headgasket has gone out?

[93AWDDSM]

hey guys, i have a question, so my friend has a 97 eclipse rs and it has been running fine up until recently, i checked his coolant level and he was low, so i added some, we then did a 45 minute drive and when we shut the car off it had that sweet smell to it and it was bubbling into the overflow tank.

so i guess i am basically asking if the headgasket has gone out?

 

[Jungy]

Pretty General question with out hardly any info on what you've actually checked yourself. No one can just tell you for sure if the head gasket is bad over the internet with out you actually doing some troubleshooting yourself. Do a leakdown test. Check your coolant for oil contamination. Check your oil for coolant contamination. Go over the cooling system and make sure everything is in proper working order. Is the sweet smell coming from the exhaust? Is the exhaust smoke white? These things will probably lead you to the answer you are looking for.

 

[bullettdsm]

Yes, could easily be your headgasket. BUT could also be your thermostat, radiator cap, radiator, radiator fans, leak in the cooling system, blockage in the cooling system, water pump etc.

Leak in the cooling system;
Look for the easy obvious; signs of leakeage. Puddles on the ground. Lots of coolant on the tranny/backside of engine (pesky heater hoses)

Cooling fans;
Sit at idle to see if the fan comes on (duh). If they don't, you may have to rev it up a couple o' few of times to get heat going. Of course, watch the gauge as you do it.

Thermostat;
Pull thermostat and check it by boiling it in water and seeing if it opens fully (though most just replace it. Cheap and easy flip flop).

Radiator cap;
Have the radiator cap pressure tested (though, like the thermostat, most just replace it),

Radiator;
Look for obvious signs of rust and green/white flake build up on the exterior (usually located on the lower half). See if fins are just flaking off. Look for "wet spots". Pull radiator and have it pressure tested.

Blockage in the cooling system;
Flush the cooling system seperately (radiator then engine side) to check for blockage.

Water pump;
Check for signs of "weepage" under the water pump. Listen for grinding or squeaking (usually a chirping sound) coming from water pump. Look in the radiator cap opening and see if the coolant is actually moving (obviously, do this when engine is cold).

Headgasket;
Comp check and leak down. Look for oil contanimation or oil levels filling themselves up, . Look for air bubbles in the coolant as well as hardening of the coolant lines(pressurizing from the headgasket allowing combustion chamber pressure in the cooling system). Look for white smoke out of the exhaust after warm up. Check for hydrocarbons in the coolant (though this all could be good, but you could still have a bad headgasket. That's the tricky part).

.....and the etc. is for whatever I forgot/missed

I've seen quite a few posts related to this problem lately. So I felt that I should do a quick run down of items that it could be before you go to headgasket. I'm 99% sure that at least a couple of those posters had bad headgaskets. But you really should take that extra 1% check on all the other things before you go to headgasket.

MB

 

[93AWDDSM]

the only thing im not sure about is the blockage in the system, and if the thermostat is bad, im positive that its not any of the rest of those things, radiator is fine, fan does not come on at a idle, and it has no signs of leaking at all, not sure about the white smoke tho.

but it burns the coolant to where we have to add mostly everytime we drive and like i said there are no signs of it leaking on the ground or tranny.

soooo if its not a blockage or thermostat it has to be the headgasket, because the water pump is fine.

 

[bullettdsm]

fan does not come on at a idle

The fan should actually come on at idle (I made the appropriate edit in my post). If it doesn't, rev it up a couple o' few times to get the heat moving. But watch the gauge while you do this. Just in case.

but it burns the coolant to where we have to add mostly everytime we drive and like i said there are no signs of it leaking on the ground or tranny.

soooo if its not a blockage or thermostat it has to be the headgasket, because the water pump is fine.

While this has high suspicions of headgasket, it could also be blockage or thermostat. I would definitely, at least, grab a thermostat and slap it in there to check. Then you have the other checks for headgasket.

MB

 

[2slow4utsi]

Yes, could easily be your headgasket. BUT could also be your thermostat, radiator cap, radiator, radiator fans, leak in the cooling system, blockage in the cooling system, water pump etc.

Leak in the cooling system;
Look for the easy obvious; signs of leakeage. Puddles on the ground. Lots of coolant on the tranny/backside of engine (pesky heater hoses)

Cooling fans;
Sit at idle to see if the fan comes on (duh). If they don't, you may have to rev it up a couple o' few of times to get heat going. Of course, watch the gauge as you do it.

Thermostat;
Pull thermostat and check it by boiling it in water and seeing if it opens fully (though most just replace it. Cheap and easy flip flop).

Radiator cap;
Have the radiator cap pressure tested (though, like the thermostat, most just replace it),

Radiator;
Look for obvious signs of rust and green/white flake build up on the exterior (usually located on the lower half). See if fins are just flaking off. Look for "wet spots". Pull radiator and have it pressure tested.

Blockage in the cooling system;
Flush the cooling system seperately (radiator then engine side) to check for blockage.

Water pump;
Check for signs of "weepage" under the water pump. Listen for grinding or squeaking (usually a chirping sound) coming from water pump. Look in the radiator cap opening and see if the coolant is actually moving (obviously, do this when engine is cold).

Headgasket;
Comp check and leak down. Look for oil contanimation or oil levels filling themselves up, . Look for air bubbles in the coolant as well as hardening of the coolant lines(pressurizing from the headgasket allowing combustion chamber pressure in the cooling system). Look for white smoke out of the exhaust after warm up. Check for hydrocarbons in the coolant (though this all could be good, but you could still have a bad headgasket. That's the tricky part).

.....and the etc. is for whatever I forgot/missed

I've seen quite a few posts related to this problem lately. So I felt that I should do a quick run down of items that it could be before you go to headgasket. I'm 99% sure that at least a couple of those posters had bad headgaskets. But you really should take that extra 1% check on all the other things before you go to headgasket.

MB

This guy has some time on his hands. +1 for being THAT helpful.

-Danny

 

[tegster1]

This guy has some time on his hands. +1 for being THAT helpful.

Thats why he is a "wiseman." He is supposed to be THAT helpful. Plus it will help any future questions on what to check in the same situation.