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Supernaut's Cars - 323i / Megane


Supernaut

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17 minutes ago, Supernaut said:

It feels like almost every car I buy needs one.

It's my wife's joke that she asks everytime I buy a car, when am I replacing the thermostat?

Pretty much every car I've bought has needed one. From the E320 not getting up to temperature, to the GTI splitting it's housing and even my parents A4 that I bought off them didn't get to temperature either. 

I think it's one of those things people don't even realise is a problem. If the car isn't beeping at them or loosing power, they assume it's all okay. The fact that a gauge is not in the right place won't be something they realise. Especially as it's likely to drop gradually over time rather than a sudden change. 

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5 minutes ago, SiC said:

The fact that a gauge is not in the right place

An awful lot of cars come without that little aide-memoire (looking at you Mr. Bini) so you never know it's running cool unless you plug in a reader. It has a 'bong' if it goes over but just a secret smile if it runs under.

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On 08/04/2024 at 20:08, artdjones said:

As yours is down as an Eco on car checking sites it's probably got a k9k 636 engine, which has a different stat housing. I'm fairly sure the working part can be swapped over, though.

This is the one off the 636

thumb.jpeg.8448b90d8eb6a7b8854f018a4611ff8b.jpeg

Having had a good look under the bonnet, it appears to have the standard thermostat housing.
One pipe in the back, one pipe out the front, and a sensor plugged into it right next to one of the pipes. Not the Eco style one with the sensor coming out the side there.

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16 minutes ago, Supernaut said:

Having had a good look under the bonnet, it appears to have the standard thermostat housing.
One pipe in the back, one pipe out the front, and a sensor plugged into it right next to one of the pipes. Not the Eco style one with the sensor coming out the side there.

You can tell which engine you've got, its stamped into the r/h side of the block as you look at the engine from the front. But hard to see as it's partly obscured by the plastic mouldings of the cylinder head cover.

I think the actual eco engine came with the small facelift that happened around later 2012. So your engine could be an 836. It doesn't make a huge difference, just a couple of mpg. And for some reason the 836 and 636 have a different timing belt, with the newer engine having 4 teeth less.

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22 minutes ago, artdjones said:

You can tell which engine you've got, its stamped into the r/h side of the block as you look at the engine from the front. But hard to see as it's partly obscured by the plastic mouldings of the cylinder head cover.

I think the actual eco engine came with the small facelift that happened around later 2012. So your engine could be an 836. It doesn't make a huge difference, just a couple of mpg. And for some reason the 836 and 636 have a different timing belt, with the newer engine having 4 teeth less.

Fair enough! All useful info.

Like I said, I had a proper good nosey at it and it definitely looks like the earlier thermostat housing. I've already ordered one.

 

This has been an expensive morning, as I also ordered oil, an oil filter and an air filter for the Megane. Plus oil (all 7L of it) and an oil filter for the BMW. The air filter on it is spotless so can stay. That little lot topped 3 figures from Opie. However, most other places want £50-odd just for the 5L of oil for the Megane alone, before adding anything else!

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21 minutes ago, bear-in-the-air said:

the cooler the water temp, the more efficient the engine, right? Right?

The less the emissions controls work and so more fuel it puts in to try heating the engine up quicker. 

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IMG_20240413_124337.jpg.e51b420dba6e8b849232c9d5529c29f5.jpg

That was about a medium amount of fuckery to do. Did some small plastic clips that hold hoses get launched into orbit? Maybe.

Did I pummel the plastic slam panel with my magnetic torch because seemingly the entire engine bay is plastic so I couldn't get the torch to stay anywhere? Once or twice.

I still need to pour some coolant in there, but it's lunchtime.

The thermostat housing even has a wee cap like a tyre valve on the side. I assume for bleeding the coolant through. Very thoughtful of them.

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I did run it briefly after filling it with coolant earlier. Just to move it back to its hiding spot in the corner of a paddock.

 

I got distracted by going out in the Kia Sorento with the trailer on the back to get half a tonne of compost. As you do.

 

Anyway, the Megane doesn't seem to be leaking or anything. I'll leave the heater set at full when I next drive it. Until it gets up to temperature anyway!

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IMG_20240415_135600.jpg.d77a95a1e584232dd5ccaf5cfeb0981a.jpg

That's what we want to see!

It was only showing the first block on the temperature gauge before.

The car came with fuck all service history, so it's a bit of timing belt roulette. The mileage suggests it's about 40% through its second belt. I had a look under the timing belt cover. It's rubbery and belty, with no cracks or signs of perishing. It can stay.

I just put some fresh 5w30 fully synth in it too, plus an air filter. The new oil filter I got was 10mm too narrow! The filter on there seemed fairly recent and in good condition. Good enough for the girls we date, as Derek says.

The air filter I took out wasn't even too bad, but I had a new one anyway.

IMG_20240415_145942.jpg.4e2d4542e8a2c69fe59490c023aa8894.jpg

It then got the obligatory Opie Oils strong as fuck air freshener hung from the mirror.

 

I should really get hold of a drill brush and give the seats a good going over.

Perhaps I should investigate the light rattle from the front suspension too. Sounds like a drop link. One of those rattles you only hear but can't feel.

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