Head gasket or ???

[gcpommom]

Last year I had a coolant leak, replaced water pump, hoses, then finally new radiator last fall. Everything was good for a few months, very little coolant loss. Now I have to put in 1/3-1/2 of a gallon every week or so, but no puddles or visible leaks. Also, the last 2 weeks in the mornings when engine is cold I start it up, and the engine shakes like crazy for about 5 minutes, then once driven, it doesn't shake again until the next morning when I start it, and it drives fine all day. No other symptoms....no overheating, no milky oil, no noticeable smoke from tailpipe (hard to tell...is the 'steam' that comes out of everyone else's tailpipe normal? if so, I do have it in the mornings when it's cold out). Does this sound like the head gaskets? Or could I be losing coolant and not seeing where it is leaking from?

[BrooklynBay]

Connect a cooling system pressure tester onto the radiator to help locate the leak. Autozone has it as a free loaner tool just as long as you pay a deposit first.

[gcpommom]

Well, checked the antifreeze level this morning, and brown liquid had accumulated on the cap, seems to be brown only at the very top, when I added a little more antifreeze, it stayed green...the oil still looks ok. Van still running ok. Any idea what it costs to get the head gaskets done, since I'm assuming this is the issue? Hubby could do it himself, but is working too many hours, it would take him weeks.

[BrooklynBay]

It's possible that there might be a crack somewhere. I would suggest that you have a mechanic check it out before you invest any money or time into it.

[gcpommom]

Last year, my mechanic (usually hubby, but he was out of state) said that the head gaskets would go soon....I thought 'how can he tell'? lol. Anyway, I've read that today's engine heads rarely crack (due to different material/metals they are made of now?), at least not without a serious overheating problem, which I did not experience...cannot afford a mechanic at all, is there any way to tell ourselves if it is cracked or not, as opposed to just being a gasket issue?

If these 94s weren't so well known for their great engines, we'd just junk it at this point, I hate pouring money into such an old car....but hubby just got a job after being laid off and we need every cent right now.

[BrooklynBay]

Try using a cooling system pressure checker as previously suggested. A compression tester should be used on each cylinder to determine where the leak is coming from.

[speleopower]

There's a good possibility transmission oil is leaking into the anti-freeze side of the radiator. Mine did the same thing last year. The cure was to replace the radiator, thermostat, temp sensor and sending unit. Also I replaced the heater core and also took the radiator overflow jug out and really cleaned it out. I thought for sure my van had a cracked head/blown head gasket when the oil started showing up in the coolant. Luckily it was just a radiator for me. The transmission oil is under quite a bit of pressure and can blow into a crack in the radiator core. But the coolant is under very little pressure so it doesn't get into the transmission oil. However!!!!!! My brand new radiator only last for 10 months.

Check your transmission oil level. The engine shakes when first starting up could be related to the spark plugs, plug wires and ignition.

After doing some of this basic maintenance my van has run strong and well for almost a year now. My van is at 220,000 miles and runs like it was brand new. You maybe due new sensors everywhere. Have you checked the engine codes?

Good luck-Scott

[ToqirM]

I doubt it's a bad headgasket. Milkey like oil in the engine, mass amounts of smoke from tailpipe and excessive overheating are the sure signs of it and as you stated you don't have any of those. Take the rest of the suggestions above though if anything you can get the car checked.

[gcpommom]

Thank you for your thoughts....I must now add that on Wednesday, I did experience the large quantities of white smoke from tailpipe (lasted about 1/2 mile then stopped), and the heated air coming through the vents smells very strong.... my brother in law, who was once a mechanic, is gonna look at it tomorrow, although I really don't want to drive it there, that is where his tools are. He wants to check the intake manifold gasket first, but I really don't see much of a match there as far as symptoms...except the oil/coolant mix...the van does not shake at idle all day and now with the white smoke, I'm leaning toward head gasket.

[Raybz]

Originally Posted by gcpommom

the heated air coming through the vents smells very strong

That point to the heater core

If the core is leaking you WILL smell antifreeze and will not show much of a puddle (if at all) as it will mostly be steam escaping

[speleopower]

Any updates???

[gcpommom]

Ok, sorry...van has been parked waiting for hubby to have free time.
It didn't smoke again though, since that one time. The liquid dripping from the tailpipe has no odor, or color. Checked fluids, all were good (oil, coolant, trans). While there is a little brown discoloring that drips off the radiator cap when I open it, the coolant is green (I dipped a turkey baster in there, and no sign of brown). So I have no clue.

Like I said, it is a brand new radiator, bought at Advance. It is strange how I was adding 1/3 bottle of coolant every few days, but now it is not losing coolant (I checked just before I parked it).

I wonder about the heater core...we've had issues in the past. It always gurgles, even if I do my best to burp the system. We flushed the heater core a few months ago, it was pretty blocked up (with the stop leak we had used in the old radiator, I'm sure). Will have them check the heater core when they (hopefully) work on it this weekend.

I also need a new temperature sensor...hubby broke the old one last year, and I've not had a working temp gauge (which drives me nuts). Even on warm days, I turn the heat on every 5 minutes to make sure it is working, lol...every time I've had an overheat situation in the past in any car, the heat goes ice cold just before the steam started pouring from the engine, so that is how I have been monitoring the engine temp.

So I'll let you know what we find...thanks so much for your ideas ; )
Judy

[gcpommom]

So my brother in law is saying you have to pull the engine to get to the head gaskets on my 93, but I didn't think that was correct. Anyone know if this is true?

[BrooklynBay]

There is a way to lower the engine slightly. Did you check the Haynes or Chilton repair manuals to see what they recommend?

[gcpommom]

Hubby is reading the manual now....I'll tell him what you said about lowering the engine. He is checking the compression today (don't know why my b.i.l. didn't do that yesterday), and hoping it is the intake gasket, not the head gaskets. Otherwise, either we junk it or try one of those head sealers (yea, I know)...we just don't have the money to get this done professionally, and the van just isn't worth the investment required.

[gcpommom]

Can't find any specs on what the compression should be for my van...hubby is checking each cylinder, but not sure what it should be...he's only been able to get to 2 of them so far, and they were both at 90 on the compression gauge

[BrooklynBay]

http://explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=204909

[gcpommom]

the more I research, I am confused by something....is overheating always an issue with head gasket problems? Because I do not have an issue with overheating at all, am currently not losing coolant much either. I'm wondering if the problem could lie somewhere else.

Although, with the compression readings being so low...is head gasket the only reason for loss of compression? Ugh, I wish we could afford a mechanic, but we just cannot : (

[BrooklynBay]

Did you get a cooling system pressure tester as previously suggested?

[speleopower]

Just FYI I put in a new radiator last year that I got from Advance. It only lasted 11 months and just had to replace it a couple weeks ago.
My original radiator leaked transmission oil into the anti-freeze side of the radiator. I thought it was a head gasket as well. But it was only trans oil.
Another place to check for coolant is the engine freeze plugs. I had a leak years ago that I could not track down. Turned out it was a freeze plug that was corroded and leaking coolant.
-Scott