K Seal

[backtothe80s]

Against my own advice for years I've just popped some kseal in the v70 to cure a radiator leak...Temporarily.

I can report it actually worked, no running issues and everything has returned to normal!

I wasnt keen on the idea but due to other more safety related repairs required, I chose the kseal option as a temporary fix..

Just thought I'd share the positive results.

[winchman]

Two days before a big trip to Cornwall my Bongo had a small leak, Local motor factor recommended K seal, put it in as per the instruction, still fine two years later, I can't fault it and would use it again.

[backtothe80s]

Winchman, did you leave it in?

[giuliettaevo]

Temporary solution for a leaking radiator is to put an egg in it. The eggwhite is enough.

Works perfect 👌

[comfortablynumb]

Had a p38 with the bmw 6 pot diesel, used a bit of water from the day I bought it at 198k, dropped some k seal in and it didn’t use a drop until I blew it up at about 215k six months later
Not sure if that’s a recommendation or not? 🤔

[welshpug]

quick, time to sell it!!

[ferny]

When I did the herald engine conversion I was drilling holes through the fan shroud for clips to hold it. In my infinite genius I was using the radiator as a support. You can guess the inevitable outcome when drilling the final hole. I smashed a load of chemical metal into the new drain hole half way up the core.

I also forced an extra o-ring on the end of a coolant pipe after the original one leaked and I didn't have a replacement of the correct size.

Four years later and I really should sort out those temporary fixes. The trouble is, I only tend to remember to fix them at a time when I either really need the car not to break down and/or I'm not able to do anything about it!

[dazcapri]

I boiled my Honda Prelude engine on the motorway ended up with 2 bottles in it,never used a drop of water in the next 6 months until it went to the scrappy

[kevins]

Used it when the rad on my range rover started weeping after fitting the A/C condensor, that was 2 yesrs ago still bone dry.

An AA patrolman told me they use it and it's amazing the size of leak it will stop.

[gtviva]

Another vote for K seal, used it in my daily smoker when the rad started to weep, its an auto so the rad was going to be over the £100 mark and the car only cost £500, that was 5 years ago and were still good!

They do do 2 types and Ive only used the standard version which looks like very fine copper flakes in it, I believe but may well be wrong that the other version is some kind of ceramic stuff that does set hard if it gets in the wrong places

[goldnrust]

I'd only ever really heard bad things about K-seal. But when I was faced with a rotary engine with a water seal issue, kinda equivalent of head gasket failure, I thought it couldn't do any harm to try. It worked great, and I was able to drive the car around for a few weeks.

The peer pressure from people that my engine was going to get clogged up with curse word and t drain the coolant and flush it through was pretty intense though, and I ended up doing just that. The water seal leak came about about a week later and I ended up pulling the engine. I can report no big clogs in it, and to be honest I wish I'd just left the K seal in and kept driving a bit longer!

Like all these products, I think it's all about using it properly for the right reasons. If you dump a couple of bottles into a dirty old cooling system, and then a different brand of radiator seal in there in a years time etc, then it's pretty likely to cause some problems! Equally correctly used in a clean fresh cooling system and then changing the coolant at the right interval, and I suspect it would do the job they say it does.

[homersimpson]

I've not used it but know a few people who have and have had positive experiences, I think its worth trying especially if the car isn't worth fixing and its that or the scrap yard.

[time]

I used K seal in my 4.0 Jeep Cherokee when my radiator had split.
I ordered a new rad but there was a 1 week lead time, so I put k seal in to tide me over as I needed the car due to heavy snow, it worked fantastic stopping the leak the only downside was it made the heater blow cold.
I fitted a new heater matrix a month later which Fixed the heating issue

[wildy]

I used it on a Mondeo with a cracked cylinder head. Lasted two years that I know of. The key is to follow the instructions to the letter.

[winchman]

Jun 10, 2020 16:29:34 GMT backtothe80s said:

Winchman, did you leave it in?

Yes I think thats what you are supposed to do?

[rapidyellow]

where a leak is water to atmosphere its good stuff and works well

its no good for a head gasket problem like they advertise, ok it might be for a few miles to get you home, but thats it

its a handy liquid to have in the boot for an old car.

[ChasR]

Given that I had the worst Mondeo ever thanks to the Cretin who put it in previously thinking it was brilliant I can't recommend it.

That car over 3 years and 100k cost me:

-Another engine
-Differing water hoses due to botching
-A near useless radiator until I changed it. From running at 100 degrees C all of the time, even during the summer, it then ran cool
-Most of the cooling system and blocked hoses which gave very strange symptoms ; bleeding for example was always a pain until the hoses were changed.

For the first 3 months we had it, it was fine.

The 2nd V6 we had, we never put it in. Over similar use and mileage, we didn't have half of the issues that the first bodged K-Seal Piece of sh!t had. Yes, I came to detest that car. When you begin to hope you won't have to work on your daily driver every other weekend, and feel bad for selling it on as you know it's not trustworthy, you soon begin to lose the faith. I know others don't give a curse word about ripping others off, but I do.

On the 944, it cost that car 2 engines (yup; I fitted engine no. 3 @ £750 an engine after months and months of trying to find a cheap engine ; it scored a bore very badly due to being run hot for a long time; the water didn't boil but close clearances and excess heat over a long time don't help) ; At £1k an engine, you don't realy do temporary fixes. All becuase the heater matrix was leaking, and they are a royal ballache to change in those.

Sorry, I can't recommend it, even as a temporary fix. People like me are the stupid idiots who buy cars off the guys saying "it's ran fine for years ; K-Seal's better than the Virgin Mary'!

If the car's going to be scrapped afterwards, fair enough.

[llwynogmon]

I have used similar products in the past, mostly as a get you home measure.
A friend of mine used to race motorbikes and I would tag along to help, admittedly this was a good few years ago, but alloy bike radiators were occasionally punctured by small stones, the hot tip then, was to mix up some 5 minute epoxy (Araldite or similar), apply to the rad core at the point of the leak and either let gravity draw the epoxy through the core or use a drinking straw to push or blow the epoxy through the core. It may not look very good but it worked, and could also be used for other get you home bodges.

[steveo3002]

Jun 14, 2020 21:57:22 GMT llwynogmon said:

I have used similar products in the past, mostly as a get you home measure.
A friend of mine used to race motorbikes and I would tag along to help, admittedly this was a good few years ago, but alloy bike radiators were occasionally punctured by small stones, the hot tip then, was to mix up some 5 minute epoxy (Araldite or similar), apply to the rad core at the point of the leak and either let gravity draw the epoxy through the core or use a drinking straw to push or blow the epoxy through the core. It may not look very good but it worked, and could also be used for other get you home bodges.

cracked my rad once out n about , limped to a petty station and bought a tin of body filler , mixed up a good dollop and shoved that into the leak , worked great and something thats avail at most garages etc

[qwerty]

I've used both K Seal and Steel Seal and both have kept the cars (both Vag 1.9tdi's) going for at least another 40k that I know of.

Tom