possible blown head gasket??? Options

[ian0490]

I got a 94 gt with about 160k on it. Started over getting on me. Looked into the thermostat and it tested fine. No leakage on the floor on the passenger side and no sweet smell in the vents, so probably not the heater core. Before i go into the water pump or the head gasket, i want to check if I'm right. When i emptied out the radiator, the water in it is oily brown looking. Im assuming the oil is mixing in with the water. I haven't dumped out the oil in the pan yet but when i looked at the oil cap it had slimy white gunk on the inside. I'd it safe to say it's the head gasket or am i over looking something?? I'll include pics similar to what it looks like.

[eMrock32]

Possible cracked head too. Do a block test and it will give you answers. Coolant turns oily brown when its old, but white buildup on a dipstick CAN be a head gasket. Also could be moisture in the crankcase. There needs to be a decent amount to consider head gasket.

Do you have a pic of the dipstick?

[Bitter]

Just nasty brown could be full of rust, put some in a jar and see if it separates out to oil and water or the rust just settles out.

BTW, nice photo of a Porsche Boxster fluid service area.

[ian0490]

I got a 94 gt with about 160k on it. Started over getting on me. Looked into the thermostat and it tested fine. No leakage on the floor on the passenger side and no sweet smell in the vents, so probably not the heater core. Before i go into the water pump or the head gasket, i want to check if I'm right. When i emptied out the radiator, the water in it is oily brown looking. Im assuming the oil is mixing in with the water. I haven't dumped out the oil in the pan yet but when i looked at the oil cap it had slimy white gunk on the inside. I'd it safe to say it's the head gasket or am i over looking something?? I'll include pics similar to what it looks like.




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[ian0490]

Updated it with an image of what the oil cap looks like. Read that it could be just condesation from water in the engine but since I used water int the radiator, can this be the same as "coolant mixing with the oil" in the case?? These are generic images as I dont have a good camera.

Dip stick looks clean though. I will empty the oil pan tonight to see if anything is milky in the oil.

If is is rust, how can I clean that out? And if only rust, would that cause overheating?

This post has been edited by ian0490: Mar 5, 2014 - 10:59 AM

[ian0490]

Also just changed the radiator so I assume if it is rust that the internals of the engine are rusty or just dirty left over water from the engine??

[eMrock32]

Also just changed the radiator so I assume if it is rust that the internals of the engine are rusty or just dirty left over water from the engine??

Adding to much water vs coolant, or running the car for a long period of time with the same coolant could create rust. The first one explains itself but letting the car run on the same coolant for a long period of time, the coolant will break down and basically turn into water. The minerals and additives will break down and finally be non existent. I usually change my coolant every year. You won't have to change your thermostat or hoses more often if you keep up on it.

Change the oil and if coolant starts gushing out, or milky tan cones out (anything more than a smidge) you definitely have a bad head gasket. A block test will verify.

Your fans kick on before the car starts overheating?

[Special_Edy]

Also just changed the radiator so I assume if it is rust that the internals of the engine are rusty or just dirty left over water from the engine??

The engine block is the only iron component of your engine that touches coolant so there for its the only part that can rust. Everything else is alluminum.


Milky oil is caused by a blown headgasket though there is a slight chance of a small amount of condensation in the engine depending on the weather.