Coolant issues.

I dare say this has come up somewhere but my signal is rubbish, if at all, and I need pointing in the right direction.

The other day I noticed that my expansion reservoir was rather full, I presumed it would return to the engine but it didn't.

I cleaned out the pipe and hoses from the thermostat housing to the bottle and decanted the coolant back into the engine.

It's a bit better but not right as more is going out than is going back and the top hose is getting compressed as it cools.

So I have continued to put back what has not returned but my van is definitely heating up a bit faster and I am in a place where it needs to be working right.

All suggestions welcomed but I don't know when I will get a signal to reply


Thank you.

Something is causing the vacuum in the coolant system for the hose to collapse. As the expansion tank is filling and not returning, it must be that?

Normally, the expansion tank is connected to the radiator cap housing - but you said thermostat housing? I have the petrol engine so I assume the radiator cap is fitted to the thermostat housing on the diesel?

New radiator cap is probably what you need. If you can't get one, maybe just a clean?

The part code is 16401-54750 - used on lots of Toyotas including Land Cruisers and 4 Runners.

0.9bar about 90kpa 13psi (later models are 110kpa 16psi)

To check - the 'outer' valve pushes up when the engine is running to release coolant to the tank. That's the main washer and spring that pushes up into the cap.

The inner valve is the one that releases down away from the top of the cap - and lets the coolant back when the engine is off - that's the one to check. It's smaller and 'inside' the other valve - looks like a metal disk supporting that other valve, but it can move down.



You should be able to lever it down with a screwdriver to test it.

I posted eàrlier but something happened.anyway awesome g00se many thanks.

I got a cap in the town and now back tò the hills.

I'm in the desert so need my cooling working and was getting paranoid and permanently staring at the alarm.

And now on my way back to the hills my van behaves... before I change the cap !

I had the oil changed too and that was the normal black yucky stuff so that's good.

Maybe my van was just sulking after so much desert and mountains. When I get to somewhere that I will be at for a while I think a good flush of the water system will be a good idea.

Off to no signal land.. thanks again.

New cap fitted and so far so good even cooling down going up hills, which is a first !

Driving in Chile is brutal for motors, it's got altitude, mountains and deserts but my little van seems happier today than it has been for quite a while.