Hi All, I do believe this is my first post on this site, so I wanted to say Hi.

I inherited a 92 VDP w/ 212,000 Miles, in mint condition from my grandmother. I decided to sell my 01 M3, and use the Jag as a Daily driver, and am now at 220,000 after three months. Absolute dream to drive. Not quite as peppy as the M car, but a lot less expensive to drive and maintain (Even with me doing my own work) and a lot more comfortable.

I've got a question on the cooling system though, and can't seem to get the complete picture so any help would be appreciated. When I got the car, the only thing that needed to be fixed was the coolant expansion tank. It was weeping at the joint right next to the fender mount. As I drove a bit more the tank developed a full split, and dumped about a gallon of water every time the car was parked. I hunted for a tank for almost 4 months, found a used one and once in, realized it was split in the exact same place.

Finally decided to bite the bullet and spend the 400 dollars on a new one from the dealer (Hennesee in Atlanta, Georgia). Hard part was, they only had one in their US warehouse network for ALL dealerships... (Think it might be a high failure item?) Got it in, and I though great! no more worries... Well about a week in, the side blew out of the new tank... Flabbergasted the parts manager at Hennesee...

Anyway got yet another new tank in (From Britain this time), My question is; Where do I need to top the tank off to? I figured it needed to be filled to the bottom of the little plastic "Cup" in the filler cap that's about an inch deep? Or does it need to be filled all the way up once hot? I'm afraid I have too much air in the system and it's blowing them up somehow? I know the cap has been new with each tank, so I don't think that's the problem, but the fact that the tank blew before the cap released worries/surprises me... I'm also using phosphate free antifreeze and distilled water per the manual (if the makes a difference).

Sorry for the book, but hope someone can help.

 

I just think it is just the age of the parts that you have gotten. Plastic parts get brittle over time, and thus, do not always work the way we want. first replacement was sitting on a shelf for a very long time somewhere in this country and I'm sure the dealer they got it from was more than happy to get rid of it. The second one say on a shelf in England (it sounds like, from your story) for a very long time as well. That part has probably not been made in many years considering the car it fits is, at its youngest, 18 years old now.

It reminds me of the seal I kept replacing in the front of a timing cover on a 97 AJ16 that kept leaking. We went through four seals until I found a good one that would hold the oil back. That part hasn't been made new in a while either.

Hopefully the dealer is honoring a parts warranty and will keep replacing it until you get one that doesn't leak. By the way, those engines self bleed the air for the most part. Just filling up the coolant reservoir will be enough to get the air out. I usually fill them all the way up in case there is an air pocket in the engine and it finally works its way out and drops the coolant level below the lid of the reservoir.

 

That's probably the case. There is a written date on the bottom of both of the new ones I've gotten in that was late last year... But in all honesty they seem like remans. The joints on both look like they've been hacked at and carved down, not clean like the originals.

So just fill it up to the cap and be done with it?

 

Yep, that's all. Fill'er up and cap it off.

 

Many thanks for the info! I'll keep tabs on it. I just hope this one lasts a little longer than the first... My last resort is to have a custom aluminum tank built...

 

I am going through the exact same experience with the same Jaguar part. I have 54,500 miles on my 1993 Vanden Plas and I had to replace the Reservoir Unit. The first replacement unit came from Jaguar last week and lasted all of 50 miles before leaking from the seam. Went back to get another one.

The mechanic I went to said it's under warranty and he would ship it back and get a new one. The second new unit from Jaguar was put on and the same thing happened. I drove about 10 miles and saw a green bubble pop from under the hood and pulled over. The seam was leaking out anti-freeze. Drove back again to the mechanic. A third one is on order.

It sounds like the part from Jaguar is NOT designed properly. Are there other replacement manufacturers with a unit that does not split at the seam? (to me- it looks like a bad design).

That seam does not seem to take much pressure before it cracks and then creates a slow (and very noticeable) leak.

 

The new AntiFreeze reservoir unit must be designed improperly because the third unit that my mechanic got from the Jaguar parts supplier leaked after he put it on.

We are now looking for a used one or even a metal one from an earlier car. The plastic seams are not holding.

 

I replaced the reservoir on my 94 xj40 with a used reservoir from a 90 xj40. Other than the decals on the top of the tank it fit fine. The only problem was the low coolant sensor on the 90 has a different pigtail/plug than the 94. So I put the 94 sensor in the used tank. So far its lasted a year. If you do get another tank and it splits again then you may want to check compression on all cylinders because I read on one of the forums if the head gasket is leaking it can build up pressure in the coolant system. You would hope at your mileage that the head gasket is OK but you never know.