is this a symptom of a blown head gasket????

[glutetoot]

My girl friend was driving her car and the stupid thing started running worse and worse untill it finaly would not run anymore. Pushed it over the this side or the road to go get tow cables. When we got back about hr later the car ran perfect.

It did the same thing twice now? It runs fine when it is cold. But once it warms up it wont run very well if at all.

so i took it home and tested the compression. It was all withing 5-10 psi(but the engine was cold). but when i took the wires off. two of the plugs were covered in rust.

what the f@#$.

is the a head gasket problem. and when the motor warms up the head changes shape and i lose the compression?

 

[pitbull419]

Did you happen to check to see if those two plugs were firing?
Check when the car is cold then again when its warmed up.
When the car is "hot" how hot are we talking? Is it within normal operating temp? Or is it over heating?

 

[architechnik]

I'll second that on the "Hot". It sounds like it could be overheating, but it should show on the temp gauge.
If the coolant levels are really low and the warning light is out, or if there is something blocking the coolant flow (like a stuck thermostat) it would have similar symptoms.
How are the coolant levels?

The rust on the end of the plug sounds incorrect. Which end of the plug is it on? If there was excessive water inside the boot, then there may be rust showing on the top end. Rust inside the combustion chamber is nearly impossible on a working cylinder.

A sure sign of a blown head gasket would be the color of your fluids. The coolant will likely have sludge and oil in it, while the oil will have coolant, turning it an ugly gray.