is there a problem?

347 · #1 (**permalink**) 03-15-2004, 03:44 AM

I was pressure testing my cooling system to see if there were any hoses leaking which may have indicated where my coolant was going.
The top hose had a small dribble from both ends.Not enough to warrant loosing all that coolant(I thought).
With the radiator full when I started, it wouldnt hold any pressure and dropped slowly.
I came home from work today to re-seal my top hose and noticed the top tank of the radiator was totaly dry.
I filled it up with water and started the car to move it out of the garage.
I turned it off and walked around the back of the car to notice a small trail of coolant and what looks like mud running down the driveway and a drip hanging off the left hand tail pipe.

Aussie Mike · #2 (**permalink**) 03-15-2004, 03:51 AM

Hate to say it but it sounds like a blown head gasket. Do a compression test and see if any cylinders are down. Check the colour of your plugs as well. Is your coolant changing colour? What does your engine oil look like?

Cheers

347 · #3 (**permalink**) 03-15-2004, 04:02 AM

Oil.......Cant find any signs of water in oil, compression test, well after the coolant was dripping frpm the tail pipe i figure it was f@%#ed.
Header tank looked like it had been in a mud fight with the local kids.

Aussie Mike · #4 (**permalink**) 03-15-2004, 04:08 AM

Going by that I would say that you've only blown out a section of gasket between the cylinder and the water jacket. It's not a big deal to replace a head gasket.

Fingers crossed it's only the gasket and not a cracked head or a split bore. You'll soon see when you pull the head.

Cheers