Coolant Expansion Tank

Arrived home to find coolant dripping from somewhere above the nearside tailpipe. Investigation showed that the culprit appears to be a crack in the expansion tank. Not to worry thought I, as I have an OPC extended warranty. Then came the surprise....Not covered under the warranty, Sir! I now understand that cracked expansion tanks are quite a common problem. Has anyone else suffered this, and has anyone managed to get the tank replaced under warranty?

I have now answered the first part of my question by looking back through the forum: i.e it is clearly a common problem. The second part of the question remains: Has anyone had the tank replaced under the OPC extended warranty? Thanks

Hi David This is a bit worrying, to say the least. You should email Johnny McGirl, [email removed], the PCGB 996 guy and phone Gary Sorrell, the technical support at 01223 872872 for some explanation on the matter and let us know their reasoning. Rgds I think this should be brought out of the closet and Porsche have it replaced under warranty... see http://www.porscheclubgbforum.com/tm.asp?m=136778&mpage=1&key=&#136778

This is annoying for those (me included) who have paid out for the extended warranty thinking the cooling system (and I would have assumed the expansion tank would be integral to the whole of the cooling system) is covered. RB

I had mine changed at Northway Porsche for £200 inc tank and labour just last month. Apparently EVERY 996 expansion tank is faulty and eventually cracks near the middle base. Northway do 3 every week on 996s. This problem is more common than RMS. Although Berny may have something to say about that! Simon

You're not kidding [ ][ ]

The main coolant system (which is covered) is fine, it's always the part that (coolant expansion tank) is designed badly that breaks and isn't covered under warranty. Porsche made $1billion profit last year by the way, and their customers are getting very annoyed.[ ]

How is it that this is part not covered, or do they argue failure of this component is attributable to wear and tear?[&:] I thought the warranty was bumber to bumper, no upper cost but excluding wear and tear. Obviously I thought wrong, so what's the get out bulls**te excuse with this then? Grrrrr[ ][ ][ ]

If you go to RennTech, there's a step-by-step there:- http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=8024

David That's where I would have directed you. I have the instructions in the manual, but the Renntech DIY is more useful, with pictures, etc. My only advice would be to try to lose as little coolant from the system as possible during the change. The system is a pig to bleed, so don't drain it completely - just enough to change the tank. Collect what you do drain, and use it to re-fill. If you do have to top up, use the correct Porsche coolant. Edit: There is another useful threda on Renntech here: http://www.renntech.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=11319 . Ignore the references to the secondary air pump, as UK cars don't have them.

Big thanks to Mercurial and Richard for your response. Looks like i need to put some time to one side to get this one right. Seems like a DIY job but just a bit fiddly. One thing i can't get my head around is that both links on Renn tec say that you need to drain the system from the underside of the engine. However, this would mean that the system would have to be bled. I really do wish to avoid this as if done incorrectly, could be more of a pain than the split in the tank. Can i just clamp the hose coming out of the tank and avoid bleeding? Thanks, David

The coolant tank is at the highest point in the system, so if you remove the tank cap and the drain plug, it should empty the tank first. Put the plug back in when you see the tank is empty. You could clamp the hoses on the tank, but there isn't much room in there to get the clamps on. Also, you would need a large pan to collect the coolant that comes out of the tank - it will go all over the place. I think Rodney did it himself recently - maybe he could comment?

Cheers Richard....just puts my mind at rest.[ ] David

I paid someone to do it [:-]..was a bit scared off by the many hours needed to get all the air out of the system correctly, and the risk of breaking a small part and needing to wait for a replacement putting my car out of action (and the freezing cold winter[ ]) I think it is a very possible DIY..just not for me at the time...let us know how you get on.

Ditto. In the end - since attention to other bits was required - got the indie I use to do it at the same time. Not hugely expensive, and a lot less fuss and fiddlle.