It's Raining LHM

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H Reg Pete
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It's Raining LHM

Post by H Reg Pete »

Hi Guys

Drove home from work tonight parked up and noticed a trickle running down the road from just underneath the front of engine bay, on closer inspection found LHM appearing like rain drops on the front of the sump and then running down and dripping on to the road, Unfortunately I couldn’t see either from the top or below the engine where this is leaking from, I wasn't going to venture any further underneath because of the obvious dangers. But the leak appears to be almost central and somewhere between the radiator and the engine. Checked again after about an hour and the leak had stopped but re-started again with the engine running.
Can anyone advise me what to look for in this area, I did notice that when I fired up the engine the rear suspension came up but there was no movement at the front, this seems to be a bad leak and the fluid level is low but the warning light hasn't come on yet but I don’t think driving until this is fixed is a good idea
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Pete
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jeremy
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Post by jeremy »

The regulator/accumulator unit and the flow divider are bolted to the engine blackplate on diesels. There are numerous pipes and the accumulator sphere. The main feed from the pump has been known to crack as well.

I suggest you clean it all off in daylight and try and see if you can narrow down the problem. If your car is a turbo you will probably have to remove the air trunking behind the radiator to get a better view.

My TD estate did leak from a pipe underneath the regulator (the easiest to get at) which was caused by a misaligned pipe (its has a sharpish curve in it) which I was able to sure with a little bit of pulling and pushing and tightening.

jeremy
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ken newbold
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Post by ken newbold »

Strangely enough, exactly the same thing happened t ome tonight on my way home. About 2 miles from home the low fiuid light came on and the Dot matrix said check fluid level (XM) I got her home and lifted the bonnet only to find LHM everywhere :o Turns out the main feed pipe from the pump to the FDV must have fractured, even now that I've got it out you can't see the crack.

Luckily I had a spare one (thats more than lucky with it being an XM) Job now done, hands black :evil:
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sleepy0905
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Post by sleepy0905 »

my pump to FDV feed pipe has fractured on me twice i ended up realighning the FDV to cure the problem it happened to me on the A1 outside lane
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Oscar
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Post by Oscar »

This seems to be happening a lot - one or two other people have had similar leaks.

I noticed low LHM levels, with a leak only apparent when the engine was running.

I keep the engine very clean, but even so it wasn't obvious where it was coming from.

So - air trunking off, car up on stands, engine running and the leak appeared to be coming from the accumulator sphere. Closer inspection showed that LHM was seeping from ALL of the pipes that go into the FDV.

A couple of minutes with a spanner and no more leaks.

I wonder whether heat, constant vibration, fatigue, compression etc etc compromise the rubber seals on the LHM pipes after time? I spoke to Stewart about this and he reckons that it's worth nipping the pipes up to sort of light hand-tightness (if this makes sense) although the practise when the car is new is to only tighten the union nuts until resistance (from the rubber seal compressing) is felt. Stewart will correct me if I've misquoted him I'm sure.

In any event, there's been no LHM loss since and it's an easy job, so I hope this is the same with yours.

O
(Red BX 1.7TZD ("Well, it is a style icon" - Tom Sheppard)) "Was", Tom, "was"
jeremy
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Post by jeremy »

Haynes do in fact quote torque figures for the pipe fixings. They are low as you'd expect but are definitely more than just feeling the rubber compress. In practice they are the sort of figure I'd expect to get with a reasonable pull on an open ended spanner of moderate sixe in a confined space!

jeremy
H Reg Pete
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Post by H Reg Pete »

Hi and thanks guys, problem solved by a bit of tightening, New problem though a puddle is now developing about a foot away from the old one and a closer look has revealed that its coolant this time, from around the water pump area, so it will be back up on the ramps tomorrow and hopefully its only a pipe that’s gone and not the pump its self, there’s no noise from the pump, so that’s encouraging. It’s been a week of it this week also discovered both rear accumulators need replacing they’re leaking a bit to.
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jeremy
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Post by jeremy »

There may be a fuel heater (water powered) up behind the engine - on the back face near the water pump. Eventually this corrodes through and leaks!

Horrible to get at on a RHD car!

It is fitted to the cars with a fuel filter adjacent to the LHM reservoir. Those later cars with the plastic fuel filter on the thermostat housing do not have it as the heater is in the bottom of the plastic filter. It's not trouble free either - the thermostat unit can leak and let air in!

Nothing inherently wrong with the cars - would you have thought a 15 year old car a viable proposition for reliable motoring even 10 years ago?

jeremy
Stewart (oily!)
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Post by Stewart (oily!) »

I have had a core plug leak manifest itself by dripping off the water pump! The thing was behind the alloy plate that the fuel pump mounts on, the coolant was squirting out of the block, hitting the ally plate then bouncing off and running around the sump mounting flange behind the belt covers and dripping directly off the block below the water pump, I replaced the water pump, did the cambelt whilst I was in there, refilled coolant, and it was exactly the same :twisted: :twisted: , in the end I dismantled the fuel pump/belt again, removed the alloy plate and there it was, upon removal the plug was very slightly corroded and would probably responded to a proprietary leak stopper. oh well.
Stewart
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Xantia Td estate, going soft
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