Bongo Fury

Well having owned a freda some time back and sold it on then owning several different people carriers like the vw t4 and the t5 and a transit tourneo i always loved the "bongo"
It was trouble free all the time we had it and was ideal for our large family ,me the other half 12 yr old 10 yr old 4 year old and 18 month old ive now purchased a television
I have purchased a very cheap 1997 4x4 2.5td aft bongo which isnt well at all

Anyway ive spent many an hour already reading up on pro's ,cons and the fantastic posts on bleeding and cylinder heads cracking etc......

What are the main arguments for and against "bongo specialist garages" and diy mechanics.

I guess what im asking is after reading on here from a newbie to the forum point of view is what is so specialist about a bongo? (exception to the bleeding of the coolant system)

One thing that stikes me is how weak /thin the metal is on the tailgate as my poorly bongo had to be pushed on to a trailer to recover it and 4 lads helped but now i have nice dents in the rear tailgate just below the window grrr

Hi Dave, and welcome.

Using a Bongo Friendly garage as opposed to DIY will depend solely on your skill as a mechanic. If you are capable you will save a lot of cash by fixing anything yourself.

If you are going to use a garage then I would definitely recommend one known as Bongo Friendly as none of us knows what we don't know. If Bloggs & Co don't know a Bongo needs bleeding after coolant work they won't do it, and you won't find out until the head fails, BF garage will also likely have parts in stock, or at least know where to get them, saving you VOR time.

Cooling system aside the Bongo is fairly basic technology.

Re tailgate: It isn't designed to support the weight of 4 pals, bad luck.

Thanks for the reply bob , yeah ill try pull the dents out with a suction type puller

I was hoping to fix my bongo's head as im used to working on cars of all ages ,im restoring an old vw splitscreen at the moment

Is there a section that i can upload some pictures to so people can see my progress? or is that sort of thing pretty uninteresting to others.

Some of the reasons i want to tackle this are ,to save some money , and to learn about the car i want to keep for a long time

The previous owner had, had enough after having a new engine fitted in 2007 the water pump failed causing coolant loss he said he saw steam from the exhaust driving along and pulled over turned it off

and thats it ,now i have a bongo on my drive that just turns over and wont start and its lost all coolant via water pump which is completely broken

Im hoping with the amazing wealth parts suppliers and friendy knowledge here i could get her running again ?

Sounds like the makings of a cool project Dave. Stick some pics up THIS will help.

Welcome.

mister munkey wrote:Sounds like the makings of a cool project Dave. Stick some pics up THIS will help.

Welcome.

Thank you mister munkey
i have a photo bucket account lets just hope i can work the size thing out

ill start tomorrow with the old cylinder head removal ,fingers crossed i dont find holes in pistons .

Just as apoint of interest as im new to the tech side of bongo's

What aftermarket items should i be fitting to help this bongo avoid the new cylinder head going the same way as the old one?

Dave. wrote:Just as apoint of interest as im new to the tech side of bongo's

What aftermarket items should i be fitting to help this bongo avoid the new cylinder head going the same way as the old one?

A subscription to the forum then reading up on the members area.

The Great Pretender wrote:

Dave. wrote:Just as apoint of interest as im new to the tech side of bongo's

What aftermarket items should i be fitting to help this bongo avoid the new cylinder head going the same way as the old one?

A subscription to the forum then reading up on the members area.

...and a visit to http://www.coolantalarm.co.uk

Bob wrote:Hi Dave, and welcome.

Using a Bongo Friendly garage as opposed to DIY will depend solely on your skill as a mechanic. If you are capable you will save a lot of cash by fixing anything yourself.

If you are going to use a garage then I would definitely recommend one known as Bongo Friendly as none of us knows what we don't know. If Bloggs & Co don't know a Bongo needs bleeding after coolant work they won't do it, and you won't find out until the head fails, BF garage will also likely have parts in stock, or at least know where to get them, saving you VOR time.

Cooling system aside the Bongo is fairly basic technology.

Re tailgate: It isn't designed to support the weight of 4 pals, bad luck.

Agree re using a "Bongo friendly" but, even so, it's wise to check that they do use the full Mazda-prescribed air bleed process after a coolant refill (any refill when the coolant level beforehand was below the bottom of the coolant expansion tank).

As at least two of us found out to our cost last year, there's still a temptation for the "cleverer" ones among them, who know the ex tank is a de-gassing design, to save (themselves) time and money by filling up as as far as they can, topping up again after a bit of revving, and then leaving the motor to self-bleed - and the poor "bleeding" owner to then monitor the ex tank level and keep on topping up coolant, while it does continue self bleeding (in my V6 case,for three months!).

The risk with that method (which in fairness has been known to work without apparent damage) is that if the motor is driven hard and hot, without a proper bleed tube process first, and there is still trapped air either totally blocking coolant circulation or in a cylinder head hot spot, then bang goes the head - the 2.5TD being particularly prone.

So, ask the question - before and after the work, Better still, see it done - ask them if they mind you watching the experts do it

The Great Pretender wrote:

Dave. wrote:Just as apoint of interest as im new to the tech side of bongo's

What aftermarket items should i be fitting to help this bongo avoid the new cylinder head going the same way as the old one?

A subscription to the forum then reading up on the members area.

I wasn't aware there was anything to subscribe to ? ill have a look into it




First problem encountered ,after completely removing the passenger seat and cover etc ,folded the drivers back out the way

I have found the origional breakdown cause this seems to be a sheared off water pump the pulley is just hanging off the end of the pump along with the shaft

My engine doesnt appear to have the bleed tube from the head at all ?? nor can i see where it would be fitted

The new engine receipt shows it was a re-con fitted by mercedes main dealer workshop 6 months ago

i think the pumps had it ?

heres where maybee a bleed pipe should be ?

Looks like a ford ranger head......still possible to bleed but best to "T" in a bleed hose .....I belive the turbo hose is a good place.

Dave. wrote:I wasn't aware there was anything to subscribe to ? ill have a look into it

I think The Great Pretender meant join the Club (link at the top of the page). The forum is free and you will glean loads of advice on here, but for £12 a year (a tiddly sum compared with the owners' clubs my husband belongs to who provide little other than a boring magazine) there are the additional benefits of discounted parts and bits and bobs from the Club shop and the Fact Sheets. And being able to come to the Club meets, although there are loads of other meets (camping meets and day meets) organised by peeps all over the country at all times of the year.

Alison01326 wrote:

Dave. wrote:I wasn't aware there was anything to subscribe to ? ill have a look into it

I think The Great Pretender meant join the Club (link at the top of the page). The forum is free and you will glean loads of advice on here, but for £12 a year (a tiddly sum compared with the owners' clubs my husband belongs to who provide little other than a boring magazine) there are the additional benefits of discounted parts and bits and bobs from the Club shop and the Fact Sheets. And being able to come to the Club meets, although there are loads of other meets (camping meets and day meets) organised by peeps all over the country at all times of the year.

I have just been looking at joining via pay pal but im unsure as to what the three booking form options are and why? i downloaded the form ,but id of thought you could fill out an online form instaed of having to print it out and post it , the first option didnt work as i have a brand new out the box all singing and dancing pc which sais i need to sort my word program out and some other update lol