Antifreeze in Oil

[EB Bronco]

Bad news on my Bronk today. ( I have noticed over last 2 or 3 months that I have had to add antifreeze in small amounts every couple weeks, but never saw a drop on the ground. Today I was checking my oil and it is very foamy on the dipstick. I also noticed that the filler cap is foamy with a greenish/white tint to it. I'm guessing antifreeze in oil. Because it is so small of an amount do you think this is just the head gasket or something more serious? Also, how long can I drive on it if I start changing my oil every 1000 or 1500 miles rather than 3000?

Roger

 

[Ziggy]

Shounds like a head gasket to me. I would change it ASAP as the water will damage your bearings and you'll be paying for a complete engine rebuild. Head gaskets are easy to do, time consuming due to all the crap that has to come off. This can be done over weekend, but I would also suggest that you have the heads checked for flatness while you have them off. I wouldn't try changing the oil more frequent just to get by, like I said, water and bearing don't mix to well.

 

[swampthing]

Sounds to me like you have antifreeze in the oil also due to a blown head gasket. If you can take your bronco to a repair shop and see if they will stick the emissions stick into ur radiator. If it picks up any emmisions in there then you know you got a blown head gasket.

 

[highboy73]

ziggy is right the head gasket isn't all that bad just time consuming,cleaning the parts good is a big thing too.

does it miss or anything?do you have oil in your radiator?might just be a intake gasket too.

either way it has to come apart.

 

[EB Bronco]

I don't see any discoloration in the radiator. Antifreeze looks fine. The Bronco isn't missing or anything and actually is running just fine. I'm gonna call a buddy of mine today and see if he can give me a hand this weekend or next. He's got a lot bigger garage than mine so hopefully we can do it at his place. Is the intake gasket easier to replace as far as taking stuff out or do I have to break it down the same amount either for head gasket or intake gasket?

Roger

 

[EB Bronco]

I talked to Gene this morning and he's going to give me a hand. He mentioned that if I take out my plugs I should find one that is fouled up because of the leak if it is the head gasket, but if all the plugs look good it is probably the intake gasket. Is this correct? I didn't know you could tell the difference this way. :-B

Roger

 

[Pony-boy]

Just a heads up for you,

Your head gasket isn't the only thing that would cause your problem. You could also have an internal crack block.

That is something to consider if all of your plugs are good.

If it is your head gasket you should find moisture on a plug.

I HOPE YOU DO!!!!

Rod, my neighbor, has a 96 F150 and had a crack below one of the rods that lead to the same problem and a $1600 engine swap.

Not telling you this to scare you, I just let people know so they don't spend 2 days swapping gaskets for nothing.

Little hint, if you have a blacklight, try to pull your plugs at night and shine the light in all the holes. Antifreeze glows pretty well.

Good luck

 

[EB Bronco]

I pulled all the plugs Saturday night and they all look good so I guess I've eliminated the head gasket theory. I changed the oil Saturday night also and am picking up a black light today after work to look at the oil. How would I be able to determine if it is just an intake gasket leak? Would a leak there also show on my plugs? If it's the block I may try running one of those engine block sealers to see if that stops it before replacing the engine. A few dollars to buy some time is worth a try. $-)

Roger

 

[highboy73]

if it is the intake it could be leaking from a water port right into the lifter valley and that wouldn't show up on the plugs.

the intake isn't that bad to do,i put a couple shop rags in the valley then scrap it clean and shop vac out the pieces.try not to let them fall in the motor.

I have used the ceramic moroso seal before and it works great that is if you want to spend the money on it.

 

[EB Bronco]

I think I found the problem last night. I still have yet to see antifreeze on the ground, but there is antifreeze puddled in the fan shrowd. I haven't seen where the leak is on the radiator yet. I was just feeling around under there and dipped my hands in it. It must be blowing off from the fan and evaporating faster than it can drip to the ground. I'm pulling the shrowd off tomorrow to see if I can find the spot on the radiator. I'm guessing a pin hole type leak since I haven't been losing much. I'm relieved that the foam on the dipstick and oil filler cap is probably just condensation from only driving 15 minutes to work each day. Would a higher temperature thermostat help get rid of the condensation? I think it only has a 180 stat in it now.

Roger