Blown head gasket

[syco8 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close syco8]

Ive got a 3.4L V6 auto it is running rough when at idle (cold and hot) and is blowing steam out the exhaust but there is no water in the engine or oil in the radiator that i could see, any other way to tell if it is a blown head gasket or something else, only started this morning, any help would be great

[Chippy Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close Chippy]

A couple of things you can try ...

1. A compression test - not conclusive of a blown head gasket but can give you a good indication if 1 or 2 pots are down on compression.

2. Look for a green (depending on colour of coolant) deposit on spark plug electrodes.

3. Take the radiator cap off and look for bubbles in the coolant with the engine running.

4. Hold a piece of cardboard about an inch from the exhaust outlet, with the engine running, for a minute or 2. Check for deposits, discolouration.

5. Pop the cap on the coolant tank and sniff for exhaust fumes - the smell hangs around in a confined space.

6. Take the car to a radiator specialist - they have a test cylinder of a blue liquid that turns yellow when it detects exhaust gasses in the coolant.

7. White, milky build up inside the oil filler cap.

8. Darker, muddy appearance of the coolant.

9. Sit in the car with the engine running and the heater on - sniff for traces of exhaust fumes or heated plastic from the heater vents.

10. Exhaust smoke is white and may smell sweet or smell of coolant.

11. Obviously - is it overheating / using water ?

By no means an exhaustive (no pun intended) list. Hope it helps.

Cheers
Chippy

[syco8 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close syco8]

Thanks chippy took it down to the mechanic today it has a blown head gasket they quoted me around $4k :shock: is that about right or do i need to start shopping around

[Snaga Wishing I was lost Find all posts View Profile Close Snaga]

4K :shock: :shock:
What causes a blown headgasket... any ideas what lead up to this??

[Chippy Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close Chippy]

Hey Syco mate

I have never blown a gasket in one of these puppys so I don't know prices.

I did fry a heap of gaskets in my V6 Commodore years ago - towing a van from Mount Gambier to Port Augusta on a day when Adelaide hit 50 degrees (mid January 2001) and it cost me $1500.

I reckon anytime someone wants $4K for a fix - ring around - there's a lot of zeros in there and should give a bit of range for negotiation.

Good luck - let us know how ya go.

Cheers
Chippy

[Fazza Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Fazza]

Snaga,

There are many reasons for blown headgaskets, but the 4 main reasons (my opinion)
1. Overheating.
2. Constant short trips (Continually heating up & cooling down) or putting it another way, expansion,contraction. Thats one reason why Taxi's normally get good mileage as they are running at a even temperature.
3. Poor design e.g. Ford Falcons (Shouldn't have said that)
4. Abuse e.g. over revving, not changing coolant, etc.

That,s my couple of cents worth.

Fazza 07 GXL D4D Auto :wink:

[Snaga Wishing I was lost Find all posts View Profile Close Snaga]

Thanks Fazza,

I'm with you on the Ford comment too

[syco8 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close syco8]

Thanks guys, that 4K was for head gasket, timing belt and water pump but my mate who is a mechanic and said that was about right, but im going to ring around and get some prices

[Mixtup Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close Mixtup]

$4k. Ouch.

For reference - how many km's on the clock?

[syco8 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close syco8]

$4k. Ouch.

For reference - how many km's on the clock?

Its got 165K. Ive put some chemi weld in the radiator and it seems to be running good now, still deciding whether to sell or fix it

[BAZPRADO Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close BAZPRADO]

What did you end up deciding? Would be interested to know what your back up plan should you decide to sell

[Signature035 Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Signature035]

Be VERY careful with heads. The reason I am now in my Prado, was after pandora's box was opened when the same thing happened with my 100 series. I was quoted around $3.5. Once the head was off they then found a crack, tried to weld, but it wouldn't take. It was heading towards $5k, so I wholesaled the car and bought the prado......which I must say was the best thing I have ever done

[Blatchy Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close Blatchy]

Head gasket repair treatments.

Hi, Ive got a 2000 model V6 which is blowing radiator fluid out the radiator cap. Has anyone tried any of the liquid repair treatments for fixing leaks eg Bars, Wyns or others. Did it work. How long did it last? Did anyone have problems with it clogging up the cooling system or water pump. If there a reliable way to isolate if the leak is coming from right or left bank. It only seems to be a small leak and someone said that it wont show up in a compression test.
Thanks

[Mallory Black Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Mallory Black]

Folks one of the most reliable ways to see if compression is leaking into the cooling system is to find a garage that has what we call a 4 gas analyser. The probe of these gizmos is usually put up the exhaust pipe to measure the various emissions to check engine tune.

One other use is to check for potential blown head gaskets. The tech will run the engine at idle (warm) with the radiator cap off and let the probe sniff the fumes above where the radiator cap goes on. It is sensitive enough to detect the presence of hydrocarbons and if it does it will mean that the combustion gas mix is leaking into the cooling system. It's sensitive enough to detect a failing head gasket before it becomes catastrophic.

Another thing about alloy heads. Don't ever take a head off and just bolt it back on with new gaskets. It will need to be straightened and machined beforehand. Especially vital for anything with an overhead camshaft

[Guest Close Guest]

gasket

Is it the left bank ?
Common fault for the 3.4l
More than likely a gasket, heads are good unless you cook them of course.