07 Corolla Verso T2 1.8 Coolant Issue - Help Appreciated

[aidur]

Hi Guys and Gals,

Ive never posted on a forum before as the answers I need are usually on the site already, however Im having no luck with this problem Im having and would appreciate any advice

My 07 Corolla Verso T2 1.8 Petrol is losing coolant very quickly, ie reserve tank at min level after a week. Ive only had the car 2 months, bought it second hand and my mechanic looked it over and all seemed fine.

The heater was taking ages to heat up, so I checked this site and it said check the coolant. Mine was practically empty. I put 3 litres in, and hey presto, heating back working. However I checked again a few days later and the level in the reserve tank had dropped by half. I presumed it may have been an air bubble (Im not very tech savvy) I topped it up again and a week later its back at min. I do extremely low mileage, less than 100 miles per week on average.

I brought it to my mechanic and he worked on it

He pressure tested it hot and cold and nothing leaked out through the pipes etc. However he did notice that the pressure dropped after about 10 mins.

He put some sort of dye in and did a 'sniff' test (not sure if these were two seperate tests or are related), anyway, these didnt help at all.

The usual symptoms for a dodgy head gasket arent presenting themselves either apparently.

Hes a great mechanic and Ive been going to him for 15 yrs on all my previous Toyotas, and I trust him entirely, but hes stumped. He rang his mechanic mate in the nearby Toyota garage and he hadnt came across this situation before(ie he recommended all the things my mechanic had tried already).

My mechanic has a feeling that the issue may be 'internal' but doesnt want to go deep into the engine without trying a few simpler 'external' options.So he topped up the coolant and is going to think about the issue and I'll bring it back next week. Its perfectly driveable.

He has ordered another Dye which is apparently even better than the one he used a few days ago and will try that next week. He also ordered a liquid pour-in sealant which finds and seals internal cracks. If one or both of these work, then happy days.

Its sitting on my driveway and even in two days since getting car home, and only doing 10 miles driving, it is now 75% full.

So Im wondering if anyone has come across really wierd similar coolant issues and the relevant fix . I will then mention any tips or advice I get to my mechanic (he wouldnt be offended - very nice chap)

As you can see Im not very mechanically minded (I learn everything from Youtube) but Id be grateful for any suggestions which will remedy the problem at minimum cost to me.

Cheers in advance

Aidan

[Heidfirst]

water pump?

[aidur]

Thanks Heidfirst,

I will be seeing him on Tuesday to see if he can remedy the fault

Part of me thinks he must have looked at the water pump, but sometimes its easy t go off in the wrong direction when looking for a fault.

Was there something in particular that you reckon the water pump was doing or not doing. As Im worried if I say "Did you check the water pump" he may easily say yes , as he may have done some simple checking.

Apologies for the lack of knowledge on the subject.

Cheers

[aidur]

Thanks Heidfirst for your advice

Apologies for the delay responding. The issue was indeed in the waterpump area - where the waterpump meets tte engine there was a hairline crack, barely visible.

Mechanic flushed system and put in a good engine sealer and I took it for a long run.

Alls well now, Thanks for your help

[Awebb180]

hope the sealer works, heard so many horror stories about them

Alex