Aarghh!!

[Barnabyp]

Does anyone else ever feel tempted to take a large hammer to their surfs. I'm just about at the end of my tether. I've just been onto the garage that did my head change and gasket. The motor overheated over a week ago and ever since i have been trying to get to the bottom of why. First i had a new thermostat fitted. Then a new rad cap. Chemical test on the coolant. All costing around 120.00. It is still sending water into the expansion tank and overflowing from it. I'm putting more water in each day. I've tried bleeding it.
Anyway, I phoned the garage and they said that 'I' had overheated the engine and therefore it was 'My' fault that it wasn't working properly. They, by the way are in Cornwall where i was on holiday. I live in Eastbourne, 275miles away. They are saying that it is beyond the scope of the warranty. They suggest i tootle off down to Cornwall so that they can have a look. Assholes!!! They recommended retightening the bolts on the head as they reccon these can loosen if over heated.
Do i have any comeback on them. It has never run right since they worked on it? now its got more problems.
Are garages covered by some law that stops them from sliding there way out of honouring warranties?
I can't afford anymore money.
Sorry for ranting.

[matt steds]

what garage did you take it to mate i live in cornwall and am having the same problem.the new head is coming off to be tested today although i haven't had a problem with the mechanic.give trading standards a call to see exactly where you stand

[Barnabyp]

I'll let you know in a private message, the name of the garage.

[Koi]

Does anyone else ever feel tempted to take a large hammer to their surfs. I'm just about at the end of my tether. I've just been onto the garage that did my head change and gasket. The motor overheated over a week ago and ever since i have been trying to get to the bottom of why. First i had a new thermostat fitted. Then a new rad cap. Chemical test on the coolant. All costing around 120.00. It is still sending water into the expansion tank and overflowing from it. I'm putting more water in each day. I've tried bleeding it.
Anyway, I phoned the garage and they said that 'I' had overheated the engine and therefore it was 'My' fault that it wasn't working properly. They, by the way are in Cornwall where i was on holiday. I live in Eastbourne, 275miles away. They are saying that it is beyond the scope of the warranty. They suggest i tootle off down to Cornwall so that they can have a look. Assholes!!! They recommended retightening the bolts on the head as they reccon these can loosen if over heated.
Do i have any comeback on them. It has never run right since they worked on it? now its got more problems.
Are garages covered by some law that stops them from sliding there way out of honouring warranties?
I can't afford anymore money.
Sorry for ranting.

You know I am not sure its the Surf but the mechanics/garages that work on them. Lucky ( Andy), myself and a couple of others have replaced our own heads, problems none what so ever. Take it to a garage to be done and it seems a few people have troubles after, now this ain't the surf but the oily rags not knowing what they are doing.
Surfs can be a pig to get the air out of and the biggest single mistake is people try to fill the coolant system up via the expansion bottle, wrong, do it via the rad cap. It seems that others that have had a head replaced sufffered over heating afterwards, now I believe this is caused by not filling and bleeding the system properly.
Over heating is caused by air locks & loss of coolant. The bolts are stretch bolts and on the Surf once replaced do not need retightening, even after a head change.
It just sounds to me as though everything has been replaced so it probably leaves that the the job wasn't done properly in the first place.
Have you got the receipts for a NEW head that was fitted, is it stated on the paperwork??? where di they source the head from.
I think a call to CAB, trading standards is needed for advice of which route to take next.

[Barnabyp]

I tried again last night to bleed the air out of the system when the engine was hot. I syphoned out all of the water from the expansion tank and refilled to just above the low level. Then filled the rad cap while the hot blower was running and reved the engine. This morning i drove into work and the expansion tank hadn't overflowed but was about 3/4 full (to the cap). I'm assuming that this will syphon back into the engine when the engine cools? The only thing that makes me think i still have air in the engine is that when i put on the heater, there is a sound of rushing water. I'm assuming that if the pipes matrix's had no air you wouldn't hear this. So maybe keep checking. Should the coolant always expand into the expansion tank and then be syphoned back off? or should it all stay in the engine under pressure.
With regards to the Trading standards, I called them yesterday. They said that I should write to the garage explaining the problems since the work was done, and explain that i would be employing a seperate engineer either AA or Rac (someone recognised) to check and decide whether they are liable for the probs. A footnote would be that if it was prooved that they caused all these probs then they would be liable for any expenses incurred. If they don't answer and it is their fault then i can carry on and get them through the courts. If they respond to the letter and its their fault they can have the opportunity to fix it, they also have to pay my expenses getting there, staying over and expenses incurred.
It all seems to hang on being able to prove shoddy workmanship.
I don't really blame the surf, I just find it frustrating that a diesel engine on a 4x4 can be such a pain in the arse. I thought these things should go round the clock several times with no worries. I've already spent more on repairs than i have ever spent on a car.

[Guest]

I tried again last night to bleed the air out of the system when the engine was hot. I syphoned out all of the water from the expansion tank and refilled to just above the low level. Then filled the rad cap while the hot blower was running and reved the engine. This morning i drove into work and the expansion tank hadn't overflowed but was about 3/4 full (to the cap). I'm assuming that this will syphon back into the engine when the engine cools? The only thing that makes me think i still have air in the engine is that when i put on the heater, there is a sound of rushing water. I'm assuming that if the pipes matrix's had no air you wouldn't hear this. So maybe keep checking. Should the coolant always expand into the expansion tank and then be syphoned back off? or should it all stay in the engine under pressure.
With regards to the Trading standards, I called them yesterday. They said that I should write to the garage explaining the problems since the work was done, and explain that i would be employing a seperate engineer either AA or Rac (someone recognised) to check and decide whether they are liable for the probs. A footnote would be that if it was prooved that they caused all these probs then they would be liable for any expenses incurred. If they don't answer and it is their fault then i can carry on and get them through the courts. If they respond to the letter and its their fault they can have the opportunity to fix it, they also have to pay my expenses getting there, staying over and expenses incurred.
It all seems to hang on being able to prove shoddy workmanship.
I don't really blame the surf, I just find it frustrating that a diesel engine on a 4x4 can be such a pain in the arse. I thought these things should go round the clock several times with no worries. I've already spent more on repairs than i have ever spent on a car.

Sounds about right with the expansion. That is what the expansion tank is for, Water flows into it when hot and expanded and should fill to about 3/4,this will then be drawn back into the engine as it cools and contracts.

With regard to the noise, that is correct, you shouldn't hear that rushing noise. It's similar to the the knocking noise on your central heating system at home.

I think your best bet is to fully drain the system again making sure the heaters are turned on. Then refill slowly through the rad cap, start up the engine when it is full and leave it running with the rad cap off for 15 minutes or so, squeezing the heater pipes and the top hose occasionally to get out the last amount of air.

Hopefully the problems that you have are just airlocks as it seems like it was OK this morning. One thing with a head crack or head gasket gone, it doesn't get better occasionally just to throw you off the scent. If it is gone, it's gone so it looks like you are OK.

Once all the air is out of the system then I think you should be confident of no more trouble from the engine and as a couple of recent threads have show, when everything is right these engines really do go on for miles and miles and miles and miles with no problems.

Cheers