Bubbling water sound

[kidicarus]

I have an odd sound that sounds like water bubbling or gurgling when I turn the key to the first position, the temp guage seems to get to a quarter pretty quick, although it hasnt overheated as far as I know, I noticed today that I only hear the sound when I turn the heater knob to red, does this means there is an airlock in the system?

[Dave]

is this when starting from stone cold or already warmed up? Try starting the car up, and letting it tick over for about 5 to ten mins (if the temp goes to 3 quarters in that time tho, switch off!) When the guage starts to rise to say just below quarter, carefully touch the bottom hose and also the top hose. Are both warm/hot? if one is hot, and the other is cold, then most probably an airlock.

Have you changed the thermostat recently, or done anywork that involves disturbing the coolant system?

If there is an airlock then there's a procedure to go through to bleed the coolant system, but we'll assertain if you have an airlock first. They usually only appear if the coolant has been changed/drained, or a thermostat has been fitted.

let us know

[kidicarus]

Only from cold I think. Both hoses are hot too, just been out in it for about an hour today, the fans not come on yet tho as far as I can tell. The temp guage didnt get to more than a quarter either.

[Dave]

It could be fuel left in the return pipe to the tank? Maybe the heater button being set to red when it does it is coincidence? Doesnt sound like an airlock tbh. When the engine is cold, remove the radiator cap and see where the coolant is sitting. It should be just up into the kinda groove bit of the filler neck. also make sure the resevoir is up to max level. Squeeze the top hose a few times slowly, and the level should rise. dont let it over flow, you just want to see if it goes up. squeeze and let go a few times. Do you see any bubbles? Do the same with the bottom hose now, and again watch for bubbles. If no bubbles, and the water rises and falls with you squeezing /letting go of the top hos and the bottom hose, then there isnt an airlock. If the water doesnt rise and fall, then there is possibly an air lock. If this is the case, do the following.

Start the car with the radiator cap off.

Again, squeeze the bottom hose on and off a few times, watching the level in the radiator, and makeing sure it doesnt overflow. Watch for bubbles, this will be you getting the air out.

Now do the top hose again. Again watch for bubbles.

Get someone to keep an eye on the temp, you dont want the engine getting to warm or it makes it harder to bleed.

Repeat this till no more bubbles, and if it takes a while, remembering to stop and let the engine cool down. You basically want to switch off whenever the temp needle reaches the first white line (the bottom mark) and wait till it cools again.

Once you get no more bubbles, that should be the air out.

The fact youre getting heat at both hoses would normally suggest the water is getting up to temp then the thermostat is letting it through as normal. Which would mean no airlock. let us know how you get on

[kidicarus]

Worried about head gasket failure mainly No signs of it so far tho!

[Dave]

Check for oil in the coolant mate, just dip your finger in then take it out. If you rub the finger that has the coolant on it, (no genie wont appear!) you should be able to see/tell if there is any oil in the coolant. Check the oil filler cap for signs of emulsification (like a white-ish gunge) and then check the dipstick, see if you can spot any water in the oil. These checks plus keeping a watchful eye on the temp should tell you if the H/G is gone. Has the car lost any power?

[kidicarus]

No power loss, drives fine, quicker than my 1.2 fiesta anyway! Just taken off the filler cap and dipped my finger in, no oil, checked the dip stick and oil cap no mayo, not lost any water from the expansion tank, although it is above the max line, any way of getting some water out? Squeezed the rad hoses and when I squeezed the bottom one some bubbles came out, no more bubbles now tho. The water level in the rad seems a bit low, not to the top of the lip.

Another question tho (sorry ) When you turn on the a/c should both fans come on?

Thanks

[Dave]

Both fans? not quite sure what you mean mate! Keep the coolant up to the level in the radiator mate, as the coolant affects so many things on these cars. When you take the radiator cap off, if you look into it, youll see the overflow pipe that goes back to the expansion tank. You need the coolant to be sitting on the line in the neck of the radiator, just below that overflow pipe Dont worry too much about there being a bit too much in the expansion, as long as it's not below the mark you're fine

[kidicarus]

I mean when the a/c is on should the rad fan and a/c fan both be on at the same time?

Thanks for all your help Dave, hopefully I'm worrying over nothing, there doesnt seem to be any coolant loss at least. will have to wait and see what hapens when it gets a bit warmer.

[jalesi2001]

iirc only the A/C fan comes on when the A/C is on mate, unlike some more modern cars, that run both when the A/C is on!