Hi All
This is the first time I have ever used a forum, so looking forward to it, but please bare with me if I am posting in the wrong section or anything, and feel free to redirect me if needed.
This is a bit of a long post too, because I wanted to give as much detail as possible, so I hope this isn't a problem. It might seem like I'm just giving an account about what I've done so far, but have reached a point where I do really need help, and have questions at the end, so would really appreciate any help and advice that could be given to see if I can finish the job that I have started.
I recently purchased a MK1 2009 Hyundai i30 (FD) Comfort, 5 Door Hatch, 1.4l Petrol, with manual transmission and 109hp.
I only initially bought this as a run around, but I really like the car, and it has really grown on me, so would love to keep it on the road if at all possible.
After driving the car for a little while I noticed that it was producing white smoke on start-up, although this would clear after the car would warm up. Also, occasionally the car had real trouble starting, and when it would eventually start would blow out quite a lot of white smoke, before settling down again.
I know very little about cars, and had absolutely no mechanical experience, but I knew that this could possibly mean a blown head gasket, which would be an extremely expensive repair, and would mean the death of the car. I didn't just want to scrap the car though, as I really like it, and so tried to see if I could find a cheaper solution. I also fancied the challenge of learning something new, trying to keep the car on the raod, and think I may have a new passion now, as I'm really getting into it!!!
After a bit of Google searching for a possible fix, I came across a product called 'Steel Seal', which is poured into the radiator, and can possibly fix a blown head gasket. It had a money back guarantee, so I though why not give it a try.
Apparently, how you use it is you drain your coolant, put in fresh coolant, pour the Steel Seal into the radiator, get the engine up to operating temperature, and then run it for half an hour, before then letting the engine completely cool. For the best result you should do this 5 times or so, to give it the best chance to fix any leak.
Apparently, how it works is the Steel Seal contains liquid glass. When you run the engine this liquid goes anywhere water would go, including where the leak is, and when it reaches the cylinders the heat and pressure vaporizes the liquid, leaving just the glass, which then sets solid when the engine cools, filling any holes and leaks in the Head Gasket, and hopefully resolving the problem. Apparently the remaining glass is stronger than the original material, so it should do a good job. The theory sounded good to me, so I decided to give it a go.
Before I started with the Steel Seal process, I though I would see if there was anyting else that I could do to help things along. I found a suggestion about replacing the thermostat, as this can cause issues with the cooling system, and this looked like an easy repair, so I gave it a go. I bought a new Thermostat for £12.50, removed the old one, which was totall ruined, and fitted the new Thermostat. To my surpise, my attempts to complete this job were successfull, and I statretd to get the bug for fixing cars.
I also found a suggestion about flushing the coolant system to clear out any crud that had built up before adding new coolant, so I drained the existing coolant, and flushed the system with De-Ionised Water and Holts Speed Flush.
Once that was finished I was ready to try the Steel Seal, so I drained the de-ionised water, put in fresh coolant, put in the Steel Seal, started up the engine and sat in the car ready to let it run for 30 minutes.
After just a few minutes I heard a loud 'Clunk', and then noticed that the engine temperature went through the roof almost immediately! I turned off the engine, got out the car, and checked out the engine. I could see that the Serpentine belt had come off, and looking down into the engine bay, I could also see a pulley and a bolt lying at the botom of the engine, which was obviously not a very good sign at all!!!
This meant that I had to immediately stop my attempt to repair the head gasket, to see if I could fix this new problem.
After a bit of investigation I was able to establish that the pulley that had come off was the Crankshaft Pulley, and that this pulley turned under the power of the crankshaft, which in turn powered the Serpentine Belt, which then turned pulleys that drove the power steering, alternator and water pump. This meant that I definitely had to fix this issue before trying anything else, as the engine would overheat very quickly without a working water pump. It also meant that it would be impossible to see if the Steel Seal would work until this was fixed, because the water pump needs to be running to get the Steel Seal running through the system.
I had hoped that I might be able to just refix the crankshaft pulley using the bolt, refit the belt, and the car would be running again, at least well enough for me to be able to get the Steel Seal process completed. However, When looking at the Crankshaft pulley that had come off I could see that it had a little notch cut in the centre where the bolt goes through (which I now know to be a Keyway), which had been gouged out, and basically destroyed. In the end of the crankshaft there was meant to be a little pin (which I now know to becalled the Crankshaft Key), that was meant to fit into the little notch in the Crankshaft Pulley, and therefore help drive it. This pin (key) was now missing, and so it was obvious that I would need to buy a new Crankshaft Pulley and pin to complete the repair.
I bought a new Crankshaft Pulley from Ebay, and was expecting the little pin (key) to come with it. Unfortunately this is not the case, and so I would have to purchase one separately. I searched everywhere, but had no luck, and then had the idea of trying the local Hyundai dealership. They were extremely helpful (Yeomans Hyundai - Bexhill, great customer service, very helpful and highly recommended, especially the parts deivision), who were able to source me a new pin, and it only cost a few pounds!
So, now I had the parts needed, and was able to attempt the repair. Firstly I tapped the pin into the hole in the Crankshaft, and this went well. I then fitted the Crankshaft Pulley, and knew that the bolt would need to be torqued to 160nm, so I bought a new torque wrench. One thing I had to deal with was that when trying to tighten the bolt on the Cranlshaft Pulley, the crankshaft would turn, meaning it was impossible to tighten the bolt very much. I did however find instructions abour jamming the pulley, so that it could be tightened, so I followed these and it worked!
One thing that struck me was that the back edge of the new crankshaft pulley came into contact with the engine block, and I was concerned that when this was torqued up good and tight this might cause an issue as it might not be able to turn freely. However, like I've said I have basically no experience of anything mechanical, so I though the people that had written the instructions, and made the videos I was using for guidance must know better than me, so I followed the instructions.
Once the new crankshaft pulley was fitted I replaced the Serpentine belt (by looseining the altenator, moving it closer to the other pulleys, sliding the belt on, then repositioning and retightening the alternator), and fired up the engine. Unfortunately it seemed that my original concern about the back edge of the crankshaft pulley being in contact with the engine block turned out to be valid, as the crankshaft was unable to turn, and the engine wouldn't start. I loosened the bolt just a little to make sure this was the issue, the engine turned over with no problem, the crankshaft pulley and serpentine belt moved, and all the other pulleys (altenator, power steering and water pump) began to turn. This gave me faith that I was on the right track, but the Crankshaft pully was wobbling, so I knew I had to resolve this issue before I could go any further.
At this point I thought I was stuck, would have to give in and would have to either call in a mechanic to resolve this issue, or scrap the car. Then I had a brain wave. If I got a washer that could fit on the end of the crankshaft, and go between the end of the crankshart and the Cranshaft Pulley where they connect, then this would move the pulley out just a tiny bit, and would create a bit of space between the back edge of the crankshaft pulley and the engine block. Even if this were just a few mm this should work. I managed to get some washers that were the perfect size, but as there is a pin (key) in the end of the crackshaft I couldn't fit the washer directly to the end of it. I managed to drill a hole in the washer the exact size of the pin, fitted this over the pin, which meant the washer would go on the end of the crankshaft, and then bolted on the Crankshaft pulley. I torqued it up to 160nm again, and refitted the serpentine belt .
I crossed my fingers, turned over the engine, and it worked!!!! I was over the moon!!! I then let the engine run for 30 minutes to make sure it would run ok and to let the Steel Seal do it thing, and then let it cool. I repeated this 5 times, and it seems to have done the job, which is great!!! There is very little white smoke (at least so far), and the car has no problem starting I am hoping that the Steel Seal has worked, and has fixed the blown head gaskets.
There are however two issues that I am now facing, one that has been present since refitting the new Crankshaft Pulley, and a new one that has just started today.
The first issue is that all of the existing pulleys (the altenator pulley, power steering pulley and water pump pulley) are all aligned, so that the belt runs smoothly between them. Strangely enough however, the new Crankshaft Pulley is out of line from the others, and sits about 1.5cm proud of the others pulley (to the left of the other pulleys, if you are facing the engine). This pulley cannot go any further to the right, because the engine block is there, so I can see no way that this pulley could ever be in line. This was the case even before I fitted the new washer, and this washer is only a few mm thick anyway, so there is no reason why his would cause such a huge difference.
As a result of this, after turning for a few minutes the serpentine belt gradually pulls to the right across the Crankshaft Pulley, and in the end is only about 3/4 on the Crankshaft Pulley, while fitting perfectly on the other pulley. The bottom line is, I have been driving the car like this for a week or so now and the serpentine belt stays in place after reaching this position, and drives all the other pulleys, so it is doing its job and is working, which is the main thing.
I cannot understand why the crankshaft pulley is so out of line however, and so would like some advice from someone with more experience as to why this might be, and if this could lead to any problems. I was thinking that perhaps the wrong crankshaft pulley has been supplied, but it does seem to fit, and appears to be the same thickness as the original part that was removed.
One other thing I was thinking is that as the Crankshaft Pulley is the part that is actually driven, and therefore under the most pressure, perhaps it might be best to fit the serpentine cable properly on the Crankshaft Pulley, and have it out of line on the other pulleys, as these are not under the same force, and so this may be better. So long as they are being driven I am thinking that there shoud be no problem. I do not know this for sure however, and would really appreciate any advice about this too from anyone with more knowledge and experience than me.
The bottom line is, at present the crankshaft pulley and serpentine belt seem to be doing there job at present, so it might be best to just leave them, but I would appreciate any advice offered.
The second issue is one that has just developed over the last few days.
I noticed that I seemed to be loosing coolant. There was white splatter over the engine and underside of the bonnet (to the left of the enging bay), which I now know to be dried engine coolant. After inverstigating further I could see a lot of green coolant in the bottom of the lefthand side engine bay (under the Serpentine Belt and pulleys), on the Serpentine Belt, splattered around the water pump, and over the altenator. Its clear that there is a coolant leak somewhere in this area. As far as I am aware (although I may be wrong) the only place coolant can be leaking from around this part of the engine is from the Water Pump if this has developed a fault, possibly from the weep hole. It seems that the water pump may be leaking, dripping coolant onto the Serpentine Belt, which is then being splattered all over the engine
If this is the case then I will have to replace the water pump. I have had alook on Google to try and find out if this is a difficult job, and to get instructions, but have had little real luck. It appears that the water pump is on the ouside of the engine, just under the water pump pulley, so I am hoping that its a quite simple job, consisting of draining the coolant, removing the serpentine belt, removing a few bolts and pulling off the existing water pump, refitting the new water pump, bolting it back together, refitting the serpentine belt, and refilling the coolant, and hopefully we should be up and running.
However I have no idea if this is the case, and have read a few things about having to remove the engine cover and doing something with the timing chain. This would be beyind my ability, so if this is the case I think I may have to give up, so I hope its not the case.
So, I would really appeciate it if anyone coud advice me as to how difficult a job this is, and if I will need to remove the engine cover and mess with the timing chain. Also if anyone could point me in the diection of any instructions (written or video) to help me with this job it would be reall appreciated.
Once again, sorry for the length of this post, but there was a lot on onfo I had to give.
Thanks in advance for any help that anyone may be able to provide.
Matt
