![]() When neglected, it can lead to serious engine damage. If you don’t repair the head gasket immediately, the engine is going to start overheating. You may see brown sludge sitting in the coolant reservoir when this occurs. Yet, when it fails, oil is going to leak into the cooling system or vice versa. It keeps the oil from mixing with the coolant. ![]() The head gasket is located between the engine block and cylinder head. Let’s examine these options a little closer. ![]() There could be an engine block crack, a faulty transmission fluid cooler/heat exchanger or possibly oil got into the system by accident. It could also be a bad oil/coolant heat exchanger or a crack in the cylinder head. If you see oil in the coolant reservoir, there could be a blown head gasket. The radiator seams are a common source of invisible leaks, especially the front side.Conclusion Causes of Oil In Coolant Reservoir When it's low smell inside the radiator and if it smells like exhaust then you've definitely got a blown head gasket. If it's connected to a cylinder the flame from combustion can wear a groove into the head or block and cause major problems.Ī lot of times if it blows between the water jacket and the cylinder, since the cylinder has higher pressure it pushes combustion gas into the cooling system. I'd start with a thorough degreasing to help spot an external coolant leak, since it's going to need to be degreased before major service like a head gasket swap anyway.īut if you're certain it's the head gasket stop driving it immediately before it blows worse and puts coolant in the oil. There's a lot of places coolant can leak that are hard to spot, especially if the engine is greasy & grimy. Once there's coolant in the oil it ruins the bottom end so quickly they don't tend to last long with a new head gasket. Right now you're super lucky, because if the coolant and oil haven't mixed you can change the gasket and have a healthy engine. The can also blow externally and it's slowly dripping down the block and you don't realize it. Head gaskets can blow between the cooling jacket and cylinder which means the missing coolant is going out the tailpipe. Where they put the cylinder top edead center and put air pressure in it and see if the pressure holds or not. The only other way i know how to check for a headgasket or head problem is to do a leakdown test on each cylinder. My coolant level seems to drop an inch or so every month, but if the test came back good then its probably getting lower because of those 2 small outside leaks i have. Im not sure if this is 100% accurate tho.īecause I had replaced my timing cover gasket, waterpump, ect and the only external leaks i can see left is the upper radiator hose has crust all over it by the clamp near the thermostat and the thermostat gasket is hanging on the side and I do see a small amount of water there every now and then. So i guess i dont have a bad head or headgasket. I did mine for 5 minutes just to be sure and my color stayed blue throughout. The test said to do it for 2 minutes with the engine warmed up and running and if it stayed blue then its good. So I rented one of those chemical test kits that you use on your radiator fill port to see if you have gases in your coolant. Well I had suspected i might have a bad head or head gasket on my 5.9 as white smoke comes out the tailpipe on cold starts even when its 65f outside but then it goes away after its warmed up or driven for a minute or 2.
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