I suspect the head gasket is gone

SCOOP 64

I have a 98 1.4 petrol Astra G for the last 14 years always done the work to keep it going but now it seems might be the end of the road, now coolant bottle losing alot of water, no signs of leaking anywhere in engine or inside floor in car, oil seems right colour but have noticed white smoke out of exhaust ,it has never over heated, head gasket was changed 10 years ago now have 213000 miles on clock, at this stage feel no point in putting money into it, NCT till November and taxed for 3 months, now was thinking of trying head gasket sealer to see if i could keep it going for while have read sealer can cause problems but think what have i got to lose, has anyone tried head gasket sealer before?

Tea drinker

I never used it but I ASSume the stuff works when the coolant is being drawn into the combustion chamber.
Do you have any nice steam cleaned pistons visible if you pull a plug?
You could try for a laugh and check if the head bolts are tight, at this stage I wouldn't put full torque on them.
Cost you nothing bar time and silicon sealant.

BTW do All the pipes get warm and the thermostat is working, heating is working?

Whocare

SCOOP 64 wrote: »

I have a 98 1.4 petrol Astra G for the last 14 years always done the work to keep it going but now it seems might be the end of the road, now coolant bottle losing alot of water, no signs of leaking anywhere in engine or inside floor in car, oil seems right colour but have noticed white smoke out of exhaust ,it has never over heated, head gasket was changed 10 years ago now have 213000 miles on clock, at this stage feel no point in putting money into it, NCT till November and taxed for 3 months, now was thinking of trying head gasket sealer to see if i could keep it going for while have read sealer can cause problems but think what have i got to lose, has anyone tried head gasket sealer before?

Yeah use it on navara use steel seal stuff lasted few years before it got worser and just changed head and gasket . In my experience do not use other brands of gasket sealer when my gasket was getting worser went to motor factor and got different brands of gasket sealer it was like pouring sand into it . It made no difference
had to get it properly repaired head and new gasket but it was still overheating it completely blocked the radiator full of that gasket sealer sand DON'T NOT USED OTHER BRANDS OF HEAD GASKET SEALER . Steel sealer is best in my experience it was like pouring in normal water

But to be honest you're headgasket sound like it too far gone

DublinDilbert

Have you checked the water pump for weeping?

As someone once said to me, when you've head gasket problems you'll know about it

BlakeS94

DublinDilbert wrote: »

Have you checked the water pump for weeping?

As someone once said to me, when you've head gasket problems you'll know about it

Not necessarily, I had replaced the entire cooling system on my car, except for the head gasket, car was driving perfectly, no smoke out the back, no smells, no oil and coolant mixing, just absolutely guzzling coolant, got new head gasket, car didnt lose a drop of coolant after that.

greasepalm

White smoke from exhaust would suggest gasket gone and also erratic starting from cold chug chug and then clear itself.

SCOOP 64

Well put in the steel sealer this afternoon , i drained system and flush it out filled with just water ,its recommended but he can just put it in the tank with out draining but depending in what coolant your using might have a bad reaction, as i say nothing to lose not worth repairing, took it for a good run tonight will check coolant in morning when its cool down, will let you know.

SCOOP 64

Tea drinker wrote: »

I never used it but I ASSume the stuff works when the coolant is being drawn into the combustion chamber.
Do you have any nice steam cleaned pistons visible if you pull a plug?
You could try for a laugh and check if the head bolts are tight, at this stage I wouldn't put full torque on them.
Cost you nothing bar time and silicon sealant.

BTW do All the pipes get warm and the thermostat is working, heating is working?

Yes all pipes getting hot heater working fine no sighs of leakage on ground,haven't pulled plugs out yet.

DublinDilbert

BlakeS94 wrote: »

Not necessarily, I had replaced the entire cooling system on my car, except for the head gasket, car was driving perfectly, no smoke out the back, no smells, no oil and coolant mixing, just absolutely guzzling coolant, got new head gasket, car didnt lose a drop of coolant after that.

And I had two different mechanics tell me the head gasket was gone on an e46 bmw (m47) engine. One even done a sniff test. Just loosing coolant no other symptoms.

It was a seal on a small L shaped pipe at the back of the block leaking. Water was dripping onto gearbox and running off halfway down the car. If I had let either do the head gasket they probably would have fixed that leak as a matter of course.

I would advise manually pressurizing the coolant system and see if any leaks can be detected. Also do a leak down test on each cylinder.

Also it doesn't have to be a big leak to loose a lot of coolant.

greasepalm

DublinDilbert wrote: »

And I had two different mechanics tell me the head gasket was gone on an e46 bmw (m47) engine. One even done a sniff test. Just loosing coolant no other symptoms.

It was a seal on a small L shaped pipe at the back of the block leaking. Water was dripping onto gearbox and running off halfway down the car. If I had let either do the head gasket they probably would have fixed that leak as a matter of course.

I would advise manually pressurizing the coolant system and see if any leaks can be detected. Also do a leak down test on each cylinder.

Also it doesn't have to be a big leak to loose a lot of coolant.

He did the wrong sniff test as burnt antifreeze you will smell when bonnet is lifted . Plastic pipes always weep after 5 or 6 years on many cars.

DublinDilbert

greasepalm wrote: »

He did the wrong sniff test as burnt antifreeze you will smell when bonnet is lifted . Plastic pipes always weep after 5 or 6 years on many cars.

It was a chemical test on the coolant. But yes the o-rings often go brittle after 6-7 years and need to be replaced.

greasepalm

DublinDilbert wrote: »

It was a chemical test on the coolant. But yes the o-rings often go brittle after 6-7 years and need to be replaced.

Yes we use them also as liquid goes from blue to green to yellow indicating head gasket gone but is done when everything else is checked.


O rings and plastic housings are cheap and wear out.

TheBoyConor

Don't bother with any of these sealer concoctions. They hardly ever work and they are only ever intended as a temporary fix to get you by until it can be repaired properly. They block up radiators, heaters and thermostats. Do not use them. They are dirt.

Just drive it on till it konks. A 98 car isn't worth the petrol in the tank.

greasepalm

Thats okay as my reg is 89d and so far so good.

SCOOP 64

10 days after putting in Steel Seal , no lost of water, heater working fine.

Whocare

SCOOP 64 wrote: »

10 days after putting in Steel Seal , no lost of water, heater working fine.

Steel seal is good stuff

SCOOP 64

2 months on Steel Seal still working, no lost of water.

fryup

^^^^^

is that you SCOTTY ??

(it didn't work for me when i used it years back)

SCOOP 64

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117703788#Comment_117703788

No , did you drain your system down first?, might work for sum and not for others ,i gave it ago as nothing to lose as it would be going to scrap yard if it didn't work, still had 9 moths nct on it and taxed so it was worth ago ,of course if it were a newer car that was worth spending money on then a head gasket replacement. It still just has water in it but come winter will drain and fill with antifreeze don't know this will have a effect on it.