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coolant leak
I'm a driving instructor, using a DS3 Dsport diesel, 64 Reg. I've done a little under 60, 000 miles in it over the last 18 months, and it's been a great car to teach in.
I first started having problems in mid April. First my heater started blowing out cold air, regardless of the temperature setting. I assumed it was a problem with the heater, but then the car started acting strangely, losing power and not going above 2000 rpm. Safe mode of course, but at the time I didn't recognise this. I managed to defeat this by dropping a gear and forcing the revs up, but shortly afterwards, all sorts of warning lgihts came on, the temperature guage went way over to the bad side of the dial. I limped home, and opened the bonnet. The coolant header tank was empty.
I filled it with water, booked it in with my local main dealer, through whom I lease this car, and left it with them for a week while I went on holiday. The pressurised the system but could find no leak.
I got back from holiday and collected my car, assuming that it must have been just a one off.
But no. A few days later the heater stopped working again. This time I recongised the symptom, and checked the coolant. - empty again.
A second trip to the workshop followed, and again they could find no leak. It's now booked in for a 3 day slot while they look deeper. 3 days work lost, or about £500+ in lost income.
In the meantime, I'm filling two 5 litre water bottles every morning, and interrupting my lessons to fill the header tank. This afternoon, I had to stop on the hard shoulder of the motorway and top it up as the car was doing the usual safe mode stuff, and running way too hot.
Inside the engine bay, a spatter of dried coolant can be seen, and when I've just topped it up, there is sometimes water coming from somewhere towards the front of the bonnet, on the near side.
Yet the garage/dealership cannot make it leak.
Not a happy bunny right now. They had it for a week, and after the pressure test revealed nothing, they chose not to investigate further.
So if they cant fix it when they have it for three days next week, they can have the damn thing back.
I first started having problems in mid April. First my heater started blowing out cold air, regardless of the temperature setting. I assumed it was a problem with the heater, but then the car started acting strangely, losing power and not going above 2000 rpm. Safe mode of course, but at the time I didn't recognise this. I managed to defeat this by dropping a gear and forcing the revs up, but shortly afterwards, all sorts of warning lgihts came on, the temperature guage went way over to the bad side of the dial. I limped home, and opened the bonnet. The coolant header tank was empty.
I filled it with water, booked it in with my local main dealer, through whom I lease this car, and left it with them for a week while I went on holiday. The pressurised the system but could find no leak.
I got back from holiday and collected my car, assuming that it must have been just a one off.
But no. A few days later the heater stopped working again. This time I recongised the symptom, and checked the coolant. - empty again.
A second trip to the workshop followed, and again they could find no leak. It's now booked in for a 3 day slot while they look deeper. 3 days work lost, or about £500+ in lost income.
In the meantime, I'm filling two 5 litre water bottles every morning, and interrupting my lessons to fill the header tank. This afternoon, I had to stop on the hard shoulder of the motorway and top it up as the car was doing the usual safe mode stuff, and running way too hot.
Inside the engine bay, a spatter of dried coolant can be seen, and when I've just topped it up, there is sometimes water coming from somewhere towards the front of the bonnet, on the near side.
Yet the garage/dealership cannot make it leak.
Not a happy bunny right now. They had it for a week, and after the pressure test revealed nothing, they chose not to investigate further.
So if they cant fix it when they have it for three days next week, they can have the damn thing back.
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