Peugeot 406 HDI 110 2001 lx loosing coolant, help !!

TopDonkey · Post by **TopDonkey** » 03 Dec 2009, 16:05

Hi everyone.

I bought myself what i thought was a bargain last weekend, got a 2001 Peugeot 406 HDI 110 2001 model family estate (7 seats) with sat nav and climate control and rain sensing wipers and auto headlights (havent worked them out yet though!)

I have driven almost 1000 miles in it since i bought it, and the engine temperature hase never registered on the dash display, and having worked on my previous C5, i thought just change the green coolant sensor above the gearbox, so put a new one in, and no change, still not working, and also, the cooling fans wont work either, but if you unplug the coolant sensor, the fan comes on at full speed, and if you turn the engine off with it unplugged, the fan goes to half speed, so i know the fan is working, but i cant see why it wont cut in by itself ??, anyone got any ideas ?

Also..., i keep having to top up the header tank, it seems to use about 2 litres of water every 200 miles, the only warning i get is the radiator symbol on the right side of the dash lights up in red, I thought it just wanted bleeding, so i put a big jug on as a header tank and filled it right up, bled all 3 bleed points and got all the air out, but each time you rev the engine past 2,500 revs, a couple of big airbubbles come up, i let it get right up to temperature and they were still hapenning, also the top hose doesnt get warm, so i put a new thermostat in, but this made no difference, so i ran the car with no thermostat in, and now the top hose gets hot and the rad gets hot, but i still get a constant stream of bubbles out the header tank,
And if i then put the cap back on the header tank and take it for a drive, it pushes its coolant out every time you go over 2,500 revs, and then when i got back, i rev'd it to 3000 revs, and it blows coolant past the rad cap, i have fitted a known good cap, and that was exactly the same.

So, i am thinking head gasket gone ??, or can anyone else think of something simpler it might be ?

My first post on here, and a big long list of problems !!!

Thanks

Ian

DickieG · Post by **DickieG** » 03 Dec 2009, 16:10

As per your own diagnosis I'd go for the head gasket as the symptoms you describe are the classic ones.

TopDonkey · Post by **TopDonkey** » 03 Dec 2009, 17:02

Thats not good

, i was hoping there was going to be an easier and simpler explanation, but i did expect others to confirm it tobe head gasket really i suppose.

Any ideas on the temperature gauge ?, i dont think my car has a Bitron unit as i hunted all over the engine bay and even took the inner nearside wings splashguard off to look for it under there too (only a foglight connector and a horn in there)

citronut · Post by **citronut** » 03 Dec 2009, 18:49

hi and welcome Ian

i do sort of agree with Richard

but i would get the fans cutting in as they should first,

also i dont understand why after fitting a new thermostat the top hose still did not get hot, unless you still had loads of air trapped in the engine block,

were abouts are you

regards malcolm

TopDonkey · Post by **TopDonkey** » 03 Dec 2009, 19:53

Hi Malcolm

I was hoping to get the fans running, but i cant find a wiring diagram anywhere, is there a haynes manual that covers the 406 with the hdi in?, and does it have wiring diagrams at all ?, if so, i will invest in a copy tomorrow

I think that the reason the thermostat wasnt opening was because the headgasket was letting fumes into the coolant and bubbling into the thermostat housing so that there was more air than coolant in contact with the thermostat, this is the best explanation i could come up with anyway !!

I am in Warminster in Wiltshire, I am going to brighton tomorrow, but dont want to risk driving it all that way, so will be taking my motorbike tomorrow, and i think i will pull the head off at the weekend and have a look at the gasket, then get the head skimmed on monday and fit a new waterpump and thermostat and i might as well do the cambelt i suppose whilst its off, and thinking about it, i should probably do the crank pulley and fit a new aux belt too !!, i think its going to be a busy week putting in some evenings to get it all back together again

Do you know the best place to get parts from at all ?

I think i need

1, headgasket
2, crank damper pulley
3, aux belt
4, cam belt
5, thermostat
6, water pump

But as you said, i would really like to sort out the fans not cutting in before i start the major work, so i'm still after any ideas or suggestions that anyone might have !

thanks

TopDonkey · Post by **TopDonkey** » 03 Dec 2009, 22:07

I've done a bit more research, and it looks like my car has a BSI instead of the bitron unit, and the BSI links to loads of things including the temperature sensor, and the dash gauge, so now i need to figure out how this bsi works and what wires go where to and from it.

anyone got any info or diagrams on it at all ?

Thanks

DickieG · Post by **DickieG** » 04 Dec 2009, 00:06

TopDonkey wrote:I've done a bit more research, and it looks like my car has a BSI instead of the bitron unit, and the BSI links to loads of things including the temperature sensor, and the dash gauge, so now i need to figure out how this bsi works and what wires go where to and from it.

anyone got any info or diagrams on it at all ?

Loads of Peugeot info on this site.

wheeler · Post by **wheeler** » 04 Dec 2009, 02:20

If its the same as the C5 the BSI only controls the mid speed of the cooling fan, the injection ECU controlls low & high speeds.

citronut · Post by **citronut** » 04 Dec 2009, 13:57

it will pay you to be prepaired to fit a cam belt kit with all the tensioners, if and when you end up doing the head job,

also if you have the head skimed by more than a few thou you will also need to sink the valves in there seats,
or you will end up with valve to piston contact,

GSF do all the parts you need and there gaskits are usualy Melior which seem to be good qulity

regards malcolm

TopDonkey · Post by **TopDonkey** » 04 Dec 2009, 19:10

Thanks again Malcolm

I will get a kit with the tensioners in as well just to be on the safe side, i have done head gaskets and engine swaps before, even rebuilt an Alfa TS engine!, so it shouldnt take me too long to do i dont think

I will pull the head off on sunday and have a look at the damage and see if the head is warped, my local machine shop do a check skim where the barely take anything off just to check its flat, and they supply a suitable head gasket too, usually payen which i have never had any trouble with in the past

I will get a GSF order in on monday for all the parts once i have pulled the head and checked everything

Thanks

stevenlizuk · Post by **stevenlizuk** » 07 Dec 2009, 20:46

The car isn't blue is it?
Think I might have just had a lucky escape!

Sorry to hear about your troubles and good luck getting it fixed.

Welcome to the forum anyhoo.

Steve

TopDonkey · Post by **TopDonkey** » 07 Dec 2009, 21:59

No, its a silver family 7 seat estate.

Fans are working again now, i found spaces for fuses in the under bonnet fusebox and put some random ones in and they fired into life.

I might not have time to do the headgasket for about 2 weeks now as work has suddenly picked up, so i am going to put some k-seal in as a temporary fix and then sort it out over christmas when i get a bit more time, but i am ordering in all the parts to do it at the moment

TopDonkey · Post by **TopDonkey** » 07 Dec 2009, 22:02

This is the car

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... K:MEWNX:IT

stevenlizuk · Post by **stevenlizuk** » 07 Dec 2009, 22:52

Not the beast I was looking at after all.

Hope it goes well when it's fixed.

Steve

Jaunty2 · Post by **Jaunty2** » 03 Mar 2010, 21:03

Hello Topdonkey
I was just scratching around and found your post. I know it's a while ago so you may have fixed your problem. Since you helped me on something else I think I may be able to help you with this one. It is so difficult to diagnose problems from afar but sometimes it helps with a shove in the right direction.

Apart from the bubbling up through the radiator filler your problem may stem from the pressostat. This controls the air con and also has links to the fans. One main problem is that the air con has lost pressure, sometimes through leaks or inactivity. The quick check would be to check if your air con compressor kicks in. If not then get a top up cannister and follow the instructions carefully. Raise the pressure as prescribed then check the compressor pump for engaging again. If this follows through then you will have solved your problem. Now the other problem would have been that you overheated the engine because of this which may have blown the gasket, so if you have repaired that so far, ensure that the aforementioned is ok otherwise it will happen again in summer.

I do hope this is usefull to you.
John