leak at front of 206

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Hi guys,

Just a quick one for the petrol heads! I hit a kerb while parking last night and have a leak at the front of the car (passenger side) just below the fan. It seems to be coming from somewhere close to spongy kind of material directly underneath the fan. It's a peugeot 206. I can't get me mechanic on the phone till Monday... anyone have an idea what it might be? I think it is water that is leaking.... Just want to know if it is ok to drive it without it overheating or something!!

Many thanks

Steve

How bad is the leak? if it's just a drip then as long as you keep it topped up and check it often then you'll last till monday.

You could try some radweld but your mechanic won't thank you for it as he won't be able to find the leak aterwards.

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Yeah it's fairly bad alright, but seems to have stopped now ... I was driving in bad traffic earlier and it wasn't overheating. I didn't notice the leak till after that. Might just take my chances! I have a 40 min drive on Monday that I have to do, before I'd be able to have it looked at... But think I'll borrow my Dads car

HungryJoey

If it was fairly bad and has "stopped" I would check the water/coolant level as you may have caused some damage to the cooling system or radiator.

The only thing that can leak up from where the radiator is, is coolant/water. I wouldn't be driving it until the coolant level is checked.

I'm presuming you know how to do this?

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Yeah I did check it and it's close to minimum ... The 'sponge material' seems to be under the radiator so I'm thinking that's where the problem is ... Could I do that much damage with the very small knock off the kerb? Hope the radiator doesn't need replacing .. presume that would be big bucks

JamesM

elviscostello wrote: »

Yeah it's fairly bad alright, but seems to have stopped now ... I was driving in bad traffic earlier and it wasn't overheating. I didn't notice the leak till after that. Might just take my chances! I have a 40 min drive on Monday that I have to do, before I'd be able to have it looked at... But think I'll borrow my Dads car

You don't have air conditioning ? That drips in hot weather.

Steve

Fill the coolant bottle to the max mark, give the thick hoses beside the rad a couple of squeezes to dislodge any air - re-fill the coolant bottle to max.

If water is now pi$$ing out then don't do anything else till you talk to your mechanic.

If its just a small leak, start the engine and see how fast the resevoir drops (it'll probably suck some in to begin with as the air in the system is expelled, re-fill it to max again).

If the level doesn't drop much after 10 minutes then I'd chance driving it to the mechanic. Take a container of water with you so you can stop every 15mins or so and top up if you need to. Don't rely on the engine temperature gauge, this will be innacurate if there's no water in the engine.

Steve

JamesM wrote: »

You don't have air conditioning ? That drips in hot weather.

Good point.

OP turn the a/c off as well.

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No , no A/C ... but I'll do that what you said stevec .. just water in the coolant bottle is ok?

Steve

elviscostello wrote: »

No , no A/C ... but I'll do that what you said stevec .. just water in the coolant bottle is ok?

Tap water is fine, tell the mechanic how much you had to put in and he can add some anti-freeze if necessary.

Remember if it's leaking out fast then don't chance it..;)

peasant

Filling pure water into the coolant circuit is a roadside emergency measure only.

You should fill in the correct mix of water and coolant (anti freeze).

The "anti freeze" not only prevents the water from freezing, it also raises its boiling point to well over 100 degrees and most importantly, it prevents your engine from rusting internally.

If you dilute the mix with pure water, you have to empty the cooling circuit completely and refill with the correct mix fairly pronto in order to avoid damage.

Personally, I wouldn't drive a car that's pissing out coolant any further than to the next garage, if at all.

Steve

100% right Peasant.

I was giving advice on the basis of getting the car to the OP's mechanic.

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thanks lads ... I've done what you were saying stevec, and although it's not a major leak, there's very obviously a lot of water/collant at the bottom of the rad.

Steve

Just had a look at my OH's 206.

There's a drain plug at the bottom on the passenger side, you could have damaged that when you hit the kerb.

Did it leak straight away? (without starting the engine). If so then it'd be risky driving it.

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I'm nearly sure it didn't leak straight away, I only noticed it today after a bit of driving.. it then stopped when i parked it up, and started again when i turned it on that time for 10-15 mins!

Steve

Hard to know what to say.

If it was my car and I could see the amount coming out then I make a call on it and probably chance driving it to a garage. Saying that, I'd know when to stop before damage was done.

I wouldn't like to see you damage your car because of advice you got on the internet so bear in mind that it's your own decision to drive it.

If you're not sure then don't risk it.

There are posters here that know a lot more about car repair than me so maybe hold out for some better suggestions as to what to do before monday.

Do you have any friends that are into cars that might be able to look at it for you?

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No worries man, thanks for that ... Yeah I do alright, will give him a ring tomorrow. Cheers again

Steve

elviscostello wrote: »

No worries man, thanks for that ... Yeah I do alright, will give him a ring tomorrow. Cheers again

Good luck, keep us posted.:)