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#1
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Bad news, possible cracked head
Took my SW2 in to Sears Auto for an oil change. After doing the job they
told me to take the car into an engine shop ASAP, because when they pulled the dipstick out a little smoke was coming out and "that usually means a cracked head gasket". So all the money I spent at the Saturn dealership trying to get them to tell me what was wrong seems to have been a waste. They charged me alot of money but never were able to fix the problem of my car getting very warm. AAAAAARRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHH!!! Looks like my new tires will have to wait until I get this checked out. I doubt the $350 or so I'm saving for tires will be enough to replace a cracked head. This really bites.... Jeff |
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#2
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Bad news, possible cracked head
A little smoke constitutes a bad head? Come on... Every car gets
moisture in the crankcase at one time or another. I would assume you mean steam rather than smoke. Either way, maybe they are blowing smoke I wouldn't count on anything that an 'oil changer' at Sears has to tell me, especially diagnosing major engine trouble. How did the oil look? If you have coolant getting into the crankcase, the oil should have been like chocolate milk. James J B wrote: > Took my SW2 in to Sears Auto for an oil change. After doing the job they > told me to take the car into an engine shop ASAP, because when they > pulled the dipstick out a little smoke was coming out and "that usually > means a cracked head gasket". So all the money I spent at the Saturn > dealership trying to get them to tell me what was wrong seems to have > been a waste. They charged me alot of money but never were able to fix > the problem of my car getting very warm. AAAAAARRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHH!!! > > Looks like my new tires will have to wait until I get this checked out. > I doubt the $350 or so I'm saving for tires will be enough to replace a > cracked head. This really bites.... > > > Jeff |
#3
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Bad news, possible cracked head
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#4
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Bad news, possible cracked head
James - They did say 'smoke' but since I didn't see it for myself I
don't know if it was steam or smoke. It was a hot sunny day, no rain or moisture to speak of, so would it have been possible to get enough "moisture in the crankcase" to cause some steam like that? The oil was very dirty and needed changing at least a month ago. I wouldn't say it looked like chocolate milk, just real dirty oil. I've been real good with oil changes on this car, except for this one time. I am concerned because I've known for quite awhile something hasn't been right under the hood. The engine gets hot but doesn't overheat, because I make a point of not driving it far like I've wanted to do. I basically go to work, the store and back home. Oh well, this mystery will be solved someday when I save enough pesos. Jeff |
#5
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Bad news, possible cracked head
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#6
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Bad news, possible cracked head
BlaBla wrote: "...have YOU ever noticed a measurable loss of engine
coolant?" Absolutely none in fact. I guess it was last winter that Sears changed the antifreeze to the orange colored coolant that's made for cars with some wear on the engine. I didn't know they were going to change it and they didn't charge me, but it was something that needed done. Never ever, before or since have I had to add coolant. However, during this long hot summer I did have to add a quart of oil two different times because the engine did burn some of that up. I'm assuming that's not a huge deal considering the heat we've had ths year. And one of the times I added a quart was after the one long drive I took this year. Just so you guys know how this all started: It was actually over 2 years ago that a truck tire tread flew off a truck that was 2 spots in front of me on the highway. The tread hit the car in front of me, went under his car, his back wheels popped the tread back into the air, then hit and broke the shield under my bumper before going underneath me car. The Saturn dealership here in Omaha 'eventually' told me a piece of the shield lodged up against the "intake gasket" which they replaced. I swear though that before they changed that gasket, that I heard a small piece of the shield get sucked up into the engine. Maybe that's not even possible but it sure did seem like it. Anyways, immediately after the truck tire tread caused the damage my car has ALWAYS been running warm but has never overheated. And after changing a thermostat, a water pump, and an intake gasket, I still can't take the car on long trips. It wouldn't be so bad if I had money to continually throw at the problem but I'm just an average working stiff trying to pay the rent every month. That's the breaks I guess. |
#7
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Bad news, possible cracked head
Oil changers at Sears! and parts changers at Saturn dealer! Did the oil
changer take a sample of the oil so you could have it analyzed by an oil lab? Did they save the filter so it could be cut apart and inspected? Did they have the equipment to test the coolant for combustion products? If the coolant is leaking into the oil then this would only cause overheating if the coolant level got very low and this would result in more than just a little coolant in the oil, this is often visible on the dipstick (and often referred to as 'making oil' due to the rising level) and it would be readily visible in the drained oil, .however I suspect that the oil flunky just drained the oil into a big sump where it was not possible to let it settle out to check for coolant. This is just another good reason to change your own oil and to drain it into a CLEAN pan so it can be checked after settling.. When a blown head gasket causes overheating it is more common for the combustion products to blow INTO the coolant and this can cause overheating but will usually also show as foamy or oily and dark contaminated coolant. In this case the coolant will only leak into the cylinder after shutdown (due to the cooling system pressure) and usually only in small quantities that will normally get blown out the tailpipe on the next startup. AFAIK the twin cam head does not suffer the casting problem that the 96-97 single cam heads did. IMHO a gasket problem is more likely, but suspect that any overheating is more likely cased by some other problem. I suggest you find a real mechanic and rule out the more common problems first. They are lack of coolant circulation due to plugged or corroded radiator or thermostat that is not opening fully. Any obstruction of the airflow or a dirty rad or ac rad or missing lower air dam or faulty fan can cause overheating as can faulty ignition timing. The most obvious thing to check is the gauge which may be reading high. As in all mechanics eliminate the most common and easy to fix problems before jumping to expensive conclusions. Good luck, YMMV "James1549" > wrote in message oups.com... >A little smoke constitutes a bad head? Come on... Every car gets > moisture in the crankcase at one time or another. I would assume you > mean steam rather than smoke. Either way, maybe they are blowing smoke > > > I wouldn't count on anything that an 'oil changer' at Sears has to tell > me, especially diagnosing major engine trouble. How did the oil look? > If you have coolant getting into the crankcase, the oil should have > been like chocolate milk. > > James > > J B wrote: >> Took my SW2 in to Sears Auto for an oil change. After doing the job they >> told me to take the car into an engine shop ASAP, because when they >> pulled the dipstick out a little smoke was coming out and "that usually >> means a cracked head gasket". So all the money I spent at the Saturn >> dealership trying to get them to tell me what was wrong seems to have >> been a waste. They charged me alot of money but never were able to fix >> the problem of my car getting very warm. AAAAAARRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHH!!! >> >> Looks like my new tires will have to wait until I get this checked out. >> I doubt the $350 or so I'm saving for tires will be enough to replace a >> cracked head. This really bites.... >> >> >> Jeff > |
#8
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Bad news, possible cracked head
Posted my reply before finishing it. Just wanted to add that Saturn did
check the cooling system on two different occasions. According to them it was working properly. I will write down what you suggested I do to it next. Thanks for the advice, Jeff |
#9
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Bad news, possible cracked head
I'm learning alot here guys. Appreciate the info. I'll write some of
this stuff down tomorrow after work. Thanks, Jeff |
#10
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Bad news, possible cracked head
SW2Driver, my SL1 was getting warmer than usual and then it started leaving
oil in the garage. Yup it was at least a head gasket, and could be more if they find a crack in the head or it needs to me machined. The cost that Saturn quoted just for the head gasket change (apparently the intake and exhaust manifold gaskets must be changed as well) was $943. Since the car was old I just sold it to a local machanic, didn't want to deal with that kind of expense on an old car. |
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