W203 - (271) - Where is the coolant drain plug on the crankcase?

TazCBR1100XX

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2004 C180K SE Evolution
Thanks EmilysDad - that's more or less what I was thinking. I was putting the bottom hose clip back on and the clip pinged off. Took me ages to find it as it has landed inside the radiator fan cowling - doh!

I've seen that bus before when I was in a little village out your neck of the woods. There were loads of them taking people for a ride one day when I was out on the motorbike. We get quite a few of them in our area too as we're not far from The Trolleybus Museum at Sandtoft. We also get quite a lot of old cars and motorbikes passing through our village during the summer months. I bet they don't have problems replacing coolant :D
 
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Hustler

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This is EXTREMELY frustrating :confused:

I'm unfortunate enough to have had a small plastic part break - the same one which Hustler broke, which resulted in significant coolant loss as I was driving at the time, and I had to abandon the car. Eventually I got a new part, topped up the coolant bottle with water as I had no coolant and no idea what it already had in it, and now I'm trying to get all the fluids out of the engine block before refilling with a known quantity.

I've been searching for two days to find out where the ****** coolant drain plug is, and can I buggery find it. Even more frustrating is that Hustler found it, and posted a pic, which is of absolutely no use to me whatsoever as there is no indication of where this is. Which way is the front of the engine? Which actual part of the car holds this secret location?

Being laid on my back under a car is way down my list of things I like to do - it might even be just above eating Brussels sprouts (and they will never cross my lips again). Actually, I hate sprouts, and I also hate working on cars, but on a Sunday afternoon with a trip to Birmingham on the horizon tomorrow I have no choice but to do it.

So, does anyone have some very precise instructions on how to locate this elusive coolant drain plug please? If I don't get it out by the time it starts getting low light, it will get a 50/50 mix of the new stuff, and I don't care what happens after that. The thing wants scrapping anyway.

Oh I do hate cars!


Hi Taz,

There's 2 coolant drain plugs as far as I know.
  1. On the engine block - if you're referring to the pic I uploaded on the third post with the red arrow - that plug is to the left hand side of the engine block somewhere under (or maybe around) the exhaust manifold. This is assuming you are facing the bonnet from the front of the car. It's hard to find and you'll probably need to feel it with your fingers. It's a bolt that needs an Allen key to remove.

It's not compulsory to drain from the engine block directly if you're in a rush to get on the road. I just wanted to give it a full and proper flush.​
  1. Under the radiator - I'm sure you know this one, but it's at the bottom of the radiator - bright red plastic drain plug. You'll need to remove the plastic underbody cover to get access to it. Can be seen here:
Hope that helps.
 

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