I fear I'm acctually going to have to buy some of that UV dye for this job. My radiator will not fill up past 3/4 way, air bubbles stop it going any further - so the simple answer is there's a bloody great leak, and I guess the point it stops filling is at the very bottom of the top rad hose.

 

I'm not sure if this is a common issue, but where am I likely to find the leak as I can't see where it's coming from out the bottom of the engine (again, this has me panicking it's making it's way down a cylinder bore). I'm going to be busy taking my thermostat off later as the car slightly overheated before I went back to Bulgaria, and I'm hoping to god this is the reason and not a head gasket.

 

But just so I have a rough figure in mind, assuming no drastic damage has been done - how much would I expect to pay for a garage to do a head-gasket repair on a 300zx tt?

Is this a standard radiator or aftermarket ?

Big aluminium job.

Have you set the air to recirc and the temp to max and tried filling with the engine running ?

Yep. I've also had various gurgling noises from the dash-side once I turn the car off so some air is working its way through the matrix. I've spent a lot of time bleeding it with fans on/engine running etc. and it just refuses to bleed or fill up.

Could be the heater matrix is leaking ?

I don't believe so the floor is completely dry underneath it and there's no signs of seepage. :(

Jack the front up a bit or drive up onto some small blocks so there is an angle to the car as you try to bleed it

i can try that! I still don't get why you shouldnt be able to fill the radiator, I mean I've poured about 30 litres of water from a hose just as a tester and it refuses to fill, so it's 100% going somewhere lol

i can try that! I still don't get why you shouldnt be able to fill the radiator, I mean I've poured about 30 litres of water from a hose just as a tester and it refuses to fill, so it's 100% going somewhere lol

 

Wow !! if you genuinely got 30 litres in with no visible leaks then you likely have 20 litres somewhere it should not be like the cylinders / sump, the correct capacity is around 10 litres

 

Jeff

Woohoo! :D I heard engines run much better with water in the sump too.. ;-)

 

It's bloody hard to tell in rainy Scotland, so tomorrow (if it's dry) ill make a concerted effort to check there are absolutely no leaks on the outside. I'll take off all the undertrays and get my head under there.

 

I'm really hoping it's not a headgasket or head crack etc. But to prepare myself for the possible worst case scenario how much will I have to dosh out?

Why not pull the dipstick and see what state the oil is in ?

 

Sent from my SM-G955F using Tapatalk

Time for an oil change i say.

 

Empty it all out see if there is any water; where else could it all be going.

 

When my last purple zed engine failed and i emptied the sump a few litres of water poured out after the oil.

Big aluminium job.

 

They never fill right to the top or will stay full either.The level always sits a couple of inches down on them.