Bongo Fury

I forgot to put the expansion tank lid on after topping up the water. and got caught short with steam bellowing out. made it home, when i probably should have stopped! now the temperature is running hot. Topped the water up last night and took it for a run today after 10 mins or so temp was going up so headed home. I heard so really strange noises from the van, like a bad gurgle, i think i may have seen water dripping from underneath.

What could be wrong!! i can't believe my stupidity!

needs to br bled properly, just hope you havent cracked the head

I hope so too! I was so proud of my bongo, it never over heated and it didn't even drink much, like so many i hear of in the forums. we have religiously checked the water levels and they have always been fine, but now. Hopefully I will find out tomorrow. I have to take it to my local garage as i don't think it will make it to any where else.

Pennycooks wrote:I hope so too! I was so proud of my bongo, it never over heated and it didn't even drink much, like so many i hear of in the forums. we have religiously checked the water levels and they have always been fine, but now. Hopefully I will find out tomorrow. I have to take it to my local garage as i don't think it will make it to any where else.

Print out the instructions on how to bleed a Bongo cooling system and make sure they really do appreciate HOW important it is to do it right.

suggest you watch you tube vieos of how to bleed it

Penny... I did exactly the same thing myself years ago! I managed 100+ miles with the cap missing in 80+ deg temperatures... No harm was done, but i did a coolant change, and a bleed, luckily everything was ok afterwards It does sound like your bongo needs bleeding though, hopefully the pressure build up has just blown a hose or worked a clamp loose... got my fingers crossed for you...

Hi , can you manage to do the bleeding yourself. If you watch the you tube videos its really just the time it takes about 40 mins and then you know its been done properly.
Good luck.

A few people have left the expansion cap off, and luckily for some, no damage was done.
Although you topped it up, there's likely to be air in the system, which will cause problems if you drive it!
So the important thing is to bleed it, to remove all the air.
There are various methods for doing this, a factsheet in the members area, and videos on YouTube which could help you.

Doone wrote:A few people have left the expansion cap off, and luckily for some, no damage was done.
Although you topped it up, there's likely to be air in the system, which will cause problems if you drive it!
So the important thing is to bleed it, to remove all the air.
There are various methods for doing this, a factsheet in the members area, and videos on YouTube which could help you.

Indeed. For peace of mind it might be better to see if the mechanic might come round to your house to do the bleed. Even a short run might be time for a dangerous hotspot to develop if there is an airlock. Hardly any tools required for the bleed job but MAKE SURE they have pukka instructions (Mazda workshop manual or Bongo Fury factsheet) for doing the job and that they stick to them. If I can do it, a mechanic certainly should be able to.

With luck, you may be lucky