lesamis Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 Confounded..need some advice. New transmission (lifetime warrantee) new tires, and many new parts (was rebuilding car)...when the white trail of smoke followed the heat up....and I was told the head gasket might be it...the car heats up too much to drive it and now its been sitting for a few years and I can';t seem to part with it...I loved this car. Great on gas and was very well kept prior by a nurse who used it only to drive to work and back.(She kept baking soda in all the ash trays). Is a remanufactured engine, a good idea? Is selling it a good idea. Does anyone weant to buy it out there, Or do you have some suggestions for me? Maybe part it out? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank B Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 You made it! Great . Guys, I answered the ad she placed to sell this car, and to be honest, I could tell she didn't want to part with it so I introduced her to the board. If there's anyone that has had experience with head gaskets/cracked heads that's local, could you help out? Advice, parts, labor? How familiar are you with tinkering with a car? There are a few things to check to narrow down the problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bucky92 Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 The shame is..I know those cars best and am most comfortable working on them..And I fully understand the attachment to them ( I dearly miss mine but he is doing great and happy with his new owner)It does sound like a head gasket..But it could be a few things..does it have coolant? If so are there bubbles in it? Glad you mentioned it was AT because I believe there is a modulator that can go bad and cause some smoking issues... Also..was the radiator replaced?? That is the weak point of those cars. I truely wish I was closer cause I would be more then happy to help you out fixing it..teaching you to fix it..And am also a female which sometimes makes others more comfortable. I just did head gaskets on my 83 coupe..different motor but same concept. They are good cars and pretty easy to fix and IMO the best to learn on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 there is the possibility of one easy and cheap fix ($20 or less for parts) and that's the intake manifold gaskets. the only problem is determining positively whether it's the intake manifold gasket or head gasket. a compression test *might* tell you, but they aren't always conclusive. if one cylinder was much lower than the rest - then you could be fairly certain that it's a head gasket problem and not an intake manifold gasket. an intake manifold will leak prior to the valves and won't affect compression really. if the compression test shows good numbers, that doesn't tell you anything specifically because bad headgasket engines can still show good compression. if the car is in great shape and has little rust it might be worth fixing. in most cases though i'd say it's probably not. it's almost certainly not worth fixing if you can't do the head gasket work yourself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank B Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 As Bucky mentioned, a cracked head, or bad headgasket will usually introduce combustion gasses into the coolant, that's where the bubbles come from. Top off the coolant in the radiator, leave the cap off, start the car and just hang out and watch for bubbles. A flashlight pointed into the rad cap hole is sometimes better to see the bubbles. Also, did it overheat THEN start blowing white smoke? Or did the smoke come first , then it overheated. Overheating is never good, and could make a simple problem a much bigger one. If the intake manifold gasket(s) leaked, it would introduce coolant into the combustion chambers and would produce the white smoke, or steam really. After a fair amount was lost into the engine, it would have overheated simply due to the lack of coolant. this overheating may have very well cracked the head(s), a more severe problem. If it overheated first, then started steaming, It could still be a cracked head or head gasket but not likely. Usually when this happens it's gradual not instant. Unless you drive like a knob thinking your on a racetrack all the time. Gradual meaning it would run hotter but not overheat at first, then after a while, hours, days, weeks even, it would get hotter and hotter then overheat. When the head cracks, it cracks between the exhaust and intake ports. The crack can go into the cooling jacket and this can introduce exhaust gasses directly into the coolant, producing bubbles, and also super heating the coolant. This super heating is too hot for the radiator to deal with and it overheats. Sometimes only moments after starting the car. The radiators on these cars corrode and clog up easily, and it' very common for the rad to be the source of the prblem. It can't remove the heat from the coolant, the engine overheats, heads crack, head gaskets fail, and your where you are right now. The modulator Bucky mentioned is a unit that uses engine vacuum to regulate the line pressure inside the tranny, when the diaphram inside tears, tranny fluid will be drawn into the engine by the engine vacuum and when that tranny fluid burns, it's big fluffy white smoke, but very stinky. Antifreeze steam smells sweet. Had the car been running hotter then usual before this happened? Was it in the summer when you would have had the air conditioner on? Has the radiator ever been replaced? Will it overheat instantly when started or only after driving a while? How long has the car been sitting since this happened? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank B Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 Bump, Anyone in her area willing to help? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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