getting a bit worried now my baby jus doesnt seem to be holding any water im having to fill the resevoir up every other day.the rad fans jus kick in right away.ive taken her of the road while i diagnose the prob.anyone give me any pointers. cheers.

 

cracks in the plastic sides of the rad perhaps.
Any signs of leaks under the car?

 

pressurise the water system and check out where its leaking or 'if' its leaking ?

 

could be down to a number of things headgasket being 1 of them check for any signs of water in your oil,small split in top or bottom hoses,radiator just thought i would give you some areas to look hope it helps

 

Common split is bottom Rad hose, but as said by all the guys above you need to diagnose for leaks at first (cheap option). Then check the oil dipstick for grey/yellow slush....and check for similar residue under oil cap (although oil cap is not 100%).

Fill the water reservoir and let it idle without the cap on and see what is happening......if it starts to disappear have a look at the exhaust and see if its coming through there??

Plus just how much water are you losing, have a measure with a measure jug and then post your results on here inc how long you kept the car running did you rev it if so how long? and at how much revs....etc etc.

 

well, if your loosing water, its leaking somewhere, right?

check for leaks?

its its not leaking, its going to be your head gasket

 

Pressure test would be a good start, chances are if you have a small leak under pressure whist the engine is hot it will evaporate quickly leaving little trace other than a near empty header tank.

Failing no visible leaks found and pressure test complete, then further investigation into possible head gasket issue.

 

cheers fellas, .there is no discoulering on oil dip stick but ive had another little tinker tonight cant find any split hoses either.after its warmed up and up to temp if i hold the revs on for a bit it starts backing up out of the overflow bottle.someones told me i need a better radiator cap as it cant hold the pressure could this have any effect on it.thanks again guys job would be f###ed whithout you lot on ere.

 

sounds like head gasket has gone puting air into the system causeing to much pressure therefore going into your overflow. Had this when my HG went.

Or you have air in the system, your heaters working?

Also check your bottom rad pipe, if this is rock solid then again it's ya HG,

If this is the case id get a sniffer test done to make sure.

 

head gasket by the sound of it.
mine started using more and more water,temp was going up and down when driving.
dose it start with a mis-fire first time you start it???
but it dose sound like the head gasket

 

sounds exatly the same as mine started blowing water out of the overflow looks like head gasket not a bad job to do yourself if you are good with the spaners but the motor will have to come out sorry mate

 

Im having a similar problem with my V1 STi. My temp guage is rock solid where it is supposed to be, the heaters are working as usual, cant see any cracked pipes and the rad is practically brand new, no sign of water in oil or oil in water. Im getting it presure tested tomorrow, and i am praying it is not the HG. I am getting leaking on the ground from both sides with most of it appearing to come from the header tank (these are notorious for leaking in early scoobs).

 

mine never had a leak either just after an hour of driving the water would of gone,im sure it will be the head gasket

 

HG doesn't alway go Water - Cylender

Can also go Gases from cyl - water system, causeing it to over presserize therefore kicking it out of the overflow.

HG on your own will take about 5-7hours engine has to come out + inlet etc of. Use new head bolts + a good gasket.

 

thanks fellas think im gona book it in for a pressure test this wknd.the old girls done 97000 so if it is an head gasket job ill think about getting an new engine whith lower miles,rather than pay a small fortune for the heads done.a low milage sti engine sounds like a good start good.