How bad is this... (1 Viewer)

[AZcruiser]

I noticed this rust colored film on top when the oil was just about out. It dissolved about 10 minutes later. Is this a sign of a leaking head gasket? :-\ :-\

It has about 130k and using valvoline multiblend and Toyota filter.

Chris

 

[cruiserdan]

If it "dissolved" it is likely water and actually sank to the bottom of the pan as oil is lighter. I suggest you carefully pour out the pan into another container and watch for that stuff in the bottom. Another possibility is it is something that was in the drain pan before you started. Did you start with a clean pan? IF so I recommend you send a sample out to be tested, you may have a problem on your hands.

D-

 

[landtank]

I don't know for sure. But I did come up with a proctologist check for the gasket possibly. On the 2 gaskets (mine and Lars) the gasket deformed at cylinder #6 on the exhaust side of the motor. My thought was to reach around the back of the motor and feel at the seam of the head and block for a "LUMP" in the gasket sticking out past the block and head. You would probably need to remove the rear hoist mount on the head to fit your hand in. I haven't tried this as of yet to see what a fresh gasket feels like but if this is something your interested in checking out I can do this tomorrow.

 

[Lars]

Interesting. Just curious... did you drain it while the motor was hot or cold?


Here is to hoping you dont join the HG club.

 

[AZcruiser]

1. I drained it first thing in the morning so the engine was cool.
2. I used the same old plastic pan and I dont bother wiping it out after each change
3. I drained slow into a 5 gallon painters bucket for it to be taken to a Checker auto store, nothing unusual as I was draining it.
4. When starting and idling for a few minutes to check for leaks, I did notice the exhaust from pipe, it wasent "white" but could see some billowing. I am in AZ and its about 70deg so its not cold.
5. I will check for the lump, an let you know

Thanks
Chris

 

[Lars]

My exhaust didnt start off as clearly "white" and it didnt last long at first, but a week or two later it became more and more obvious until finally there was no mistaking what I was seeing.

I would keep an eye on your coolant level in both the radiator and the overflow tank.

When I first had a hint of a HG going bad, I lifted the cap off the overflow tank just slightly and could see bubbles slowly coming from the hose in the tank while the motor was running.

Good luck,
Larry

 

[AZcruiser]

Lars,

I see your in Phx too. My next job was complete flush hasent been done in 2 years, so maybe theres a connection.
What do you mean by bubbles in the hose, are you meaning bubbles in the resevoir tank?
So did you have a bad HG? If you did, did you do the job or have it done?

Chris

 

[LINUS]

Don't know about your climate much, but in WA you can get some condensation in your oil if you make a lot of short trips in the winter - enough so that you can find a good bit of moisture under your valve cover and in the oilcap. You might be seeing that if you're having a lot of cold evenings and a lot of short trips.

However, that did look to be a bit more than I've seen when draining the oil around here. You might be in the same boat as me with a blown headgasket - was it clear (condensation) or about the same color as whatever flavor antifreeze you run?

 

[AZcruiser]

Only thing that comes to mind with water is we had alot of rain the past 2 days. I was out wheeling in some mud with a co-worker and his Disco yesterday after work. We did go through some deep water areas/ditches 2-3ft to get across,etc,etc. I did notice the engine hesitating a few times but burned through it after a few minutes so water did get into the throttle area.
A connection to rust colored oil??

Chris

 

[Lars]

[quote author=AZcruiser link=board=2;threadid=14182;start=msg132265#msg132265 date=1081039199]
Lars,

What do you mean by bubbles in the hose, are you meaning bubbles in the resevoir tank?
So did you have a bad HG? If you did, did you do the job or have it done?

Chris
[/quote]

Yes, bubbles coming from the hose while it is still submerged in the overflow bottle.

I indeed had a bad head gasket. I did the job myself with the help of a friend who is a mechanic. Just finished it up last weekend.

 

[landtoy80]

What color is your radiator coolant, green or red/orange?

 

[landtank]

I've been at a 40th birthday party all night so for give me but enough dancing around the mullberrybush, we're all thinking the same thing here aren't we?

 

[landtoy80]

I don't know if it would work or not...?
Add that leak dye, that you add to the coolant and use a black light to see the leak, to your coolant and drive for a couple hundred miles and change your oil. Check the oil with the black light.

Would the dye show up in the oil?

 

[AZcruiser]

1. The color of the coolant is greenish
2. The overflow tank was near empty so I added some water to see if bubbles were emerging, no bubbles that I could see.

The plan is to do a system flush on Friday, it was next months maintance job anyway.

Chris

 

[Lars]

[quote author=AZcruiser link=board=2;threadid=14182;start=msg132685#msg132685 date=1081116760]
1. The color of the coolant is greenish
2. The overflow tank was near empty so I added some water to see if bubbles were emerging, no bubbles that I could see.

The plan is to do a system flush on Friday, it was next months maintance job anyway.

Chris
[/quote]

My overflow coolant would dissappear overnight. Keep an eye on yours after the vehicle has been ran at operating temperature and allowed to cool off.


Has your 80 sat for an extended period recently?

 

[landtank]

I would think that it would be better to look for bubbles with the rad cap off. That way you should be able to watch the flow and see any small bubles that come up. Looking in the recovery tank won't show this.

 

[PHAEDRUS]

Dang Linus sorry to hear about your block,
when are you going to rectify this one??
Dave

 

[landtank]

Don't know why this response came in to my head this late in the game. Thought what you might have seen is Power steering fluid. The pump can leak into the engine and the color might be close as well as it would mix in and kind of disappear.

Thought I'd post it in case you didn't come to any conclusions yet and maybe another thing to check.

 

[floatinghat]

I noticed bubbles on my dip stick and after my first M1 oil change (10-30). I check the oil regularly (doesn't burn any) and have not noticd this again. I believe it was a random atmospheric occurance. I'll be up for another oil change in the next couple of weeks and this is something I will pay close attention to investigate. I'll also chech the HG bump (don't want to touch anything "bulging").

 

[LINUS]

[quote author=Phaedrus link=board=2;threadid=14182;start=msg133063#msg133063 date=1081181295]
Dang Linus sorry to hear about your block,
when are you going to rectify this one??
Dave
[/quote]

I quit my shi++y rotating shift job this Friday (waaay too much overtime and rotating shifts are stupid combo), so I'll be a Mon-Fri worker like everybody else after that. Truth be known C-Dan all ready sent me all my new parts and I just need to get in there and tear the head off and such. I'm thinking I'll get the head off the 1st weekend in May - go from there I guess.