EGR cooler wet inside (pics) - is it leaking coolant, or is some wetness normal?

[Binned_it]

Hi all,

Hopefully one of the experts on here can help...

2018 150bhp manual, 58k miles. Low coolant warning, so topped it up and checking regularly, it's dropped a bit more, and no external leaks, so suspect it's going in the engine.

EGR cooler issues common, so I removed the front exhaust EGR pipe and had a look with my endoscope, and it looks quite wet, but I don't actually know what it would normally look like!...






Has anyone tried to diagnose like this, and does this look suspicious?

Bonus pic of my broken strut top mount, that I just replaced myself on the drive (easy enough DIY job, but physical, and you need a good impact gun)...

 

[Binned_it]

bump in case there's anyone online who has experience of what the inside of an EGR cooler should look like?

 

[PhillH]

I am no expert but surely that can not be right mate. If you are loosing coolant then there is a good chance that’s where it is going. Can you rig something up to pressure test it?

 

[Binned_it]

To conclude this post/issue...

I bit the bullet and bought the genuine VW cooler, bolts and gaskets (just the heat exchanger, not the EGR valve unit) £310 delivered.

Removed the old unit, separated the cooler and rigged up a bench test: it failed: it was leaking somewhere inside.

Rebuilt the EGR with the new cooler and refitted: seems fine now.

If anyone else suspects their EGR cooler failed: looking inside with a cheap endoscope is an easy way to diagnose - it shouldn't look wet.

If you are thinking of replacing it yourself: it's do-able, on the driveway, but a b*****d of a job! Took me a whole day. One particular bolt took over an hour to refit.

I didn't drain the coolant, I clamped the hoses, refilled the cooler before connecting the hoses and topped up as it bled itself while running to temp. Seems ok.

 

[PhillH]

I love a success story, well done mate