Coolant problem - Rover 45

cyclonebri1

jase1 wrote: »

The only person on this thread who has implied that a certain make of car is littering the hard shoulder is you.

What's my dad's "advice" again? That Renaults and Vauxhalls make up the majority of cars on the road? Even if it were true -- so what?

We're not the ones making fatuous generalisations in some harebrained attempt to prove something that no-one else has said is false.

But then of course according to your world order it's impossible to tell if a Nissan is working or not, seeing as they all apparently travel so slowly that you have to overtake them all with your caravan and could thus be mistaken for a broken-down vehicle. So perhaps we should cut you some slack, poor old thing.

Pull your neck back in and read what I've said and you have sumised.

My inference was that the roads are not littered with broken down cars as they are all so reliable, there are outside reasons for my mentioning a couple of Jap brands.

Whatever you've written in your last paragragh comes from your own imagination, nothing I've written so we'll leave it at that, I'm sorry someone in a caravan offended you in another life but hey ho, it wasn't me.

And finally I'm not your poor old thing, rich old thing?, quite possibly hence my advice.:p

motorguy

Lum wrote: »

No-one stated that Renaults aren't crap.

Turbos are consumables. Very expensive consumables, but still consumables. They're also much easier to replace than a head gasket. Most people don't bother to look after their turbos properly these days either.

You also have to weight your figures by how many of each type of car are in your catchment area. For example if 1000 people in your city own Ford Focuses but only 10 people own Rover 45s, and you have seen 100 Ford Focuses and 5 Rover 45s then the Focus is the more reliable car with only a 10% failure rate, rather than 50% for the 45.

Same applies to Renaults too, to be fair, I suspect there's a lot more of them on the road than similar age Rovers as for some reason Renaults are trendy and popular.

My point was that for all the talk of Rovers being notorious for head gasket failures, i as a car dealer havent had to do one. I would say i've had maybe 300+ Rovers over the years in the motor trade as i used to be a trade underwriter for a Rover dealership.

If you are saying that a turbo is a consumable then I would contend that as the head gasket IS a gasket, then it too is a consumable.

motorguy

s_b wrote: »

as a motor trader ive never had a rover head gasket issue
whys that?
ive only been custodian of one rover this last 9 years
why is that?
because rovers were rubbish cars with rubbish design faults and rubbish components and usually bought by rubbish customers
OP chop the car in yes but go mainstream not some cack chevy lacklustre

Really really shows how little you know about cars then

motorguy

pendulum wrote: »

's b' speaks the truth.

When I went to car auctions I'd always see Rovers go through for seemingly bargain prices. That's because clued up trade won't touch them, and there's reasons for that.

Because they didnt understand the issue, how to check for it, how much to budget to repair it and how to resolve it?

Lum

pgilc1 wrote: »

My point was that for all the talk of Rovers being notorious for head gasket failures, i as a car dealer havent had to do one. I would say i've had maybe 300+ Rovers over the years in the motor trade as i used to be a trade underwriter for a Rover dealership.

If you are saying that a turbo is a consumable then I would contend that as the head gasket IS a gasket, then it too is a consumable.

Only on a Rover! :rotfl:

Head gasket should last the lifetime of the car, though that's largely because when it goes it's an expensive PITA to fix and on most cars they are only worth a few hundred quid by the time the head gasket finally lets go, and thus not worth fixing.

Turbos are, at least, bolt on but also they wear out as they are a finely machined moving part operating in conditions only a little bit cooler than the combustion chamber. It should be expected that they will eventually wear down and fail. Especially since not many people bother to let their oil cool down a bit after a run.

motorguy

Lum wrote: »

Only on a Rover! :rotfl:

Head gasket should last the lifetime of the car, though that's largely because when it goes it's an expensive PITA to fix and on most cars they are only worth a few hundred quid by the time the head gasket finally lets go, and thus not worth fixing.

Turbos are, at least, bolt on but also they wear out as they are a finely machined moving part operating in conditions only a little bit cooler than the combustion chamber. It should be expected that they will eventually wear down and fail. Especially since not many people bother to let their oil cool down a bit after a run.

Oh come on, you're saying a turbo is a consumable item because its ok if it goes on a volkswagen. A gasket goes on a Rover and thats NOT a consumable item???

Lum

Turbos are consumables on all cars.

Sure some last longer than others, especially low pressure turbos.

Turbos spin at around 60,000 RPM in a high temperature environment and are cooled by engine oil. Eventually all this rotating is going to heat. Plus if people don't let their oil cool after a run then you can get carbon deposits forming which speeds up the wear process. As a very precise moving part, in harsh conditions, it's going to wear out eventually

A head gasket does have to deal with this high temperatures but it is not a moving part. It's job is to just sit between the head and the block and keep all the pipes and feeds and cylinders separate from each other.

Is there an issue with premature turbo failure on VWs or something?

motorguy

Lum wrote: »

Is there an issue with premature turbo failure on VWs or something?

Yes, i would have thought a car expert like you would know that though?

Lum

I'm not really interested in modern VW diesels. Too pricey to buy as bangers/runabouts, and not interesting enough to buy as a "fun" car, so I've not bothered to research the common faults.

The turbo on my old banger B4 Passat lasted the lifetime of the car though. 250,000 miles before it was smashed up by vandals.

catgalore

Can anyone advise me please. I have just bought the Rover 25 IS 16v X Reg with 75K on the clock. When I reached home and checked the water thingy, it was empty and looks like an oily residue in the bottom of the chamber. Also when checking the dipstick, it does seem a bit light coloured to the usual darkness of the oil and yes I know I should have checked these things before I bought the car but my only defence is that I am a middle aged menopausal women and was under the impression that I was a good judge of character and the seller appeared upfront and honest.....a definite lesson learnt! The temperature gauge stays mid point and does not go up so I assume the car is not overheating although when I go under the bonnet, the engine does seem hot. Also there is a light on on the dash (engine management light???). The car runs perfectly ok and starts 1st time. My question is:- is this definitely a head gasket fault or could it be the Inlet Manifold Gasket. Any advice or information would be greatly appreciated and if anyone wants to have a look, at my expense, that would be very welcome. I live in Potters Bar, Herts just off the M25