Citroen Xsara temp problems

Uniscots97

Can anyone help please? I'm hoping this is an easy fix as this car (which was my Grandpa's) has cost me about 2k so far. The ECU went on it summer last year and has been replaced and thermostat this summer.

Now, last night when I drove to get OH I got stuck in traffic on the motorway. Stop, start, stop, start for 12 miles. I noticed the temp needle climbing when it got to about 90ish (mine seems to sit about 85, though I've been told this is low) I turned on the blowers to vent some heat (and warm me up as I was freezing) this seemed to work. I picked OH up and we drove home, the temp had been climbing again but I hadn't noticed. The needle got to 100 and the STOP light came on. I turned the ignition off left it a few seconds and turned it on again and it seemed ok. The engine fan was still running after I turned the engine off, for a few minutes.

This morning she started no problem, temp started to climb so I turned on the blowers, my journey is only 5 miles. The blowers were blowing freezing cold air but temp guage came back down.

Too dark to check coolant levels and oil this morning. I noticed a chemically smell this morning though. I'll check levels tonight. Any ideas? I can't afford a new car at the moment.

mkirkby

Check the levels but might be a blockage.

A full back-flush of the cooling system might be an option. Easy enough to do for a diy mechanic so shouldn't be too expensive

Uniscots97

Thanks mkirkby. I'll check levels when I get back to station tonight (too dark this morning and my driveway is on a hill). How do i check for a blockage (sorry if I'm being thick)? And is there a webpage etc that explain how to do a back flush of the cooling system? I don't mind doing this myself.

Norman_Castle

It sounds low on coolant. Easy to check. If the chemical smell was inside the car it may be the heater that is leaking.

[Deleted User]

Temp on my 206 was sitting just over 90 the other day. This might be because I've just had a problem on the car fixed. Usually after I have something fixed something else pops up requiring attention.

My coolant levels are fine.

Uniscots97

Norman_Castle wrote: »

It sounds low on coolant. Easy to check. If the chemical smell was inside the car it may be the heater that is leaking.

How would I check if the heater is leaking?

Yolina

Can you hear the fan coming on at all? Could be a blown fuse (meaning you'd need to find whatever electrical problem has caused it to blow in the first place)

forgotmyname

If the heater is leaking the floor will be wet.

If you cannot afford another car you need to take more care of this one.

If its overheating you need to leave it longer than a few minutes to cool down.
90 is average.. Most thermostats only open at that temperature.

Open about 88 degrees and should be fully open at 102 degrees. If its getting to 102 thats OK if it then drops. But if it lingers you have a problem.

You must not drive it until you have checked the levels. Dont fill with plain water. Unless you drain it before nighttime where it may freeze.

Had some very frosty mornings. If it freezes you may get away with some pipes and a radiator. Or you may need a new engine.
Start looking after it. Dont drive it with low water levels, You will probably wreck the head gasket or even the engine.

Uniscots97

Yolina wrote: »

Can you hear the fan coming on at all? Could be a blown fuse (meaning you'd need to find whatever electrical problem has caused it to blow in the first place)

Hi, yes I can hear the fan coming on. Will also check all the fuses.

Uniscots97

forgotmyname wrote: »

If the heater is leaking the floor will be wet.

If you cannot afford another car you need to take more care of this one.

If its overheating you need to leave it longer than a few minutes to cool down.
90 is average.. Most thermostats only open at that temperature.

Open about 88 degrees and should be fully open at 102 degrees. If its getting to 102 thats OK if it then drops. But if it lingers you have a problem.

You must not drive it until you have checked the levels. Dont fill with plain water. Unless you drain it before nighttime where it may freeze.

Had some very frosty mornings. If it freezes you may get away with some pipes and a radiator. Or you may need a new engine.
Start looking after it. Dont drive it with low water levels, You will probably wreck the head gasket or even the engine.

I'll check the levels when I get back to the station tonight. It did have all its levels checked early summer when it was in for its service but I'll be honest its not been checked since as I've not dones a lot of mileage

Yolina

unixgirluk wrote: »

Hi, yes I can hear the fan coming on. Will also check all the fuses.

If the fuse for the fan had blown, the fan wouldn't be coming on at all