Coolant leaking (into engine?)

[Lanos1.5Owner]

Recently the engine overheated on our 2000 1.5 Lanos. One of the hoses had a small hole and all of the coolant came out.

I've replaced the hose but the coolant continues to slowly leak out and needs to be topped up at least once a week. I've checked all over but can't find where it's leaking.

I don't know if it's connected but the engine is also rough starting but once running seems to be OK. I opened the oil cap on the engine and found inside the cap a very light brown mixture, the consistency of mayonnaise. I cleaned this out but it has returned. Could this be the result of coolant getting into the oil?

Any ideas?

BTW coolant is clear and oil on dip stick doesn't have anything but oil on it.

[MMamdouh]

i guess you warped your head or at least damaged your head gasket... the mayonnaise is oil mixed with coolant

MMamdouh

[Lanos1.5Owner]

Thanks for your reply MMamdouh.

Is there any way to tell whether it's the head gasket or the head without taking it apart?

How easy/difficult is replacing the head gasket (compared to other cars)? I'm not going to attempt it myself but have friends who've changed head gaskets on other cars. Is there anything to watch out for on the Lanos engine? I saw another thread where someone was having difficulty replacing the timing belt correctly.

Assuming I have no tools at the moment what is needed to take off and replace the head gasket?

At the moment the car is running OK (apart from the mayonnaise) and since adding Coolant Sealer the coolant has stopped leaking. How long will the engine likely keep running before the head/gasket must be changed?

Thanks again.

[benzino]

Assuming I have no tools at the moment what is needed to take off and replace the head gasket?

tools...
you will need:
jack
jack stands
good socket set
torque wrench
workshop manual
time and patience
money to take the head to get machined
new fluids

ways to tell head gasket has gone:
bubbling in coolant header tank
coolant loss
steam out the exhaust
creamy oil
horrible smell (kinda like boiled egg)
overheating
detonation/no power or torque

good luck

[Lanos1.5Owner]

Assuming I have no tools at the moment what is needed to take off and replace the head gasket?

tools...
you will need:
jack
jack stands
good socket set
torque wrench
workshop manual
time and patience
money to take the head to get machined
new fluids

ways to tell head gasket has gone:
bubbling in coolant header tank
coolant loss
steam out the exhaust
creamy oil
horrible smell (kinda like boiled egg)
overheating
detonation/no power or torque

good luck

Thanks benzino. Now that I've used the coolant sealer the only symptoms are the mayonnaise in the oil cap and cappuccino in the coolant. Exhaust is dry, oil is clean, no smell, as powerful as before, and never overheats now the tube is fixed.

[MMamdouh]

i don't think their is a way you can utilize to know if it is the head or the gasket... it will only show when you take the head off

their are no special tools required to do the head gasket job... just the standard issue tools as benzino described... the SOHC head will require much less effort than the DOHC one though... you will start with removing all 3 belts (refer to timing belt replacement article) then disconnect every thing attached to the intake mani as well as the exhaust downpipe

MMamdouh

[benzino]

your local mechanic might have a "sniffer" tool which is used to detect CO2 in the coolant... that's really the only other way without taking the head off

[Lanos1.5Owner]

Thanks for everyones help. In the end I took the car to the garage and let them do the work. The car is now back with new head gasket.

[Puddle31]

great, glad youa re back on the road. Hopefully the head was not warped and all you needed was the gasket.