2007-09-17 10:52:31 · 9 answers · asked by sharifjunaid 3 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
Oil in the water. Water in the oil. Oil leakage. Bubbling coolant when it's not that hot. (exhaust gas in the coolant). Water in the cylinders. High coolant usage with no apparent leaks. Your spouse telling you that the car ran out of water three days ago and they forgot to tell you. Stuff like that.
2007-09-17 10:59:19 · answer #1 · answered by Nomadd 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Nomadd has few things covered, mostly water in the oil. The oil will get a tan color to it, much lighter than regular oil. It will also be a bit "foamy". (Sorry, best word I can think of.) You will run hotter than normal, and may go through more than the usual amount of oil. Gas mileage will also go in the toilet.
If you are getting a "popping" noise that you have not heard before, that is also a sign. The head gasket went on my '73 Ford Torino, and it began by making a sound like a pop corn popper, speeding up and slowing down with engine speed. It finally went completely, and sounded like a machine gun! (That was with the 351 Modified Cleveland engine. A small engine may not make much noise.)
A mechanic's stethascope, available at most auto parts stores, will help you out if the gasket is almost burnt all the way through. Listen around the gasket areas for increased hissing and or popping. Good news is most of the smaller cars the gasket is a pretty simple change once you have all the junk out of the way. Just lable the junk with masking tape so you know where it goes when you re-assemble.
I drove for a few days with my head gasket completely blown out. According to the mechanic, I did not cause any major damage, just made lots of noise. I actually thought is was a sticking lifter, and made matters worse by nailing the motor whenever I had a chance. That is what finally blew the piece of bad gasket material completely.
Good luck. If you have the tan colored oil, I would take care of it pretty quickly. Just for the heck of it, change out your coolant when you do the gasket. If you can't get it fixed right away, use an additive like Lucas or motor honey to give the oil some extra shear strenght. Ciao!
2007-09-17 18:17:18 · answer #2 · answered by rifleman01@verizon.net 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The head gasket is the primary separation on the interface of the head and the engine block between oil and water in the engine. Contamination occurs when water leaks into the oil system. This produces a whiteness or foam in the engine oil. Anytime you remove the head, the gasket should be checked, and replaced if needed. Even slight misplacement when changing it can produce leaks. If the gasket is leaking to the outside of the block, oil may be present on the engineblock and may not contaminate the oil.
2007-09-22 23:16:50 · answer #3 · answered by Wylie Coyote 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Previous Post by Nomadd, are indications.
Rotten egg smell from the exhaust, a bit a blue haze in white smoke.
Loss of power from the motor.
Are some extra symptoms as well.
2007-09-17 18:10:46 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Loss of coolant when the engine is running, steam from the exhaust, water in the engine oil.
2007-09-25 09:07:04 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You hear a crackling noise in you engine every time you step on the gas. It sounds like having pebbles instead of gas.
2007-09-25 12:16:29 · answer #6 · answered by Butter 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
loss of coolant with no visible coolant leak, dirty brownish coolant color, milky white oil residue on the oil cap. water droplets out of the tailpipe.
2007-09-17 18:11:08 · answer #7 · answered by claytuner 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Misfiring of the plugs, oil in the coolant or vice versa.
2007-09-17 18:00:43 · answer #8 · answered by orangecrush 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
oil, all over the inside of your hood. being 18 q low. You know stuff like that.
2007-09-24 02:39:21 · answer #9 · answered by claire r 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋