phil_lihp Posted September 30, 2017 Share Posted September 30, 2017 Random thought, could a duff thermostat cause this sort of behaviour? Much easier to change on these than the K-series if I recall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dieselnutjob Posted September 30, 2017 Author Share Posted September 30, 2017 It doesn't overheat though, just starts pushing coolant out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cavcraft Posted September 30, 2017 Share Posted September 30, 2017 Air lock? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave21478 Posted September 30, 2017 Share Posted September 30, 2017 Every shiter should have one of these..... Under a tenner and they work really well. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BT-1-COMBUSTION-LEAK-TESTER-KIT-CO2-PETROL-HEAD-GASKET-TEST-FLUID-BLOCK-15D-/272706523301?epid=527962631&hash=item3f7e9350a5:g:vA8AAOSw4DJYi63f Lacquer Peel and Dead_E23 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil_lihp Posted September 30, 2017 Share Posted September 30, 2017 Looks like a great idea although it says it's not suitable for cars with expansion tanks which seems a little odd. Tempted to get one though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Snipes Posted September 30, 2017 Share Posted September 30, 2017 Also says the presence of Antifreeze can skew the result? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dieselnutjob Posted October 6, 2017 Author Share Posted October 6, 2017 Sold to phil_lihp his replacement coolant tank cap appears to have fixed it hope he gets home alright The Moog, phil_lihp, Cavcraft and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil_lihp Posted October 9, 2017 Share Posted October 9, 2017 Quick thread update for those paying attention, yes the new coolant cap sorted it and it made it the 4 hours home to North Devon with absolutely zero issues, the previous cap it had fitted the header tank's threads but the rubber seal was completely wrong so as soon as the system got up to pressure it would just come straight out. I've done about 200 miles with the 'correct' cap fitted and it has behaved perfectly. Huge thanks to dieselnutjob for organising this and being so helpful with diagnostics and providing tea and advice. The car is ace and I intend to look after it. The broken wipers turned out to be a stripped gear in the motor, not really fixable but a good used motor and linkage set is en route for not very much £. I've ordered a cheap replacement aerial for the one that's snapped off and will get a replacement door handle for the one that has been pulled out of the door as the bolt mounting is broken - I might have one more go at mending it with some glue first though, just reassembling it didn't work as it immediately pulled off again. The droopy headlining's been reattached with some upholstery glue so it looks a lot better but in the fullness of time I intend to pull the headlining out completely, remove all the nasty perished foam backing which has gone to powder and re-line it properly. Ditto for the door cards. Overall, it drives really well, plenty of power and very, very comfortable as expected, I am very pleased with it. Once I've fitted the new wiper mechanism, which if it's as easy as removal was, will take minutes, there's just a few items left on the agenda: Full service - air filter is grimey, oil isn't too bad but is at least 500ml overfilled! Might benefit from new plugs and leads.New rear silencer - it's quite loud and rattley, an inspection with a torch shows the insides have rotted out and it is basically a straight-through pipe full of rusted detritus now.Coolant flush - it's a little murky and diluted, will benefit from a full flush through and a new stat as it doesn't quite get up to full operating temperature.New rocker cover gasket - unsurprisingly for a T-Series, it's leaking quite a lot. Remove and clean coil pack - idle was quite lumpy, found the coil pack and leads absolutely caked in oil from the rocker gasket leak. Removed each lead and cleaned as best I could which improved the idle considerably but it needs to come off for a proper clean.New front brake discs - no rush on this but they are a tad warped, brakes will get a full inspection when I get time Nothing urgent there at all, otherwise it'll get a good wash and polish and a good cleanup inside at some point and plenty of use. I'm thinking this one might stay for a little while yet. Mr Laurence, Heidel_Kakao, nacho man and 12 others 15 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dieselnutjob Posted October 9, 2017 Author Share Posted October 9, 2017 I thought that this one should be saved because the K series ones are disappearing so fast. The diesels are tougher but I see them being at risk from diesel scrapage schemes. So that leaves the few T series ones like this which actually stand a hope of surviving long enough to make it to card carrying classic status one day. I think it looks ace with the rear spoiler and minilite wheels, sporty without being boy racer. phil_lihp and oldcars 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil_lihp Posted October 9, 2017 Share Posted October 9, 2017 I do like the styling on these. I didn't realise but having skimmed a couple of articles online it seems the HHR 400 is considered something of a failure, it never achieved the sales figures intended for it and car magazines gave it lacklustre reviews, probably not helped by Rover overpricing it and trying to make it compete with Mondeos and Passats, which it can't match on size or spec. There certainly don't seem to be many left now but I do think they're an underrated car, yes it feels a bit old fashioned compared to a Focus or mk4 Astra but they're a pleasant thing to drive and quite characterful in their own way. Vince70 and RobT 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clayts450 Posted October 9, 2017 Share Posted October 9, 2017 Great news that the expansion cap fix worked - people often scream OMGHGF on anything MGR related without thinking about all the things it might actually be, hence my overwhelming desire to visit each and every one of these so-called HGF failures when they turn up on bumtree and fleabay for peanuts (I never do tho'). Dieselnutjob did a great job of describing the set up so sensible people could work out what the actual problem was. Sounds a great buy, well done Phil phil_lihp and oldcars 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cavcraft Posted October 9, 2017 Share Posted October 9, 2017 It's a belting car, glad you've sorted it. oldcars 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil_lihp Posted October 11, 2017 Share Posted October 11, 2017 Bonus find, some paperwork in the glovebox shows that in 2014 at 69,000 miles it had a service and cambelt change. Going by the state of the air filter I reckon that's the last service it saw but means that at 82,000 miles it isn't due a belt change again for some considerable time. RobT and Cavcraft 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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