Possible Blown Head Gasket?

tobeydw · 10-30-2020, 02:38 AM

Hello everyone, I was wondering if someone could tell me if I have a blown head gasket..

When I first bought the car at 109k miles, the radiator was cracked and was losing coolant. Not sure if the previous owner ever drove it for prolonged amounts of time with it overheating.

Anyways, I've recently done a major overhaul on the entire car:

Oil Filter Housing Gasket
Valve cover gasket & Eccentric shaft sensor
Water pump & thermostat
Idler pulley, tensioner, serpentine belt
PCV system overhaul (new hoses and PCV)
Radiator & upper radiator hoses (I do have a small leak from the auxiliary fan switch on the lower radiator hose, but nothing too major)

However, my mechanic thinks the head gasket may be blown for the following reasons:

1. He used a Combustion Leak Test Fluid: https://www.harborfreight.com/combus...RoCeKMQAvD_BwE

This was used in the expansion tank to detect oil in presence of coolant. There was oil in the coolant, but this was directly after the oil filter housing gasket change, which was changed for the first time at 112k miles so I'm not sure how conclusive that is for the head gasket.

2. There is small amounts of white smoke that come from the tailpipe upon cold starts

3. The expansion tank gets pressurized extremely quickly. After 1 minute of the car being on, when he took off the expansion tank cap, it's extremely pressurized even though it shouldn't be for such a small amount of time.

4. I'm losing a relatively large amount of coolant still even though I have no leaks in my hoses nor radiator (apart from the small leak from the o-ring in the auxiliary fan switch in the lower radiator hose)

The last thing we're doing is a compression test tomorrow, but if anyone could give me any suggestions as to what else it could be, or if it for sure IS the head gasket, that would be appreciated. Thanks!

Jewelz · 10-30-2020, 03:21 AM

Try removing your CCV on the back of your valve cover and cap the hose .then remove the connection to the fuel vent tube under the manifold and cap the manifold with 3/4 rubber plug. Drive the car hard for 15 min and see if you still have white smoke. That did the trick for mine( charcoal canister et valve cover Pcv + ccv delete till I get those fix. Tighten your bolt to your oil seperator.

Chark-attack · 11-01-2020, 04:15 PM

The liquid is something we use as well to diagnose blown head gaskets, but specifically it is attempting to detect exhaust gas which will react with the liquid and turn yellow.

Number three is also a test we do, though we remove the overflow cap and then start the vehicle. That level of pressurization indicates a head gasket failure.

Number 4, the coolant has to be going somewhere. And if the small leak isn't accounting for the level of loss you're experiencing, that's another indication of a bad head gasket.

I know its not at all what you're wanting to hear, but just my two cents based on tests we do at our shop. Good luck with the compression test.

10-30-2020, 02:38 AM	#1
tobeydw Enlisted Member 3 Rep 31 Posts Drives: 2006 330i Join Date: Jul 2020 Location: Morgan Hill, CA iTrader: (0)	Possible Blown Head Gasket? Hello everyone, I was wondering if someone could tell me if I have a blown head gasket.. When I first bought the car at 109k miles, the radiator was cracked and was losing coolant. Not sure if the previous owner ever drove it for prolonged amounts of time with it overheating. Anyways, I've recently done a major overhaul on the entire car: Oil Filter Housing Gasket Valve cover gasket & Eccentric shaft sensor Water pump & thermostat Idler pulley, tensioner, serpentine belt PCV system overhaul (new hoses and PCV) Radiator & upper radiator hoses (I do have a small leak from the auxiliary fan switch on the lower radiator hose, but nothing too major) However, my mechanic thinks the head gasket may be blown for the following reasons: 1. He used a Combustion Leak Test Fluid: https://www.harborfreight.com/combus...RoCeKMQAvD_BwE This was used in the expansion tank to detect oil in presence of coolant. There was oil in the coolant, but this was directly after the oil filter housing gasket change, which was changed for the first time at 112k miles so I'm not sure how conclusive that is for the head gasket. 2. There is small amounts of white smoke that come from the tailpipe upon cold starts 3. The expansion tank gets pressurized extremely quickly. After 1 minute of the car being on, when he took off the expansion tank cap, it's extremely pressurized even though it shouldn't be for such a small amount of time. 4. I'm losing a relatively large amount of coolant still even though I have no leaks in my hoses nor radiator (apart from the small leak from the o-ring in the auxiliary fan switch in the lower radiator hose) The last thing we're doing is a compression test tomorrow, but if anyone could give me any suggestions as to what else it could be, or if it for sure IS the head gasket, that would be appreciated. Thanks!
	Appreciate 0 Tweet Quote

10-30-2020, 03:21 AM	#2
Jewelz Registered 0 Rep 3 Posts Drives: BMW E92 328i 2007 Join Date: Oct 2020 Location: Montreal, Qc iTrader: (0)	Try removing your CCV on the back of your valve cover and cap the hose .then remove the connection to the fuel vent tube under the manifold and cap the manifold with 3/4 rubber plug. Drive the car hard for 15 min and see if you still have white smoke. That did the trick for mine( charcoal canister et valve cover Pcv + ccv delete till I get those fix. Tighten your bolt to your oil seperator.
	Appreciate 0 Quote

11-01-2020, 04:15 PM	#3
Chark-attack New Member 4 Rep 16 Posts Drives: BMW 325xi Join Date: Apr 2020 Location: Florida iTrader: (0)	The liquid is something we use as well to diagnose blown head gaskets, but specifically it is attempting to detect exhaust gas which will react with the liquid and turn yellow. Number three is also a test we do, though we remove the overflow cap and then start the vehicle. That level of pressurization indicates a head gasket failure. Number 4, the coolant has to be going somewhere. And if the small leak isn't accounting for the level of loss you're experiencing, that's another indication of a bad head gasket. I know its not at all what you're wanting to hear, but just my two cents based on tests we do at our shop. Good luck with the compression test.
	Appreciate 0 Quote