oil in water

[holdenz4me]

Hi all, im new to this and was hoping to get some advice, i have a 1989 vn sw. I had a new radiator put in my car after it overheated, a few weeks later i had a new water pump put in and now i have noticed oil in my radiator. car going back to the garage today and would like any advice or suggestions. work is done by a holden mechanics. If i have head or gasket problems should this have been picked up when it over heated? I was told by my garage almost impossible to crack the head in this motor, Next problem is my car was running fine, i switched it off and now it wont start, not dead just wont fire, battery is fine. My motor hasn't been running poorly since having the work done but the engine light has occasionally come on and off. any advice would be appriciated as im sick of being the lady who has no idea.

[soop]

Probably a blown head gasket.
Couldn't say how much it would cost to fix it, but its one of the bigger jobs to do.

The head gasket would have blown when you over heated it, why the mechanics didnt check this is beyond me.

[holdenz4me]

Thanks for that, Im sure your right after all the reading ive done on the net this morning they should have picked that up when she overheated.Im so gutted!

[soop]

I'd be going to have a chat with them. It's not rocket science, and is quiet common. Massive lack of attention on their behalf.

[immortality]

Ask BP, they seem to be experts with getting oil into the water

[soop]

Hahahaha.
Make'em sell fuel for next to nothing as a punishment... Sounds good to me anyway.

[ari666]

Ask BP, they seem to be experts with getting oil into the water

pisser!!!

hey OP, dont shoot the guys who have not diagnosed a head gasket, still doesnt mean its blown. its easy for water to get in the oil/vice versa via the inlet manifold. head gasket is a pretty extreme diagnosis and bloody costly if your not able to DIY. get a compression test done and a cooling system test done before you start pricing up the gasket. itll be a 10th of the price.

good luck

edit* only just noticed the "didnt start" bit... difficult to say really. you got spark and fuel? dodgie timing on a carb'd engine can/will cause overheating as can dead spark plugs. i reckon what has happened is the guys that did your radiator have stuffed something. time for free labour methinks.

[maginoodle]

is it engine oil or transmission fluid? did it get hot after you put the new radiater in? if so the header tank for the tranny fluid could be cracked.
if it was running fine after it got hot that shows that most likely the gaskets were still holding. they may have been pretty close to letting go and a bit more driving has caused it to let go.

[holdenz4me]

hmm not sure if its engine or trans yet. had a couple more gos at starting her up again, sounds like no gas but has plenty in the tank, she did a bit of back firing and rattled a few noises out so i thort i better leave it for the boys tomorrow (truck piking her up in the morning) Had the new radiator put in when it overheated, we had the car for 12 yrs and this is the 1st time its ever done this, they replaced thermostat and flushed out the cooling system as well. took it back the following week cause it was leaking water which turned out to b the water pump.had that replaced. noticed today it has a small leak from 1 of the hoses from the radiator to the motor. Will let every1 know how i get on during the week sometime, garage a bit busy so will take a few days. Thanks for the advice.

[levymetal]

yeah that's how it goes with the cooling system, just keeps going for the weakest spot until you've replaced everything .

[cracker]

how does oil get in the water...
i can see water getting in the oil but not so much the other way around

[soop]

same way, just in reverse???

[cracker]

cooling system is at a much high pressure then the oil system.
i cant see how oil would be able to force its self into the cooling system...
unless when cold perhaps...

[soop]

If a gasket is blown, there is no pressure, well less.

[partymixx]

i was thinking head gasket also.

[levymetal]

yeah, when cold the cooling system isn't pressurised, so it could go either way. when the engine heats up i suppose it's only going to go one way though.

[holdenz4me]

Hi guys, have my car back $369.54 later, starting problem was faulty direct fire injection module,still no answers to oil in water or even what oil it is. my engine light is comming on and off while driving and i still have a small water leak.Shes going back in tomorrow to find the leak which shouldnt cost anything and why the light is comming on, the mechanics mentiond oil problem could be manifold gaskets but wernt overly concerned cause its only a small amount. Being a 21 yr old car my mechanic has advised me to sell it rather than put more money into her,There was a car sales rep in the garage at the time and he thought my car was 10-12 yrs cause she still a nice looking wagon and wanted me to go see him for a trade.No thanks, still runs really well so im sort of confused,Do i keep her till she dies or sell her? kind of attached to my girl. Any suggestions welcom.

[VTPREDATOR]

fix it!!!! and get a new mechanic while your at it.

[Ace_VP]

I cant believe they didnt look at then heads. When any alloy headed motor overheats it more than likely will warp the heads. Alloy heads dont like getting hot.

If the heads need doing i would just look around for another motor, heaps cheaper and easier. If the head gaskets have gone then the head will most definitely be warped and would need machining if it is warped. You can pick up good second hand VN 6's cheap enough these days.

Matt

[ari666]

i hate to say i told you so.... but... NAH!!! i love saying it I TOLD YOU SO. thank god you paid under 400, rather than whatever a head gasket would have cost.

personally i would find the leak and keep driving her, i reckon itll be the inlet manifold. cars are (or at least should be) very personal things and i think attachment is much nicer than buying into a whole new bunch of problems

my $0.02

edit* LOL at the above post!

[Zeussy]

lol, alloy heads, on a VN?

It only costs a few bucks to get the heads decked, if they are warped, but there'd be a good chance they're not. Gaskets can blow for many reasons, with only one being a warped head.

No way I'd change a motor for head gaskets, especially if I'd had the orginal motor for years, and knew the service history, way its been treated etc...

EDIT: Agree with ari666 too, the inlet manifold is quite a common gasket to fail on them, personally, Ive seen a lot more inlet manifold gaskets blown, than head gaskets - maybe I'm just lucky though

[Ace_VP]

When did the V6 commodore engines get alloy heads? I thought the V6 engines had alloys heads.

Ignore me i'll go back to sleep

[cracker]

v6 alloy heads...no sir.

[Ace_VP]

v6 alloy heads...no sir.

Ahh, you learn something every day, i have been out of the commodore scene for a few years but I always thought the V6 buick had alloy heads. Then again i never did touch the one in my VP, it just kept going and going.

Thanks. Matt