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expansion tank
macspeedy - 12/5/04 at 04:45 PM

just wanting to check where should the expansion tank be plumbed in in the pinto

also should the small output on the thermosthat housing go to the top of the expansion tank

ady8077 - 12/5/04 at 05:30 PM

Hi

My pinto's plumbed in :-
bottom of expasnsion tank to a "T" in the bottom rad hose
Top of expansion tank to air bleed on top of rad ( VW ) but i've seen others use the thermostate housing

Adrian

Deckman001 - 12/5/04 at 05:30 PM

The last pinto, setup i saw had the expansion tank fed from the inlet manifold and returned into the waterpump housing
Hope it helps
Jason

JoelP - 12/5/04 at 05:33 PM

there are many ways to do it, all that matters is that the highest point of the system either goes to the expansion tank or has a bleed valve of somesort, and that the bottom hose on the expansion tank goes back somewhere into the lower parts of the system. And i *think* you shouldnt just block the heater system holes up.

britishtrident - 12/5/04 at 06:08 PM

Very much back JoelP on this *highest* point and allow some by pass flow via the heater circuit as this what circulates the water in the block and allows the thermostat to see warm coolant --- block it off the thermostat won't open.

macspeedy - 12/5/04 at 07:09 PM

see how this reads

Water pump down pipe bottom of rad, top or rad to thermosthat housing, small water pump out put to heater matrix with t piece to expansion tank, output of heater matrix to inlet manifold and small thermosthat to top of expansion tank.
starting to see a flaw but not sure

also having mini style valve on output from heater matrix to control heat

[Edited on 12/5/04 by macspeedy]

James - 13/5/04 at 10:55 AM

The inlet manifold is a 'water out' from the engine so I don't think you want to connect you matrix 'out' to that!

Bear in mind on an EFI Pinto the small output from the Thermostat housing is blocked off.

I'm doing mine with the inlet manifold 'out' going to the filler tank and the return going to the smaller pipe on the pump.

Makes sense to me!

James

[Edited on 13/5/04 by James]

JoelP - 13/5/04 at 01:44 PM

quote:
Originally posted by James
Bear in mind on an EFI Pinto the small output from the Thermostat housing is blocked off.


my 1600 carb'd one also has this pipe plugged, i used the original top hose with its thin branch going to the expansion tank.

timf - 13/5/04 at 02:03 PM

quote:
Originally posted by James
Bear in mind on an EFI Pinto the small output from the Thermostat housing is blocked off.

this is an air bleed which was designed to be used when filling the system not plumbed into the expansion tank don't connect it to the overflow pipe as it will result in presurising the tank the overflow is designed to let excess water to escape not to create a completely closed loop

Peteff - 13/5/04 at 03:17 PM

Or are you asking about header tanks? I have a small bottle off my radiator filler neck via a thin pipe which fills and empties as the water expands in the system. I don't have a header tank fitted and have thought about fitting one to make topping up easier.

skinny - 5/7/04 at 03:02 PM

just to clarify pete, you just have a simple header tank with one pipe going into the neck of the rad filler?

if so, i was thinking the same - can you fill up the cooling system just from that header tank - i want to fix the nosecone and don't want to take it off to check my water level or fill it up. i am thinking as long as the header tank is level or higher than the entry into the rad it should work tho i don't know much about cooling. will this be ok?

thanks

[Edited on 5/7/04 by skinny]

Dave J - 6/7/04 at 10:13 AM

I intend to do just that; lower outlet on the expansion tank piped to the rad neck tube.

Make sure you have a pressure cap on the exp' tank and cap off the rad with a non pressure type cap.

Can anybody confirm if its possible to 'doctor' the rad pressure cap to make it into a non pressure relief type to effectively seal the rad?.

Thanks,

Dave.

David Jenkins - 6/7/04 at 10:24 AM

Fixed non-pressure type caps are really cheap - I got mine from the local motor factors. Not worth hacking an old cap around!

David