Leaking Head Gasket

[Deen HK]

Hi everyone, it appears that I have a head gasket leak. What I originally thought was fuel, has turned out to be a mix of coolant & oil next to my cam tower, right under the intake manifold. No loss of power, white smoke, or coolant on my dipstick/oil cap. How hard is a head gasket job on the 951? The previous owner installed a widefire gasket, but i'm not sure if the head or block were o-ringed. I believe stock head studs were re-used and i'm under the assumption I'll need to source that nifty Snap-On stud removal tool.

I've attached photos of the leak, and an inside shot of my coolant reservoir. All help is appreciated!

IMG_9788.HEIC.jpeg (412.41 KiB) Viewed 933 times

IMG_9353.HEIC.jpeg (326.26 KiB) Viewed 933 times

[Tom]

Howdy and welcome to Carpokes! Sorry to see you are having issues. We have a detailed HG replacement write up here:

viewtopic.php?f=19&t=351

I'd start by reading the list of common HG symptoms in the article, which I cut and pasted below...

Signs of a bad head gasket include:
• Coolant spitting out the overflow after you shut off the car.
• Overheating. (However, if overheating is your ONLY issue, then check your cooling
system thoroughly before taking the head off!)
• Needing to ‘vent’ the cooling system over and over and over.
• Churned-up or foamy coolant in the reservoir (strong indicator).
• One or two ‘steam cleaned’ spark plugs (from coolant getting into cylinders).
• Lumpy idle on start-up from wet plugs.
• Excessive moisture/droplets out the tailpipe when fully warmed up.
• Oil/coolant ‘mixing,’ as evidenced by mocha-colored sludge in the oil filler cap or oily
coolant in the coolant reservoir. If this is your ONLY symptom, then think oil seals.
Bad head gaskets usually involve both mixing and cooling system issues.



External leaks are not a common HG problem on these cars, and specs of oil in the coolant 'could' be the oil thermostat housing seals. We have a write up for that job too, here:

viewtopic.php?f=19&t=376

If it turns out to be the HG, factory head studs can be re-used if they are in good shape. The manual just recommends new nuts and washers. Getting them out can be a real chore, but the collet-style removal tool does help. I'd probably start by testing the cooling system for leaks with a pressure tester, and cleaning up the area to see if you can spot the source of the oil leak. Anything is possible, but odds are those are not related to a bad HG. The oil in the coolant could be, but if that's your ONLY symptom after fixing the leaks, then I'd lean toward bad oil seals.

[Deen HK]

Thank you for the quick response, those DIY manuals will be extremely helpful! I'll start with a pressure test in hopes that I can find the culprit that way. I tend to get carried away, and replacing the HG would most likely result in me sending the head to Lindsey Racing Could the oil thermostat housing seals cause the leak under the intake manifold next to the head? That's what is confusing me the most, since that little puddle is a mix of both coolant and oil.

[Tom]

Thank you for the quick response, those DIY manuals will be extremely helpful! I'll start with a pressure test in hopes that I can find the culprit that way. I tend to get carried away, and replacing the HG would most likely result in me sending the head to Lindsey Racing Could the oil thermostat housing seals cause the leak under the intake manifold next to the head? That's what is confusing me the most, since that little puddle is a mix of both coolant and oil.

Not really. The seals I'm talking about are internal and down under the headers. My hunch would be that you have two different leaks if there is both oil and coolant under the intake. Do you have mocha-colored sludge on the underside of your oil cap? If coolant is getting in your oil, and you have an oil leak, then maybe one external leak could do it. I'd start with pressure testing the cooling system and go from there (after cleaning up any existing oil or coolant).

[Deen HK]

No sludge, the oil cap is almost dry. I'm be picking up a kit for pressure testing the cooling system tomorrow, will report back if I find anything out of the ordinary.

[gruhsy]

Where are you located?

[Tom]

If you are buying a pressure tester, I've had the best luck with the kind that seals via an inflatable bladder in the neck of the reservoir.

https://www.amazon.com/OTC-7991-Cooling ... 648&sr=8-5

[Deen HK]

Hi all, turned out to be a much simpler fix. Shortly after making my last post I found the leak and replaced what appeared to be a bad crush washer of sorts. Seemed to have fixed the problem! Thanks for all the help and support.