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How to bleed coolant?

Tiny
BHAMDOC1973
  • MEMBER
  • 2012 LAND ROVER RANGE ROVER
  • V8
  • 4WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 128,000 MILES
Replaced thermostat and the coolant flange under the intake. No heat yet so I assume it needs to be bled. How to go about doing it on this car?
Tuesday, November 19th, 2024 AT 7:07 PM

67 Replies

Tiny
AL514
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Hello, did you drain the entire system or just partially? These vehicles have a lot of smaller coolant hoses running all over the place, the best method is to Vacuum fill the system, it works really well. Along with checking for any leaks while under a vacuum for 2min or so. I know you work on a lot of vehicles, so it's worth the investment to buy one of these vacuum setups, they actually doesn't cost much, it pulls all the air out, and refills the system in about 5 mins, and you're done. Really great.
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Wednesday, November 20th, 2024 AT 10:38 AM
Tiny
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Ya thought about it, I just don't know what to buy. I have a kit that installs with a cap that tightens on top of the coolant expansion tank which tests for pressure. I doubt this is the vacuum one you are talking about.
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Wednesday, November 20th, 2024 AT 10:41 AM
Tiny
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There are instructions here for a system that was only partially drained and I'll post those so you can try that method as well.
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Wednesday, November 20th, 2024 AT 10:42 AM
Tiny
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For a partially filled system service info wants you to fill it until it comes out the bleeder port. Here is the steps for that section, I will post a picture of the vacuum bleeder system, it uses shop air hook up, and a hose that goes into the coolant so when you're done with the vacuum hold for 2 minutes as a leak test, it will draw the coolant right into the system using the vacuum its already under. When you use it once you'll never go back to filling it any other way.
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Wednesday, November 20th, 2024 AT 11:00 AM
Tiny
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But it almost sounds like there might be combustion gases pushing the coolant out, have you run a head gasket test on this thing?
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Wednesday, November 20th, 2024 AT 11:02 AM
Tiny
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This is the harbor freight version, I've actually used this one too and it works really well, I was surprised coming from HF.
I've had vehicles with head gasket issues that never over heated but would shoot the coolant out of the radiator like a volcano. But with a lot of air pockets stuck in various places, using the vacuum method is really the best and it's what service info recommends as well.
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Wednesday, November 20th, 2024 AT 11:10 AM
Tiny
BHAMDOC1973
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It does not smoke or overheat. We replaced the coolant flange pipe under the intake as it was leaking. Before that I did the thermostat. Bottom radiator hose doesn't get very hot. I did get some heat from vents for 3-4 seconds once. Now it's just 2 out of 10 as far as the heat is getting. The coolant boils with bubbles and no sign of a head gasket. I will run one once I get the vacuum pump.
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Wednesday, November 20th, 2024 AT 11:12 AM
Tiny
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Refresh this page, I added to my last posting.
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Wednesday, November 20th, 2024 AT 11:13 AM
Tiny
BHAMDOC1973
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So, the lower radiator hose is still cold. I used the tool I bought to bleed it and got a bit of heat. But the temperature needle stays in the middle but the scanner showing it to go above 230F. Fan kicks on and goes high. So am thinking maybe the thermostat is defective, which is the one I bought from Amazon. Is it possible to remove just the thermostat from the assembly to see if water will circulate? Or does the whole assembly need to be changed and it's part of it? Rear pipes get hot as far as heater pipes. Top radiator hose is hot but it's not very hard indicating anything.
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Friday, November 22nd, 2024 AT 7:49 AM
Tiny
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I would avoid Amazon parts in all situations, almost all of them are knock-offs. Use rockauto com for parts, they have different brands and some OEMs as well, but thermostat spec is (Begins to open at 190-194f and is fully open at 216f) I will post a diagram of thermostat housing. Does this vehicle have a supercharger (turbo) of any kind?
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Friday, November 22nd, 2024 AT 8:15 AM
Tiny
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Heres the thermostat and the cooling system for a non turbo.
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Friday, November 22nd, 2024 AT 8:33 AM
Tiny
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You should check that you have good flow through the radiator, maybe just try running water through it alone, and make sure there's no build in it, but you're probably correct on the thermostat, it's not a part you want failing or not functioning correctly.
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Friday, November 22nd, 2024 AT 8:39 AM
Tiny
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Even with the thermostat off the hose on top of the thermostat housing gets hot, the bottom one stays cold and temperature via scanner shows to go above 225, so I turned it off. Next thing is removing the bottom radiator hose and run the water through it. I found a few pieces of plastic came out the corkscrew left over from the coolant flange that broke earlier which we had to remove the pieces with a spoon. But I am hoping this isn't a head gasket. Pressure not holding cause there is a small hose which goes into the throttle body that broke so we just plugged it for now.
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Saturday, November 23rd, 2024 AT 9:17 AM
Tiny
BHAMDOC1973
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This is the hose so when I was putting pressure in the system I saw a few drops and heard a noise from it, so we removed it and plugged it for now. So, I can't even do a pressure test until I get a new hose.
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Saturday, November 23rd, 2024 AT 9:20 AM
Tiny
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Temperature needle on gauge stays in middle but via scanner goes more than it should.
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Saturday, November 23rd, 2024 AT 9:53 AM
Tiny
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Try doing the chemical head gasket test, its cheap enough, and that will give you an idea of if its combustion gases causing the issues or something else. If you have a borescope where you can look into the cylinders with the plugs out, you can check for coolant getting into the cylinders while pressure testing. So thats another way to check, I would do both of those tests, I look into cylinders all the time for various reasons, I like to visually see whats happening if possible.
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Sunday, November 24th, 2024 AT 10:13 AM
Tiny
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Hmm, what is the chemical test? I can probably do the plugs test even though some of these cars are pain to remive all the plugs but its doable.
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Sunday, November 24th, 2024 AT 11:34 AM
Tiny
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This is the chemical test, you should be able to get it at any AutoZone, Advance Auto, etc. Basically, the liquid will change colors if combustion gases are coming out of the radiator or cooling system opening. It's pretty cheap too. We used to use a gas analyzer to check for hydrocarbons and such at the radiator opening, but not many shops have them anymore.
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Sunday, November 24th, 2024 AT 11:51 AM
Tiny
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But will this help me determine head gasket issue or just leaks in the cooling system?
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Sunday, November 24th, 2024 AT 11:52 AM
Tiny
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But I need to fix the small hose first before I do that too.
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Sunday, November 24th, 2024 AT 12:16 PM

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