Engine gives a gurgling sound

vimuthf · January 23, 2017

Hi all,

I'm using a Peugeot 307 Manual..

Recently it started giving a gurgling sound when shifting gears in a little low RPM and when the RPM drops when braking and start accelerating.. This all started after filling up with a Lau*** petrol station..

I don't whether the fuel is the only reason here..

Really appreciate your inputs.. Have been driving this for about 1.5 years the same way.. and never had this problem in Low RPMs..

Crosswind · January 23, 2017

Check the radiator water level and let us know if its going down or whether there's any trace of oil in it.

vimuthf · January 23, 2017

The coolant level have dropped a little bit and on top there is a oily effect.. :wacko:

What could that be?

And today it seems that sometimes it happens at about 2300 RPM too..

Crosswind · January 23, 2017

Here's my line of thinking. Gurgling sound generally comes due to evaporating water. Water could evaporate due to a leak somewhere. It could be the radiator core, hoses fitted to the radiator, loose/damaged radiator cap or there's also the possibility of a leak on the head gasket. It actually happened to me once and I realised the monkey at the service station hadn't tightened the radiator cap after topping up with water.

If its the radiator cap, water level should drop drastically. If its through hoses or the core, the level of water drop would depend on the nature of the leak. Oil wouldn't seep in to the radiator in any of these cases. But the fact that you mentioned there's oil in the water suggests you might be at the early stages of a gasket leak.

Let's do one more test. Accelerate and see if you are getting whitish smoke from the exhaust.

Pls note that I can always be wrong. Pls also wait for some opinions from folks like @Rumesh88 @Davy

Rumesh88 · January 23, 2017

Well, to me it looks like what @Crosswind pointed out above as an early signs of a gasket leak. Do you find any gray color oily residue on the bottom rubber seal of the radiator cap? How about engine temperature particularly when held up in traffic on sunny days? Does the heat indicator go above half-mark on the gauge often?

This gurgling noise that you mentioned is a bit subjective - is it more like a engine knock when ignition is too advanced? BTW do you know when the timing belt was last changed?

Davy · January 24, 2017

I wonder if OP is referring to pre ignition sound as "gurgling sound". While in complete agreement with all responses above which seem to have lead to the discovery of a possible head gasket leak, OP might be referring to pre ignition because the sound is heard when shifting gears at a "lower RPM".

So, in addition to the questions asked by @Rumesh88 above, I have the following. This is just to eliminate the possibility of pre ignition being described as "gurgling sound".

1. Does this mean you can control the sound being heard if you shift at a higher RPM than normal?

2. Can you replicate the sound when the car is stationary and when in neutral while the engine has reached operating temperature? If it's actually related to a gasket leak, I assume it should still be heard whereas pre-ignition sound is mostly heard under load.

Edited January 24, 2017 by Davy
Corrected typo

Twin Turbo · January 24, 2017

On 1/23/2017 at 7:58 AM, vimuthf said:

The coolant level have dropped a little bit and on top there is a oily effect..

What could that be?

And today it seems that sometimes it happens at about 2300 RPM too..

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Your symptoms indicate to a possible breached head gasket.Stop driving it and get a pro to look at it.

And the expansion tank should not be filled to the brim.

Edited January 31, 2017 by Twin Turbo

vimuthf · January 24, 2017

Thank you all for the responses..

@Crosswind I did the acceleration test and there was no whitish smoke at all..

@Rumesh88 it doesn't have the usual radiator cap.. Internet says it a pressurized system and the reservoir cap is the only cap and there was no gray residue in it.. after this issue came I haven't drove in heavy traffic yet.. up to now no overheating above the half mark.. and no idea about the timing belt though :wacko:

@Davy it is not just the sound.. there is a vibrating effect in the whole chassis, as if the RPM is very low in a specific gear.. I don't know whether you get what i am saying.. No problem when it's stationary.. there is a delay in throttle response though.. when stationary, sudden acceleration have a delayed response.

vimuthf · January 24, 2017

@Twin Turbo Should go.. pretty busy these days.. will have to go all the way to Malabe from Moratuwa

vimuthf · January 30, 2017

Hi everyone.. thank you all for your responses..

I pumped up 95 octane twice within the last few days and the issue was quite ok, but trouble was there once in a while after the engine heats up.. for safety I went to Thro** today and got it checked.. Couldn't exactly come up with a solution as the engine miss was happening only once in a while.. So did a tune up by cleaning the injectors and replacing the spark plugs.. Up to now the issue has been sorted..

Appreciate everyones responses on this post :wub: thank you very much..

Davy · January 30, 2017

On 1/30/2017 at 7:27 PM, vimuthf said:

Hi everyone.. thank you all for your responses..

I pumped up 95 octane twice within the last few days and the issue was quite ok, but trouble was there once in a while after the engine heats up.. for safety I went to Thro** today and got it checked.. Couldn't exactly come up with a solution as the engine miss was happening only once in a while.. So did a tune up by cleaning the injectors and replacing the spark plugs.. Up to now the issue has been sorted..

Appreciate everyones responses on this post thank you very much..

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So is it correct to assume that the "gurgling sound" was in fact pre-ignition?

Jor-el · January 31, 2017

On 1/30/2017 at 10:46 PM, Davy said:

So is it correct to assume that the "gurgling sound" was in fact pre-ignition?

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Good to be sure there IS a difference between octane 92 and 95 in Sri Lanka with all the scamming going on at fuel stations I was in the opinion that the only difference between octane 92 and 95 in Sri Lanka is the fuel dispenser and the price

Crosswind · January 31, 2017

@vimuthf Definitely pre-ignition knock. Good to know its sorted out. You have signs of gasket leak so don't ignore that,

Rumesh88 · January 31, 2017

On 1/31/2017 at 1:05 AM, Crosswind said:

@vimuthf Definitely pre-ignition knock. Good to know its sorted out. You have signs of gasket leak so don't ignore that,

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...and the timing belt too!