Xsara 2002 HDI-110 whiff of coolant through vents

[ebod]

Hi,
...not had any major trouble with my Xsara since last years HG failure.Its now got 144k miles on its clock.

However in the last week I've notice a faint smell of coolant through the dash vents. I had a look under the bonnet last night and the expansion tank was dry. I also opened the expansion tank this morning before starting up the car, and luckily there was no pssst of air ( also the coolant level was okay )

Last year when the HG was fixed, my garage also put on a new rad because they warned me high mileage Xsara's / Xantia's suffered from blocked and corroded cooling systems.

I just found this post on another forum :
http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=5281

It got me thinking that the coolant smell might be coming from an 'about to fail' heater matrix. The internal heater is deffo working okay and after a check at lunchtime in daylight I couldn't see any signs of damp front carpets etc.

Can anyone give me any likely causes of a coolant smell. ???

[myglaren]

You have already diagnosed the problem!

The heater matrix has perforated, as you supposed. There are numerouse posts with reccommended solutions but they all boil down to one or another radiator sealer to postpone the inevitable matrix change.

I'd suggest Forte cooling system sealer but there are a heap of others available

[Exhume.dk]

Hi

"The lack of air", when looking in the expansion tank is not nessecarily a good sign.

You can set the Expansion cover/lid in a medium position, so it will not fall of when driving, but do not allow any pressure buildup, that should help your matrix, or getting you closer in a simpel fault finding

Did it myself, and it did not smell at all, when un-pressureized so did need to pull out the matrix ultimately.
And it was faulty

[ebod]

postpone the inevitable matrix change.

If its only just started smelling in the last few days and there is no evident coolant loss, how long would you expect a temporary fix to last for ??? 1 month / 6 months / 1 year ??

[CitroJim]

If you quickly pop a bottle of Forte Stop Leak in it'll do the job. I held mine off for a good six months and it was no longer leaking when we swapped it.

The smell may not stop though as all the old cruddy antifreze residue on the outside of the matrix will carry on smelling for ever.

Forte Stop leak is seriously good stuff. It's trade only but can often be found on eBay. Expensive but it does as it claims.

[myglaren]

Forte Stop leak is seriously good stuff. It's trade only but can often be found on eBay. Expensive but it does as it claims.

My local car bits shop sells it over the counter and there is a workshop near where I work that sells it too.

You could be lucky and manage to buy it locally.

I wish I'd though to use it when mine went "Sploosh" - or even better, a while before that

[ebod]

Forte Stop leak is seriously good stuff. It's trade only but can often be found on eBay. Expensive but it does as it claims.

Just ordered some for £16 quid shipped from ebay. I'm hoping it turns up soon as I can't stand the smell.

PS If you haven't already guessed, I'm quick fixing this car with a view to selling it. I've had it 3 yrs and got my wear out of it. All in all its been a good car , only let down by last yrs HG failure.

.....I fancy trying to find a >2004 C5 facelift going cheap now that the new model has hit the streets. So its time to establish all the hazards to look out for with the C5 , EG 2.2 HDI auto Exclusive or VTR/S

[ebod]

Forte Stop leak is seriously good stuff. It's trade only but can often be found on eBay. Expensive but it does as it claims.

Arrggh my ebay purchase has proved in vein. The seller had none left in stock.

Does anyone know a reliable agent in the Manchester / Leeds area ? or at least a web based supplier who can be trusted ??