NOTE: IS GUIDE IS FOR A MANUAL IF YOU OWN AN AUTOMATIC IT WILL DIFFER SLIGHTLY

engine cooling is very important no matter what you drive, power output,
turbo or NA, it doesent matter
if an engine is running hot this can lead to big problems such as a blown head gasket, head warping, and in some cases unusal wear of parts due to oil becoming to thin and not lubricating propertly

so how do we prevent this from happening
well MOST!!! overheating problems can be solved by a good radiator flush
but a lot of people do not worry about it when it should be done with normal porper maintence

Time Taken: about 1.5/2 hours

tools needed:
big philps and flathead screw driver
10mm spanner
washing up tub
new bottle of bottle of coolant ( with antifreeze and antiboil) DO NOT GO
CHEAP!!! it is normaly bad and corrsive. also do not mix coolant
distilled water
and a garden hose

so lets get started
warm the engine up to warm not hot, warm this loosens up piping and joints, then remove the remove the radiator cap with a rag to relief pressure there shouldnt be to much if it is warm

now put your trolley jack or scissor jack under the front of the car
and place it infront of the two rubber mounts of the engine brace/ latce under the engine and get the sucker into the air

now unscrew the 4 10mm bolts holding the braces onto the top of the radiator
if your car is still running the air heating pipe adajcent to the raditor
remove this aswell

get a washing up tub and place it just below the bottom hose on the left side. gradually loosen the the screw clamp holding the pipe on and let it dribble out into the tub. undo when ready and all of the old coolant should pour out. as it is doing this i give ita wriggle every few minutes just to make sure it is all coming out. when all the coolant is out you throw it away and because we are replacing it

now undo the screw clamp holding the top pipe on and move it to one side, unclamp the connecter for the themo fan then undo the 4 ten mm bolts holding it on to the radiator in each corner. pull the fan out, be ware this might need some techinque to get it out. make sure you do not grind it against the the fins of the radiator. this is a good time to take the to clean the fan and spray it with tyre shine or silicon spray so it repels dirt for the next time

with the fan removed. take off the run tank pipe and lift the radiator out of its rubber seats flip it upside down and lean it against a building that easly in reach of the garden hose. This is a good time to inspect all the hoses and mountings for any wear and replace them if needed

drag the hose over to the radiator and ram it into the top ( which is actually the bottom)hole. remove all the screw plugs on the bottom. turn the hose on fast but not to fast to damage anything inside and flush it for about ten minutes. The reason to flush it backwards is because the coolant flows normally one way is this is changed more of the containments are going to be picked and removed that are normally caked on. after ten minutes remove the hose and set it to a finer spray.
spray the fins of the radiator to remove debris and every few minutes hold it up to light and scan in between the fins to see if they are nice and clear. if there is any thing leftover spray again.

after this let it dry out. while this is happening make yourselve anew batch of coolant with the pure coolant and distilled water

install everything backwards making sure to plug everything back in and all is nice and tight. fill up the radiator with the new coolant till it almost over flows. leave the cap off and run the engine till it sucks back thru ( coolant level will drop suddenly). top up both the radiator and run off tank fill level. double check everything is tight and your you are good to go.

sorry about no pics couldnt find the camera cable. but i will put them up when i get the chance. if i have left out something feel free to throw it in
if you liked it i will throw up some more guides for other things so please comment or ask me and i walk you thru any problems you have
PS: i do believe this is near identical to the BA but thats up to yous to find out

hope you found it helpfull

cheers kane

Oh and i forgot to add i would recommond this every oil change or second oil change
just to keep things clean and fresh

Hey did you ever find your camera cable? I'm thinking of attempting this but am a bit of a noob :S

opened the coolant reservoir on my new car and it's like rough cider in there i.e. dark orange and very cloudy!

thanks for the guide

yeah i did find the cable but i never could be stuffed to take apart radiator again and take pics
as im now selling my BG i dont think i will
sorry man
its pretty easy to do tho just read it thru and follow as closely as possible
if u have any questions im more than happy to answer them

Ok mate, no worries... i may well take you up on the offer of advice if i get in trouble though

I might even take a few pictures while i'm doing it, and could add them to this guide if you don't mind?

go ahead
guide probs could do with some pics

take your time and dont damage anything and you should be sweet
i would give your over flow tank a good clean out as well
saves all the gunk going back thru

post up how you go as well