I had a coolant leak which was about 16oz every few days to a week and never found a drop on the ground last fall. There was no sign of leakage any where but it was driving me nutty. I had the coolant system pressurized by a local garage. No drop in pressure when it was held for hours and no leaks. It was suggested that it could be a head gasket. Off to the dealer I went. They put some dye in the coolant and I drove the car for a few days and brought it back. Under a black light, the leak showed up on the back side of the block (passenger side). In other words, it was the head gasket. They quoted me a minimum of $900 (would rebuild the head some) to do it and more if they see other things wrong. In fact they told me not to even bother with the age and mileage (140K) on my 1991 Gli. I had it done for half that at a friends garage and swapped in a Euro Cam and fresh valve guides and seals at the same time. At any rate, although I did not do it, a head gasket job is a perfect time to swap in a fresh 1.8 head :)
Jim 91 Jetta Gli 16V, 87 Scirocco 16V, 84 Rabbit Gti http://members.aol.com/jlpawlicki In a message dated 2/11/2003 12:00:04 PM Eastern Standard Time, [email protected] writes: > -----Original Message----- > From: FLi GLi [mailto:[email protected]] > Sent: Monday, February 10, 2003 7:32 PM > To: Hauptmann, Eric; 'MICHAEL INGRAM'; a2-16v-list > Subject: RE: consuming coolant > > > > Happened to me this past summer. Kept consuming coolant, but there > were no > visible leaks or signs of burning. Ended up having the head rebuilt b/c it > was warped. Try all other options first, but if nothing else works, this > may be your problem. Probably not what you want to hear, but it happens. > > HTH, > > Renard > > -----Original Message----- > From: [email protected] > [mailto:[email protected]]On Behalf Of Hauptmann, Eric > Sent: Monday, February 10, 2003 11:18 AM > To: 'MICHAEL INGRAM'; a2-16v-list > Subject: RE: [a2-16v-list] RE:(A2-16v-list) poll: does your A2 leak oil? > > > speaking of leaks, does anyone have a problem with leaking/'burning' > coolant? I don't notice any leaks, but i'm constantly having to fill up my > coolant. I put in about a half gallon two weeks ago (400-600 miles) and my > coolant light came on again on the way to work. sure > enough, it's low. > does that happen to anyone else? > > Thanks, > > Eric > > '91 GLi
