Nobimmer 694 Report post Posted October 27, 2007 Car is an E36 318i M43 Right, last night I got home and parked the car up and went inside. Came outside about 20 mins later to take pics of my new red tails to discover a HUGE amount of green water under the car which I thought wasnt from me.Later realised that twas anti freeze and there would have been a good 2 litres there I reckon. Had a look for a leak and saw this tiny little crack/hole and I patched it up with knead it and it seemed to stop leaking and hasnt since last night. Only problems are: 1.) it wasn't overheating prior to me getting home.wasn't even over half way. 2.) that tiny little crack realisticly couldn't have emptied out the whole resevoir in a few minutes. 3.) I filled it all back up with water(not properly,just poured a litre or so in and took it for a 3-4km drive.When I got to my girlfreinds house the water was all frothy,not like boiling water from a kettle....kinda like a cappucino if ya get me ...so I put a lil more water in and then took it for a kane down the road for like a minute then came back and it wasn't overheating or quite as frothy. So then I decided to tow it home,got half way there and tow rope snapped so I just said f**k it I'll drive it home ~2kms. So drove home all carefully and it still didn't overheat or anything and when I got home I checked and it wasn't frothy or leaking anywhere. There doesn't seem to be any visible oil in the water and vice versa. Could it be air bubbles or something in the water or something else that's simple?Please say yes! Any help would be much appreciated Cheers Ashkan Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Yuen 16 Report post Posted October 28, 2007 Hey Ashkan, Bit confused with what actually happened, did the car just overheat this morning when you took it out again? Where was the crack/hole? On the radiator? Expansion tank? Either way you will need to replace the part that has the crack. For now if it's a small crack and slow leak... just bleed the system and you should be good. But you'll have to monitor the temp gauge very carefully and top up everytime you drive. Btw, BMW coolant should be blueish instead of green. Use distilled water and BMW coolant if you can - better for your cooling system (there are some people who say it doesn't matter - but I think the couple extra bucks for BMW coolant is worth it for the peace of mind). Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nobimmer 694 Report post Posted October 28, 2007 Yep at the bottom of the expansion tank but the crack was fixed with knead it and it hasn't leaked any water since. I Just took it for a drive around my house and let it get to normal operating temp and checked the water and it wasn't frothy or anything and everything seemed normal. Could it just have been that there was fark all water in the rad? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ducatiss 1 Report post Posted October 28, 2007 (edited) You will need to replace the expansion tank if it has cracked - knead it is a temporary solution only and it wont survive for very long under pressure. The frothing was probably caused by lack of coolant. You should be able to get a good used one from trademe or a BMW dismantler etc for cheap money. Under pressure it doesnt take a big hole to loose a lot of water in a short time. Edited October 28, 2007 by ducatiss Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Yuen 16 Report post Posted October 28, 2007 Yep at the bottom of the expansion tank but the crack was fixed with knead it and it hasn't leaked any water since. I Just took it for a drive around my house and let it get to normal operating temp and checked the water and it wasn't frothy or anything and everything seemed normal. Could it just have been that there was fark all water in the rad? Ok. As ducatiss said, under pressure its likely to leak a lot faster. So don't judge the leak from when the car isn't being driven. I would get a new expansion tank, don't bother with an old one. IMO, parts like these that go through lots of heat cycles should be replaced with a new one - you are just asking for more hassle if you get an old one that is halfway through its usable life and when it breaks it's going to cause you more headaches. Yes sounds like there is air in the system, bleed it thoroughly and you should be sweet. Btw when the temp gauge needle is at 12 o'clock it doesn't necessarily mean its perfectly ok as it will sit there for a given range of temperatures... that's why when it flies past 12 o'clock it goes into the red so fast. So to make sure it's at the right temperature, bleed till there are no more air bubbles coming out of the bleed screw. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ducatiss 1 Report post Posted October 28, 2007 yes agree with the comments fro Yuen made about buying new, correct bleeding will make a big difference and is essential. Also make sure when you bleed your system that you have the heater controls set to hot so that coolant is fully circulating right through. Also be aware that if there is no coolant circulating around your temp gauge sensor, it wont necessarily read correctly. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nobimmer 694 Report post Posted October 28, 2007 Right so new expansion tank is next on the list How exactly do I bleed the radiator properly? I just emptied it out from the bleeder and poured more water in as it went down which doesn't seem right at all. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Yuen 16 Report post Posted October 28, 2007 Hey Ashkan, Here are the instructions per the Bentley: 1. With engine cold, add coolant to expansion tank until level reaches COLD (KALT) mark on tank. 2. Loosen bleed screw on radiator expansion tank. 3. M3 models: Loosen bleed screw on thermostat housing. 4. Set temperature controls in passenger compartment to full warm and turn ignition to ON position (do not start engine). 5. Slowly add coolant until it spills from bleed screws. When coolant spilling from bleed screws is free of air bubbles, tighten screws. 6. Run engine until it reaches operating temperature. After engine has cooled, recheck coolant level and top up as necessary. Tightening torque: Radiator bleed screw to thermostat housing: 8 Nm (71 in-lb) Your 4 cylinder system should take 6.5L of fluid. Here's another page that basically says the same thing as the Bentley: http://www.pelicanparts.com/BMW/techarticl...olant-Flush.htm Personally, the Bentley's method didn't really work for me. I don't seem to be able to get all the air out with that method. What I do is, with the temp controls set to full warm, and with the bleed screw unscrewed, and the filler cap screwed on, I rev the car up and hold a certain RPM and let the water stream out until there are no bubbles, then go up to a higher RPM and let even more bubbles come out... after a while, take the filler cap off and top it up. And keep repeating until there are no longer any bubbles coming out even at high revs. Will take awhile but you'll be sweet. Then let her idle for awhile, and if she's not overheating, take her around the neighbourhood (with the heater off) for 10-15 minutes with some revving. I think there may more efficient ways of bleeding such as if you have 2 people (one in cabin and another topping up at the same time), I have tried that before. But I can't conclude if it's really more efficient. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nobimmer 694 Report post Posted October 29, 2007 Cheers for that Yuen ,will do it tonight and let you know how it all goes. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ED1RTY 2 Report post Posted October 29, 2007 Does this mean no E36 for sunday meet? Might have to rush along with the e30. Which reminds me.... I will need some more skid tyres... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nobimmer 694 Report post Posted October 29, 2007 Nah dick, getting new radiator today,so should be all go. Wont be any skidding happening from me with a full car Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nobimmer 694 Report post Posted October 30, 2007 New radiator is in thanks to Ray. FYI fullas, expansion tank on 4 cylinders is attached to radiator. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Yuen 16 Report post Posted October 30, 2007 Good to hear it's all sorted! Whoops forgot that some cars have the expansion tank attached. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
