ll try that.

Click to expand...

Hi again,
Just took bleed screw out and started it up from cold and no coolant came out so it looks like a water pump problem...
Excellent advice ..
Thanks again.

Splasher said:

Hi again,
Just took bleed screw out and started it up from cold and no coolant came out so it looks like a water pump problem...
Excellent advice ..
Thanks again.

Click to expand...

it definately looks like one then...but to be 100% certain rev the engine above 1500 /min...where the bypass valve of the thermostat must open.

sierrafery said:

it definately looks like one then...but to be 100% certain rev the engine above 1500 /min...where the bypass valve of the thermostat must open.

Click to expand...

Fitted new water pump and its still overheating....Looks like it might be head gasket...:doh::doh::doh::doh::doh:

Splasher said:

Fitted new water pump and its still overheating....Looks like it might be head gasket...:doh::doh::doh::doh::doh:

Click to expand...

My old man used to say, as one door closes another slams in your face!!!
How right he is.

Did u bleed it well with engine running? ... and make sure the tank's cap is fully tightened...the cap has a valve which if is opened all the time there will be no pressure in the system and it might overheat(the optimal pressure is 1.4 bar)

sierrafery said:

Did u bleed it well with engine running? ... and make sure the tank's cap is fully tightened...the cap has a valve which if is opened all the time there will be no pressure in the system and it might overheat(the optimal pressure is 1.4 bar)

Click to expand...

Do i bleed it when the system is hot or straight from cold please...
Sorry to keep bothering you with this problem but my motor is my life line to reality.:frown::frown::frown::frown:

By cold > pull out and lift the tank as much as u can, take cap off, remove the bleed screw, poor coolant(if necessary) untill a clean flow comes out, put tank back, put partially back the bleed screw as to let coolant come out, start engine, rev it above 1500 and and wait untill no bubbles are coming out...top up coolant if neccesary.... u can partially undo the bleed screw after a while when it's hot(u dont have to rev it then).. and wait untill no bubbles are coming, top up coolant if necessary. Tighten well the tank's cap.