bad things

[NC325iC]

well my coolant light came on, again 2 days in a row

so i went took the cap off, the level didnt look low but i did notice a couple tiny oil bubbles on the surface. to me this says the head gasket is gone or going

what else can i do to test this (i know i should check the oil but i jsut changed it...)

[bimmer8604]

do a CLT(cylinder leak down test). as you go down each cylinder, pay attention to the cooling system, if you hear/see bubbles, then its probably headgasket. Do you smell any coolant? My car would every few days or so throw the coolant light on, but the level was always correct(it still does it) but if your CLT passes, and you aren't loosing any coolant visually out of the bottle, i wouldn't worry too bad. Mine would come on while driving, then after i park it would go off.

hth.

kyle

[jlevie]

It isn't unusual to see a bit of oil in the coolant and that isn't cause for alarm. I'd flush the cooling system and keep a watch on it to see if a lot of oil gets into the cooling system.

The low coolant warning could just be a flaky sensor.

[NC325iC]

i agree on the sensor but the level does seem to drop a little bit every time i drive it, maybe like an inch or so at the cap,

edit: i can sometime smell a hint of coolant, but i also suspect my waterpump is not as good as it should be

edit2: how does one do a leakdown test?

[porsche gt1]

x3 on the sensor, it could also be bad wiring going into the sensor.

[eyagel]

my sensor light is on 90% of the time. i add coolant to the line. drive it for about 5 minutes, light comes on, check it, and its the same height as when i added coolant.. so yea its prolly just a bad sensor.:crazy:

[NC325iC]

well i def know the sensor is bad now as i broke it yesterday trying to
a)clean it off
b)figure out how it works

anywho how do you do a leakdown test? do you put pressure into each of the cylinders and check the oil and coolant or what?

i will also do a compression test, but i am wondering if my readings may be screwed due to the low drag rings i have

[asubimmer]

what I don't understand is all these probs you are having w/ your engine, why you don't take it back to the builder....seems like something wasn't done right to me

[rede30]

question: how else does oil get in the coolant if not from the head gasket?

[NC325iC]

asu luckily nothing really serious is wrong afaik but it has been giving me some headaches. only thing i can think of that is wrong is a ticking noise when past 1/3 throttle which im going to assume is waterpump and change that out to see if it helps, we'll see, but i need money. that and an odd idle, but big cams will do that to you.

past that i just need to get time to switch out my tranny and clutch and pray the new tranny is quieter

edit: i also think im a bit of a hypocondriac (sp) when it comes to my car

[NC325iC]

if infact i do need to replace the headgasket are the multilayer metal gaskets worth the price or will an oem gasket hold up to 10.3:1