Astro64
20th August 2017, 10:47 AM
Hi guys
Thanks for adding me. Im from Sydney and just picked up above vehicle last Friday night. Im stoked having paid only $2500 with 1 months rego + brand new battery. I have been driving past this car for almost 11 months where it has been parked up not being used. I helped the lady owner drop a new battery into it and thats when I learned odometer said 194,800 kms. Also the Multi Function Display didnt come up.The following day I brought a compressor over and pumped up the tyres + test drove it.The discs were really heavily rusted I thought but have cleaned up well since driving it.It drove really well.
I knew there was something wrong with it when I looked at the oily substance under expansion tank yellow cap. It wasnt obvious then that it was engine oil and read up about coolant mixing with Automatic Transmission Fluid with some of the Astras on the web. I convinced myself that was the problem and an easy fix ie external trans cooler , flush cooling system + flush automatic. The coolant bottle/cap didnt smell of engine oil , It didnt really smell of anything and def not milky both that or the oil filler cap. The engine oil has a dark golden colour.
Since getting it home Ive gone right through the car and it seems to have a head gasket problem. The engine oil is like golden syrup meaning its thick. It hasnt overheated but the expansion bottle has a sludge of engine oil + water it would seem. Im not taking anything apart until I diagnose this correctly but at this stage it would seem Im up for a head gasket replacement. I hope its just that and nothing else like a crack in the engine block. Im not driving it until I sort this out as I dont want to make it worse. The concern is the engine oil being syrup like and why is it in the expansion bottle.
Im going to put 500 ml of diesel in the engine oil and let it idle/circulate and do an oil change (cheap oil at this stage) I need to see it overheat or something before dismantling anything.
Thoughts? Thanks in advance.
Thanks for adding me. Im from Sydney and just picked up above vehicle last Friday night. Im stoked having paid only $2500 with 1 months rego + brand new battery. I have been driving past this car for almost 11 months where it has been parked up not being used. I helped the lady owner drop a new battery into it and thats when I learned odometer said 194,800 kms. Also the Multi Function Display didnt come up.The following day I brought a compressor over and pumped up the tyres + test drove it.The discs were really heavily rusted I thought but have cleaned up well since driving it.It drove really well.
I knew there was something wrong with it when I looked at the oily substance under expansion tank yellow cap. It wasnt obvious then that it was engine oil and read up about coolant mixing with Automatic Transmission Fluid with some of the Astras on the web. I convinced myself that was the problem and an easy fix ie external trans cooler , flush cooling system + flush automatic. The coolant bottle/cap didnt smell of engine oil , It didnt really smell of anything and def not milky both that or the oil filler cap. The engine oil has a dark golden colour.
Since getting it home Ive gone right through the car and it seems to have a head gasket problem. The engine oil is like golden syrup meaning its thick. It hasnt overheated but the expansion bottle has a sludge of engine oil + water it would seem. Im not taking anything apart until I diagnose this correctly but at this stage it would seem Im up for a head gasket replacement. I hope its just that and nothing else like a crack in the engine block. Im not driving it until I sort this out as I dont want to make it worse. The concern is the engine oil being syrup like and why is it in the expansion bottle.
Im going to put 500 ml of diesel in the engine oil and let it idle/circulate and do an oil change (cheap oil at this stage) I need to see it overheat or something before dismantling anything.
Thoughts? Thanks in advance.