Oil in water tank

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flashgit
Posts: 15
Joined: 07 Aug 2011, 17:51

Oil in water tank

Unread post by flashgit »

ok guys. i bought a Xantia Td. all seemed ok when i checked it. noticed when i got home that the expansion tank has thick oily fluid and not water or coolant. car does not seem to over heat or anything. what's the cause?
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wotwot
(Donor 2021)
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Joined: 13 Jul 2010, 08:59
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Unread post by wotwot »

May be worth giving it a good flush through and refilling.
Does the system pressurise,after turning off engine take the cap off very carefully when up to temperature and have a heavy cloth or old towel over it to check for to much pressure.
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addo
Sara Watson's Stalker
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Joined: 19 Aug 2008, 12:38
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Unread post by addo »

Not so good! I have this on one car; the engine oil cooler has corroded inside and oil (80PSI) forces its way into the coolant (14PSI).

Best to fix the cause ASAP and then comprehensively flush the coolant, as leaving too long will cause the hoses to be dramatically weakened - leading to failure after failure. Been there, done that as well.
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citronut
Posts: 10937
Joined: 29 Apr 2005, 00:46
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Unread post by citronut »

im with the oil cooler,

its quite easy to replace, but one heck of a job to get the oil out of the coolant


regards malcolm :shock: :evil:


regards malcolm
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VertVega
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Joined: 01 Nov 2008, 19:39
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Re: Oil in water tank

Unread post by VertVega »

flashgit wrote:... the expansion tank has thick oily fluid and not water or coolant. ...
Just a "silly" question :wink: A crazy thought came to my mind :)
Is the tank (which you called expansion) located on the left side, behind the battery?
Could it be the LHM tank :roll:
C5 II 2.0i 16V - 2005 - Estate - 103KW - EW10A - Petrol - Manual
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citronut
Posts: 10937
Joined: 29 Apr 2005, 00:46
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Re: Oil in water tank

Unread post by citronut »

VertVega wrote:
flashgit wrote:... the expansion tank has thick oily fluid and not water or coolant. ...
Just a "silly" question :wink: A crazy thought came to my mind :)
Is the tank (which you called expansion) located on the left side, behind the battery?
Could it be the LHM tank :roll:
:shock: :wink:


regards malcolm
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Gibbo2286
(Donor 2020)
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Joined: 08 Jun 2011, 18:04
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Unread post by Gibbo2286 »

Vert Vega your comment was exactly what I thought on reading the OPs post. I had a newby owner top up the LHM tank with water so it's not an unlikely situation.
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Xantidote
Posts: 1146
Joined: 03 May 2009, 22:07
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Unread post by Xantidote »

Curious, as a TD owner; how common is such a failure of the engine oil cooler?

Is the cause due to not using a decent antifreeze mix (with it's anti-corrosion additives)?
Martin

1995 Xantia TDLX (deceased :( )
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