Coolant leaking from head bolt.

[DanHoug]

the nut land must be dry, otherwise the sealant doesn't 'smear' properly leaving gaps. so only drain down until the seepage stops and then wipe it dry. a clever person might apply slight vacuum to the system to keep the air flowing into the block from around the stud, maybe enough to dry and install.
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-dan
60% of what you find on the internet is wrong, including this post.

'87 Westy & '89 Westy both 2.1 4spd

Past projects can be found at--
www.thefixitworkshop.com

[westina]

[westina]

[DanHoug]

i've been dissatisfied with the yellow Reinz goo that comes with the gaskets... when i've gone back into heads i used it on, it was dried and breaks off in chunks, tho the nuts were not leaking.

i've gone to using Curil T. it is a green goo that remains plastic, absorbing thermal expansion and contractions without cracking or tearing. my head nut drill is to true the bottom surface of the nut using fine wet sandpaper on a flat granite slab, lube the stud threads with moly anti-seize, and use the Curil T.

Ben has great success with The Right Stuff, which is an RTV compound that will cure to a resilient but non-plastic state. i don't believe this as closely matches the design intent of the yellow goo but it works very successfully so it can't be argued it is wrong.

i like to do another re-torque on a new head several hours after the head is initially torqued. seems the nuts are quite loose after things rest/compress a while. in theory, the Curil T would withstand this retorque better that an RTV but only the outer skin of RTV would have cured in that time frame, and the sealing occurs under the nut so i think TRS can withstand a retorque if done within several hours.
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-dan
60% of what you find on the internet is wrong, including this post.

'87 Westy & '89 Westy both 2.1 4spd

Past projects can be found at--
www.thefixitworkshop.com

[Abscate]

[jlrftype7]

[westina]

[Igeo]

I know you've already chosen, but Dirko Grey is an excellent product. It has a longer skin time that most.

https://gzhls.at/blob/ldb/c/7/e/4/0d1d4076c0eaa596b8835735b5f5aa6d9159.pdf
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1987 Westfalia 2.1 WBX Manual

[westina]

I bought the victor reinz product. I have to wait for it to be shipped.

[The Carrot]

I used right stuff when I did the head reseal on my motor. The sealing surfaces of the Nuts were flattened on a knife sharpening stone. No leaks so far.

This sealing junction amazes me, it seems like it should need more than just a thin film of sealing compound to do the job. I wondered about adding extra sealant around the threads of the head stud where it passes through the head to create more of a plug below the base of the nut. In the end I followed factory procedure and as mentioned, no leaks so far.

If I did this again, I would be tempted to use a sealant with more “open time” than the right stuff because torquing the head Nuts takes a bit of time and I worried about the sealant hardening while torquing.
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1990 Orly Blue Carat

[mikemtnbike]

I'd trust ben that'd it work on the cap nuts.

tencentlife has recently posted about using this instead of the yellow sealant that comes in the gasket kit.

https://www.amazon.com/VICTOR-REINZ-Sealing-Compound-003989982010/dp/B00O35STTC
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1991 Vanagon GL 2.1 AT Westfauxlia. "Frankie" Totaled https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=764510&highlight=carnage
1995 Eurovan Camper "Marzivan"
2020 GTI SE manual

[westina]

[westina]

[mikemtnbike]

Would the Right Stuff work as a sealant in this application? That'd be available from a FLAPS.

That's good to know that was the factory fix, Mark- thanks as always for sharing your experience.

OP, doing it this way will most likely fix this leak, agreed- my suggestion is an "ounce of prevention worth a pound of cure" kind of thing.
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1991 Vanagon GL 2.1 AT Westfauxlia. "Frankie" Totaled https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=764510&highlight=carnage
1995 Eurovan Camper "Marzivan"
2020 GTI SE manual

[MarkWard]

I worked for VW when Vanagons were new. Under warranty we were seeing leaking head nuts. The factory fix was to remove one at a time, clean the cap nut and the sealing surface on the head, and reinstall to proper torque. VW supplied their sealer.

So you are on the right track. I don’t know that you could find a sealer at the local auto parts place. VW, Honda, Toyota, and Nissan have some really good sealers, that should work.
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☮️

[mikemtnbike]

This is my opinion only.

The head nut leaking is not necessarily a simple remove apply sealant bolt down situation. Furthermore it is likely indicative of other stuff needing refreshing and you said you’re in the middle of renewing the van- meaning I assume you don’t need it for travel soon.

I’d go ahead and pull the motor, buy the reinz gasket kit, pull the heads and do a “basic” reseal. It’s not that hard or expensive,you’ll learn what literally everything thing is and where it goes, and it’ll be done.

Also you have to use an old school beam style torque wrench on the head nuts. You have to be able to lean into the sealant/ head stud flex combo (that’s how I describe it read up more if you want more explanation).
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1991 Vanagon GL 2.1 AT Westfauxlia. "Frankie" Totaled https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=764510&highlight=carnage
1995 Eurovan Camper "Marzivan"
2020 GTI SE manual

[westina]

Hi. I have been reviving this 84 1.9WBX manual. About 109k on the clock. There are some running issues. Cooling system needs some work etc.

Today i noticed the slight coolant leak from one of the bolts. Its the one near the thermostat next to the spark plug on the driver side.
I figured, i may just apply a bit more torque and leak would stop. It did not. Then i decided to learn a bit more before i try something else and cause a major screw up.
Looking at the diagram on bentley page 15.22, it looks like number 5 stud.
It appears that it is normal for coolant to leak from there , if the nut is not sealed right. I am asking this because with my limited knowledge, i first thought its a sign for dooms day and there should be no coolant there but i guess studs are swimming in coolant so its normal.
Now, the solution....
I am thinking about removing the cap nut. For this, should i use regular bolt removing techniques, such as lots of lubrication, some heat perhaps?. The cap nut is moving but making sure if he decides to get stubborn.
After the removal of the cap nut(if i can succesfully do it) how can we achieve secure sealing? It appears that we need a sealing compound. Is it something i can buy off the shelf from auto stores like autozone and such or is it something needs to ordered via internet?
If all that sounds good, i would put my digital torque wrench in action and torque to the specs and hope that the leak would stop. What do you guys/gals think?
Also, i have read that it is a common spot to have a crack. It looks like there is no crack but i ll further investigate(probably i need to get one of those telescopic mirror tool). Once the cap nut is removed i should be clearly see it if there is any crack developed.