Is this normal?

[Oldboybob]

My 2.5d bongo has lost about 2 inches of coolant from the header tank in 4 months, driven daily and absolutely no other signs of head overheating or leaks etc. Can anyone tell me if this is normal for a bongo? or should I be worried? Thanks.

[M 80NGO]

It may be that its losing a small amount of coolant past the origional hose clips when the engine is up to temp and evaporating off so no tell tale drips, just top it up when stone cold and check it weekly, these vans can be prone to head gasket problems but thats worst case scenario, just keep an eye on it

[scanner]

Be sure to top up with coolant mix not just plain water.

[Oldboybob]

Thanks for the replies

[soulpaul]

just a thought have you checked that you not got a pin hole leak in a hose that only leaks when hot(look at the hose and see if they is a white deposit on one of them rub off and check later when water has dropped )if it comes back at the same place might be this.
get a alarm i did'nt and it let go its cheaper in the long run

[Northern Bongolow]

some movement in level is ok,if you checked it initially when it wasnt quite cold,4 months ago,then checked it when it was really cold in this last cold spell,you will notice a difference in the levels.
the ambient air temps do affect the level.if you are worried,your local garage may be able to do a pressure test quite cheaply,and may put your mind at rest.

[The Great Pretender]

Bob, it is worth checking the head has no air in it, not being a scare monger but better safe than sorry.

[mikexgough]

It may be that its losing a small amount of coolant past the origional hose clips when the engine is up to temp and evaporating off so no tell tale drips, just top it up when stone cold and check it weekly, these vans can be prone to head gasket problems but thats worst case scenario, just keep an eye on it

Top answer..........
Mind you we have all got out of the habit of checking vehicles over.....not just coolant.....
I saw a TV prog where a survey was done in a supermarket regarding vehicle checks and how frequent drivers checked their cars...... Luckily they TV crew had various oil grades to top up vehicles as a thanks for taking part......the result was shocking & if they are not checking oil then the other checks (coolant, fluids & Tyres) will be missed too......

[Oldboybob]

Many thanks for all your replies, I attended the Pennington Flash daymeet today and the general consensus of the good folk there is that is nothing serious but to keep an eye on it. So I will be taking it to a reputable Bongo friendly garage at the end of January (Pay day!) to have the system bled and a service. Thanks again! Bob.

[nfn]

There's a recent thread about misaligned odometers over in the chat section with a dealer list of bongos which includes an under-bonnet picture for each bongo for sale:
http://www.spectrum-imports.co.uk/mazda_bongo.htm

Hardly a bongo on the dealer site has the coolant at the correct level -- they are almost all low. So the answer must be, yes, a bit of coolant loss is normal, and people don't check it frequently enough.

[corblimey]

My Bongo does exactly the same thing and always has since I bought it nearly four years ago. It's never been a problem.

Until a few weeks ago I just kept it topped up with distilled water but I've since taken it to Allan's in Plymouth for a service and had it flushed, refilled and bled. Since then it seems to run a bit cooler.