Coolant light and Temp

[...joe]

there is a 'gsf' in worthing tango, opposite sainsbury's at lyons farm, you'll be using it a fair bit in the future i'd imagine!

[kappatango]

cool cheers joe....the wierd thing with this light is that it is intermittent.  Not the flashing (on, off, on, off....lol ) but sometimes, maybe 50% of the time, it doesnt happen.  This makes me wonder whether it is the fault sensor - I may bridge it and see what happens.....

[Gambit]

also, if your getting a new oil cooler make sure you get a new oil cooler gasket also.

[kappatango]

cool thanks guys - how long do you rekon this should take to change cooler and gasket - and do I need any special tools...... I am so new to this but want to learn 

[rubjonny]

A big adjustible spanner and patience, ideally you should take the rad out otherwise its a right sod for clearance!

If the cooler has indeed gone then you'll be flushing out the coolant anyway   I'd also bung a new thermostat & seal in while you're there

[kappatango]

cool..a busy weekend ahead then.....

Dont know if this makes any sense or sheds any light but :

When you start cold the light seems to flash.  If I then drive a short distance, switch off and restart it doesnt flash anymore.....

I am not trying to shy away but as I have not done the engine work before, I guess I want to make sure I really need to strip all this out and flush it before getting stuck in.  Having said that, the job sounds a good learning experience anyway and cant do any harm...

So my shopping list is :

oil cooler
Gasket
thermostat and seal
coolant
patience
no injury to fingers to alllow typing on forum for help....bearing in mind this is my daily drive.....

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[rubjonny]

Well the first thing I'd do is clean the sender, and remove any white gunk from the cap.  Leave it a fortnight or so, and if it comes back I'd suspect its the oil cooler.  Is it defo oil on the cap, or just dirt from a filthy coolant system

[kappatango]

cheers Jonny thats good advice - I will clean the gunk off the cap and clean the two pins on the sensor.  If it continues then I will arrange to do this weekend - I am supposed to be driving 200 mile round trip fri/sat so need th cr to be ok....so would rather get the prob identified before deciding whether to go or not....

[...joe]

remember oil and filter as well!! you might  as well change the filter as you'll be draining the oil to remove the cooler. i'd help you out this weekend if you got stuck but i'm away at a show.

the reason the light flashes when cold and not hot is because the coolant level rises as the temperature increases. so if its below level when its cold, it'll be above level when hot.

[kappatango]

JOe thats makes sense but I cant get any more water/coolant in the header tank - even when I check before a cold start.  Thats what concerns me slightly.  Also what temp should the oil be running at when warm on the MFA....??