my vw sharan!

[kesham]

Hi I have a vw sharan which I got a year ago. It's a w reg and is on the whole a lovely car. The only problem that I've had with it appears to be unsolveable. The water tank keeps running out of water! It's been happening on and off since I've had it. I've had a new head gasket as I was told that this was the problem this seemed to fix it for a month or so then when it happened again I had a new water pump fitted this also seemed to work for a short time. I was then told that it was a leak which it obviously wasn't and now I'm told less than 3 months after having it done that it's the head gasket. I always use the same garage for any work done to my car and have never had any complaints but I do get the impression that they themselves dont know what the problem is. Is it the case thta the head gasket only goes if there is another problem with the car somewhere or did I just dream that up? If anybody has any ideas of what could cause this other than the above mentioned things then I would be extremely grateful as it's costing me a fortune!
This site is amazing by the way

 

[TicklyT]

The water has to be going somewhere!

A failed thermostat can cause loss of coolant through overheating.

The pressure cap may fail, letting the coolant escape.

A leaking heater hose or heater matrix can leave you with coolant soaked carpets.

A head gasket failure could over-pressurise the system, and blow coolant out of the pressure cap, or it can leak or into the sump or the cylinders

If the head gasket went once, it's possible the head has warped so it won't seal properly, even with a new gasket.

I would hope a garage would have checked the head hadn't warped when they changed the gasket.

If it has warped, Skimming the head may be possible, but probably wouldn't be cheap.

 

[unseen]

I'm not sure if I'm allowed to post a link to an alternative site... But there is a Ford Galaxy Owners Club (google is your friend here!) which not only caters for the Galaxy but also the Sharan & Seat Alhambra.. Very nice bunch of people and very very knowledgable about all things Shalaxy

Rob

 

[gregers]

have a look here,we are a very friendly bunch and the technical help offered by some of the members is outstanding.
http://www.fordgalaxy.org.uk/ford/

 

[gregers]

have a look here,we are a very friendly bunch and the technical help offered by some of the members is outstanding.
http://www.fordgalaxy.org.uk/ford/

 

[^neo^]

I'd go for the coolant reservoir cap, or even a split in the tank itself.
Have the garage done a pressure test on the system?

 

[kesham]

I honestly dont know what they've done although I am feeling a bit bitter towards them as they told me that it was the water pump which I paid them to replace only to still have the problem on going although I feel that I know far too little about cars to have the courage to go and ask them why they did it. It really is as though they dont know what the problem is but will just keep charging me for things until they get it right. I dont know anything about cars but I do know that my water tank should not need refilling after a 15 minute journey. It's inthe garage now so will hopefully have some news soon but I will ask them about the pressure test thank you all for your input

 

[^neo^]

If no joy, ask on www.clubgti.com as there are plenty of clued up VW owners on there who will point you in the right direction of a decent specialist in your area