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Engine Warning Light on Vauxhall Corsa 1.2, What Could it Mean?

weltweit said:
How can I tell?

I topped the coolant up until the overflow chamber remained full .
Just checking the car now and there is still a level in the overflow tank.
It hasn't gone down.
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How low was it before? when did you last top it up? If its only half up the overflow tank thats perfectly normal.

Did the AA mechanic touch anything related to thr cooling system when doing the work? could be a loose hose or the radiator cap not being put back on quite right.

Seeing as someone has literally only just been faffing about with it that's a pretty likely explanation. No idea why youre so reticent about taking it to a local garage. Driving a car with a heating issue is asking for trouble.
 
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Riklet said:
How low was it before? when did you last top it up? If its only half up the overflow tank thats perfectly normal.
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Actually the AA guy checked the levels and he topped up the water. He didn't put much in though.
Riklet said:
Did the AA mechanic touch anything related to thr cooling system when doing the work? could be a loose hose or the radiator cap not being put back on quite right.
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I don't think he touched much except the coil pack and the plugs.
Riklet said:
Seeing as someone has literally only just been faffing about with it that's a pretty likely explanation. No idea why youre so reticent about taking it to a local garage. Driving a car with a heating issue is asking for trouble.
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I was so pleased to have had the misfire fixed I thought I was heading for another spell of trouble free motoring.
This is a new pain.

I guess I should take it to a garage.
If I try to make it to work I risk it overheating on the way there or on the way back.
I should be able to make it to the garage.
 
When you drive it put the heater on max on full blast with the windows down. This will dissipate some of the heat. It should be fine for a short distance.
 
aye of you have air con switch that on as well the condenser will help till you can get someone who can see the engine to give you a proper idea

hope it something minor :)
 
hmm think about it I had a air lock in my collant system that cause a similarly issue if it was running dry might of happend was an easy enough fix in the end
 
Should have posted this in the mightily vexed thread .. yet another problem . another day of work missed etc etc
 
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There is a new oil leak

Low down and to the right

I don't' know what it is that has oil on it but there wasn't a leak there before ..
 
I think it might be out of action for a while, you should consider alternative transportation options for getting about.
 
So I am at the garage now they can't look at it till later so stuck trying to arrange a lift either to work or back home.

It ran fine on the way here the temperature gauge went up a little bit and then down a little bit etc etc but stayed in the safe zone I reckon I could have made it to work.

I don't think the head gasket is blown but if it is then it might be one expense too many for a fairly old car. Thinking back to yesterday when it was overheating the temperature gauge went to just past 100 but didn't get to the red zone so it's possibly alright.

However there is this new oil leak to consider.
 
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So looking at the worst case scenario where the car is too expensive to repair I will have to buy a car at short notice which is never ideal.
 
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Good news the garage has found a place where water is leaking and they're just resolving that before checking other things like head gaskets.

Looks like I'm going to be waiting here as the person I hoped would give me a lift home isn't answering his phone yet.
 
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At first the garage said they wouldn't be able to look at it until tomorrow but then he recognized that I am a good customer having spent quite a lot with them over the years and now they are looking at the car right away.

Yay for small mercies!
 
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fingers crossed that everything is quickly / cheaply fixable weltweit

my current problem is that I'm going to need replacementv rear shockabsorbers next month. I don't do a huge mileage, and the garage / my finances can't do the job for a couple of weeks.
 
I think replacing a head gasket and skimming the head is likely to be £500 odd perhaps more so I think my trusty Corsa is no longer viable.

I think I better start looking for a new car!
 
Someone has just said that they would spend the £500 on the head gasket to get a couple more years out of it because buying a used car is likely to cost £3k .. Makes me think ..
 
Cliché but sometimes better the devil you know and all that. If I was confident that this repair would buy me another 12 months or more I would go for it. What do the garage recommend?
 
MBV said:
Cliché but sometimes better the devil you know and all that. If I was confident that this repair would buy me another 12 months or more I would go for it. What do the garage recommend?
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They said they couldn't do the head gasket themselves and when I said this might be the death of the car they sort of agreed it might be too much to spend on an old used car.

That said I have got the name of the garage they would have used to do a head gasket and am calling them now to get a firmer quote.
 
So, there is a guy who skims heads which costs about £70 but he doesn't dismantle engines in a car, he just works on the head that others bring him, and turns them around in about 24 hours.

Then there is a guy who will strip the head in the car for the first guy to skim and he will rebuild the engine costing about £500 in labour, I haven't got a total figure out of him yet - but he is away till next week which is a complication.

I have just booked Thu Fri as holiday, I ideally want to get the head gasket fixed or a new car bought in that time.

Just spent half an hour perusing Autotrader my only filters so far "Petrol" and "Hatchback" .. :)
 
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I have spent most of the afternoon phoning trying to find a local garage that will do the head gasket for me relatively quickly without much success. Those that could said not for a few weeks, which leaves me with a mechanic who might be able to do it next week but is away until then.

So I also looked at used cars in Autotrader and a Toyota Yaris caught my eye, and a Honda Civic. The Yaris is probably too small but would be fine as a run-around. Anyhow no decision at the moment.

Finally I wondered about hiring a basic car for the time being while I get the Corsa fixed, it would let me get around and get to work until I have the Corsa back. Didn't manage to make any calls on that yet, something for the morning.
 
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Ax^ said:
are you in a ulez area weltweit as if not lots of people selling diesel cheap atm
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Yes, that is a good point ..

I did have a TD for quite a long time but I want a ULEZ compatible petrol now. One less thing to think about :)
 
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ulez good hope the car search is fruitful will be doing the same shortly

have a 2007 diesel honda that going to cost me 12 pound a day in few months
 
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