Rover 25 (1999 - 2005) - 01 1.4 Overheating problems

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Tue 27 Oct 2009 15:26
01 1.4 Overheating problems - tonym_dj
Hi,

I've experienced my Rover 25 seems to overheat every so often which involves the gauge going through the roof and the fans blasting for several minutes afterwards.

A top up of water and it's usually fine again.

I've noticed the overheating issue getting worse, this morning as I approached a round about on the way to work the engine stalled, as I looked at the dash the thermostate gauge was at the very top. I restarted the car and it continued to stall at every round a bout for the remaining 2 miles of my journey.

I got to work let the car cool down. I then checked the oil which although was low was well above the minimum. Checked the water and it was well below minimum. I do seem to be adding several litres of water every month or so which seems quite excessive.

Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks

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Tue 27 Oct 2009 16:57
01 1.4 Overheating problems - Rattle
Sounds like you have cooked your head gasket and warped your cylinder head :(

This engine is prone to head gasket failure as it has limited coolant capacity, by allowing it to constantly over heat you have almost certainly damaged your cylinder head and the head will need to be skimmed, if its been skimmed before you could even be looking at a new engine.

Either way I am affraid this is not going to be cheap :(.

Edited by Rattle on 27/10/2009 at 16:58

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Tue 27 Oct 2009 17:18
01 1.4 Overheating problems - DP
Take the oil cap off and check for "mayonnaise" / coffee froth around the inside.

As Rattle says, these engines are notorious for blowing head gaskets. The good news is that a modified gasket is available which is said to be more robust, although the fundamental design faults in the engine which cause the problem will still be there. The engine is on borrowed time running in this state - you need to either take it off the road or get it fixed before it fails completely.

Given the value of the car, and the chance that the same thing could happen again months down the line, I would be considering my options carefully.

Good luck!
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