MaxBasher wrote:I should perhaps add that the Bongo had a full service less than 2 months ago, it also had a new head gasket seal added as I was getting an oil leak and I put a new stat in while all this was being done. I've done over 500 miles in it since all this.
Just reading other threads now on over heating but not seeing anything too specific, is there a general common problem that causes the over heating?
A loss of coolant flow will cause overheating. This is typically cause by a blockage, where that blockage can either be crud or air. Crud/sludge can be caused by mixing incompatible coolants, whereas an airlock occurs when air introduced into the system settles, commonly in either the cylinder head or the front heater matrix.
If you opened your coolant header tank and it was empty, then it is likely that air will have been drawn into the hoses and may a cause. Whenever water is added to top-up after the header tank has emptied, then the system will need to be bled. See the youtube videos for a demonstration of one method.
Air can also be introduced if there is a leaky water pump seal, hose joint, cracked radiator or a pinhole in a hose. The mechanism by which this occurs is that coolant is lost under pressure (leaks out) and when the system cools, the pressure drops below atmospheric pressure (vacuum, if you like), and sucks air in via that failure point, rather than via the negative pressure valve in the header tank cap.
You should find a lot by searching, and taking a look in the member's only section of the website.
Best not to drive it again until sorted. You might be well advised to take it up with the garage that serviced it 2 months ago, rather than to fiddle or have someone fiddle.
Look into a low coolant alarm and temperature sensors/alarms, too.
Hope some of this helps.
Matt.