Opel Corsa B 1999 - Stuff

[ichocolate]

Hi,

So i have had a few concerns with this cab of mine for a long time, ive been told I should do it be cause i am just reinventing the car and wada wada wada.
I am noob but trying to learnwhat i can and do small odds and ends, jacking up the car safely checking the roller bearing (not in the hub though) so not sure if this is a type where there is a inner and bearing? if you get such a thing; cleaning the ICV ; changing the throttle body intake pipe and well, changing oil and filters and stuff i wil get too soon if i am brave enough.

I wanted to ask , how long does a water pump last for ?
My fan works and it comes on where the car is at 95 more or less.
I am just worried because it seems to be coming on a lot and i am worried about gaskets and stuff.
I was always wanting to change the temperature of the fan switch....
I think why i worry is because sometimes you stop at your house to pull in to the drive way and then when u start you car again to go in to the drive way (my gate is manual still because i am poor white guy). Then the fan starts , but it seems very very high i speed, and this worried me its like telling my that my car is getting very hot?
So i was doing some research and it seems the Fiat or the Alfa actually have the same spec fan switches which the opel corsa has but with 5 degrees less... THIS is what i would like to change but i have stuck my head under my radiator on both left and right and i can see the aircon radiator and i dont know, but i do not see a fan switch or anything.
Some people who might be sure say that it is possible that my car does not have a fan switch and thagt the fan is controlled by the water temperature switch(sensor).

My car has done 285k and it has had its gasket replaced. Water bypass was done as the antifreeze kept leaking in to the car on to the carpets. I know the water pump was changed, but this was long long ago, at least before 2010 i think. I have noticed though that my water is disappearing BUT very very slowly, I would say 100 mils in 2 weeks?
I am sure when i just got my HEAD GASKET done after it blew , last year say June , and the Bypass done to avoid using the heater core (matrix).... i had no leaks at all the water level stayed the same up until like this year.
Its just that lately i have noticed it seems to be lowering? maybe evaporation? and summer?

I just wanted to know if i change the Water pump this part can it help to keep the car running at a correct temperature?

Do i look at changing this Fan Switch ?

I posted a previous articled ablout a noise i was or AM hearing now and then - https://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showth...rsa-B-1999-Squealing-in-front-right-of-bonnet

I want to know , if when i change my water pump i then should change my tensioner also, and then i guess i need to ALSO just do my FAN belt too. I am not sure though if my Water Pump is driven by my FAN or CAM belt?

So yes to sum this up i seem to have various uncertainties about running hot and gasket failure and blah blah blah.
I am just wanting to know what i can fix now before things get worse, or do i even need to.

Another thing to aDD is that when i noticed my water disapearring was at the same time i noticed my Oil Sensor was failled, the bloody oil was leaking through it.

This oil sensor was changed last year say in August with a brand ALPHA. I then replaced it with the brand called ECHLIN. lets see if it hold up.

Good news though no oil leaks, maybe just sweating on the tapet gasket and under the car, like the sump area.
But i am worried that when the oil was leaking the car did not get hurt somewhere and that the water was being consumed more to make up for the short falll of oil ?

Sorry for the lengthy post, but appreciate any suggestions recommendations comments.

Cheers

 

[ArmatageShanks]

"My fan works and it comes on where the car is at 95 more or less"

That's where it is supposed to start working, to keep the water from boiling. A engine runs at its best when its hot (90C) that's because the engine is designed so that the amount of thermal expansion that occurs at that temperature has all the parts fitting exactly as they were designed to. Ever heard people say don't push it when its cold? That's because components haven't yet expanded and heated up to where the minimal amount of wear takes place.

"Then the fan starts , but it seems very very high i speed, and this worried me its like telling my that my car is getting very hot"

Its meant to do so in order to keep the temperature in the correct range 90-95 +-

"THIS is what i would like to change"

It was designed that way to be optimal for your engine, much time and money was spent by the manufacturer to determine this

"antifreeze kept leaking in to the car on to the carpets" "Water bypass was done"

Leaking from the heater matrix that sits inside the cabin, what was the reasoning for bypassing it?

"I have noticed though that my water is disappearing BUT very very slowly"

It is supposed to, it evaporates etc etc, If it didn't you would have to worry as that would mean water is getting in to the system from somewhere else and that's bad.

"I just wanted to know if i change the Water pump this part can it help to keep the car running at a correct temperature?
"

Short answer, No. It's mechanically driven and the rate it pumps does not affect temperature unless its pumping to slowly, which is unlikely as its mechanical driven. The pump should be changed along with the cam belt, see manual for intervals .

 

[ArmatageShanks]

Also keep in mind the thermostat will not open until the water temperature reaches 95c. so if you lower the temperature at which the fan comes on it would turn on before the thermostat opens to let water flow, which means it would be running non stop

 

[ichocolate]

HI Gamer, thanks for dissecting of my thoughts . I am not that good at plotting it on paper in a delicious sequence, yet.

Anyways:

"My fan works, and it does come on when the temperature reaches approximately 95 more or less" (so the gauge tells me)

That's where it is supposed to start working, to keep the water from boiling. A engine runs at its best when its hot (90C) that's because the engine is designed so that the amount of thermal expansion that occurs at that temperature has all the parts fitting exactly as they were designed to. Ever heard people say don't push it when its cold? That's because components haven't yet expanded and heated up to where the minimal amount of wear takes place.

Yah i have, it just worries me about the amount of strain the gaskets take... i am curious to know if cars last longer in Europe compared to here in South Africa?

After turning on the car just after turning it off to open the gate to the home...
"Then the fan starts , but it seems very very high in speed, and this worried me. It feels like its telling me that my car is getting very hot"

Its meant to do so in order to keep the temperature in the correct range 90-95 +-

Fan switch...
"THIS is what i would like to change"

It was designed that way to be optimal for your engine, much time and money was spent by the manufacturer to determine this


So long ago last year say after my head gasket blew which was in JUNE, we also decided to bypass the heater matrix.... in other words they joined the inlet and outlet hoses for this ....using a 45 degree elbow.
...this was to avoid my mysterious water disappearance which had gone on for years.... we did the pressure test where the mechanic connected a pump gauge mechanism to the reservoir bottle to see if the pressure drops. It didnt seem to , at least we didnt check long enough though.. BUT i when i drove, and also what the mechanic said.....was the car is under compression so its a difference and possible the water could have been going in to the "partially" blown gasket.
I doubt though, that you can have a partially broken gasket so so so long?
It is because of the below.... which i had done the bypass as it is recommend by many other people on the opelownersforum because it was apparently huge LABOR cost to change the heater as it sits in the dash and there is a lot of drilling and or stripping involved..... if you are not familiar with it and it is not a daily job , then ten to one when refitting back my dash,
"antifreeze kept leaking in to the car on to the carpets" "Water bypass was done"
Leaking from the heater matrix that sits inside the cabin, what was the reasoning for bypassing it?



More recently this year (beginning of January...)
"I have noticed though that my water is disappearing BUT very very slowly"

It is supposed to, it evaporates etc etc, If it didn't you would have to worry as that would mean water is getting in to the system from somewhere else and that's bad.

It is strange to me as guys i know with new cars for example, their water level never drops... and when i first owned this car also, it never used to drop.

Is this more common for older cars?



"I just wanted to know if i change the Water pump this part can it help to keep the car running at a correct temperature?
"

Short answer, No. It's mechanically driven and the rate it pumps does not affect temperature unless its pumping to slowly, which is unlikely as its mechanical driven. The pump should be changed along with the cam belt, see manual for intervals .

How long do the water pumps last for, and if not speed of pumping like you say , but rather effectiveness of the pumping , maybe wearing fins? or blades?

 

[ArmatageShanks]

"Yah i have, it just worries me about the amount of strain the gaskets take"

The gaskets are under the strain of much higher pressures such as combustion, oil and manifold pressures. The pressure from the water is zero as its not boiling therefore not producing pressure you needn't worry about gaskets, only worry if they were fitted properly.

"Then the fan starts , but it seems very very high in speed"

The fan has only two speeds on and off. When it turns on it's designed to return the temperature to normal as quickly as possible

"I doubt though, that you can have a partially broken gasket so so so long?"

Of course you can, especially if it wasn't fitted correctly or not tightened correctly, tighter inst always better that is why torque wrenches exist.

"It is strange to me as guys i know with new cars for example, their water level never drops... and when i first owned this car also, it never used to drop.

Is this more common for older cars?"

Yes as the engines wears slowly over time, it is a insignificant amount of wear you shouldn't be concerned about.

"How long do the water pumps last for, and if not speed of pumping like you say , but rather effectiveness of the pumping , maybe wearing fins? or blades?"

They are designed to last for a long time and even if it pumps only half as much as it should this would still not affect temperature. You change it along with the cam belt every 75 000 km. Even if it still looks fine its better to change it while you have access.