Head Gasket going out?

[JLw7123]

it is leaking internally probably. That is why you probably can not see it leaking.

[Black_Mamba]

Originally Posted by robalero

i let mine warm up for 15 to 20 minutes before I drive it in the mornings. I live in canada of course ima do that its friggen cold in the mornings lol.

as for your theory it means nothing until you actually find your water leak but its deff not a thermostat or coolant res. if it was a dead water pump you wouldn't be losing coolant yet ( until you can see it coming out of it ) get a coolant tester that can check for leaks we have one at our work and it pushes air ( that you pump by hand ) and it will normally tell you where your leaking as it pushes the coolant through the system

i know what youre talking about, i secured it to the resevoir and pumped the air and checked for pressure. i know for a fact i need a new coolant resevoir tank because the coolant sensor is corroted and wont shut off unless i unplug it. and when i did unplug it, abunch of white crusty crap came out.

[Black_Mamba]

im gonna get a new resevoir with a new cap and new sensor and see where that takes me. if there is still no pressure in the lines, the water pump isnt doing its job and ill replace that. after that i should be good.

if it was leaking internally id have to know about it somehow

[a.graham52]

the water pump doesnt cause the pressure in the system just so you know. its the heating of the coolant causing it to expand. if the water pump fails you either have an external coolant leak (which would have shown up with your pressure test as a pressure leak), or major overheating problems.

[Black_Mamba]

Originally Posted by a.graham52

the water pump doesnt cause the pressure in the system just so you know. its the heating of the coolant causing it to expand. if the water pump fails you either have an external coolant leak (which would have shown up with your pressure test as a pressure leak), or major overheating problems.

i must not be looking hard enough then it doesnt over heat at all, most of the time its between half and 1/4 (cold, not hot). it rarely goes above the half way mark and when it does its when im sitting in traffic or letting it idle and it will only raise abou 1mm, thats how small

[a.graham52]

Originally Posted by Black_Mamba

i must not be looking hard enough then it doesnt over heat at all, most of the time its between half and 1/4 (cold, not hot). it rarely goes above the half way mark and when it does its when im sitting in traffic or letting it idle and it will only raise abou 1mm, thats how small

that sounds normal. both of mine act like that. so... on a COLD engine, durring the pressure test. how much pressure did you loose and how long did it take to loose it?

[Black_Mamba]

Originally Posted by a.graham52

that sounds normal. both of mine act like that. so... on a COLD engine, durring the pressure test. how much pressure did you loose and how long did it take to loose it?

for the "pressurized cap", it went from roguhly 15 or 16 psi to about 4 psi, pretty much nothing, and i dont remember how long cause i did it at work so i had to do other things too i was running around. one of the other mechanics finished up the test for me

[a.graham52]

well if your radiator caps not holding pressure then neither will your cooling system. and on a cold engine HAS TO BE COLD! if drop like 1-2 psi in 10-15 minutes your doing pretty good. id prefer to see zero psi drop but there are a lot of variables.

[Black_Mamba]

i know this sounds like a stupid question, but im still young and learning and we all ask our share of stupid questions..

would it be possible for the radiator to have a leak internally? i dont know the dimensions or the insides of a radiator.

[Black_Mamba]

key problems are low/no pressure in coolant hoses, exhaust kicks out white smoke if you drive it from a dead cold start, meaning you have to let it idle for at least 3 to 5 minutes. no coolant burnt build up on spark plugs

[a.graham52]

you could possibly get a leak between your trans cooler and radiator but you would find strawberry milk shake in your coolant res. i think you need to deep breath and think about how your going about all this. if you work at a shop somone must have a block tester. test for gasses in the cooling system. if you do then its a head gasket. is your car leaving any drips on the ground over night? do you smell coolant when your engines hot? how about a video of your exhaust smoke on start up?

[Black_Mamba]

Originally Posted by a.graham52

you could possibly get a leak between your trans cooler and radiator but you would find strawberry milk shake in your coolant res. i think you need to deep breath and think about how your going about all this. if you work at a shop somone must have a block tester. test for gasses in the cooling system. if you do then its a head gasket. is your car leaving any drips on the ground over night? do you smell coolant when your engines hot? how about a video of your exhaust smoke on start up?

next time it kicks out alot of smoke ill get a video, its not every cold start, maybe like once or twice a week. ever since i changed the plugs and it stopped misfiring, is hasnt really done it.

ill ask for a block tester tomorrow, no ones here but me today, and gasses in cooling system = bad head gasket ?

as for drips, it doesnt leak anything but oil. i have a small FMS leak, but its no big deal, only a drop here and a drop there. ill go through 1 qt of oil every 2 or 3 months. in order to fix it id have to rip the whole engine out and change the seal. i dont have time for that

[a.graham52]

yes combustion gasses on cooling system means bad head gasket. FMS= front main seal? which would be the one behind the harmonic balancer right?

[Black_Mamba]

alright ill remember that & yes i believe so

[a.graham52]

Well if thats the seal your talking aobut who told you had to take the engine out?

[Black_Mamba]

my teacher at school, he had a chevy malibu, same engine and said thats what he did

[a.graham52]

well if all of us are talking about the seal that goes around the crank shaft at the harmonica balancer and NOT the REAR main seal (around the crank shaft at the transmission end) then all you need to do is take the belt off and then remove the balancer. pry the seal out and installed with new seal and a driver. all in vehicle.

[Black_Mamba]

Oh . than he was wrong lol ill take your word for it

[a.graham52]

thats what gm service information says. and i know you can remove the balancer while the engines inthe car. next step is you pry the seal out with a simple seal puller so idk what the big deal would be.

[mastershake]

Originally Posted by a.graham52

harmonica balancer

harmonica balancer xD