Q&A

I don't see any leak.

I don't see a lot of smoke, but it's winter so it's hard to tell smoke from steam.

I don't see any foam or coffee in the oil fill, though I haven't opened anything up or checked the oil pan.

The coolant doesn't have oil floating on it, and smells like coolant. It gets a little brown over time.

Does the dipstick look ok? Often when the coolant and oil mix, you'll see it on the dipstick. Oil doesn't really float on coolant like it does on pure water. Either way, if the oil or coolant didn't look normal, it would be obvious that one didn't look like it should.

You'll want to do a compression test to see if any cylinders are low. I would be careful doing a cooling system pressure test because if coolant is leaking into the cylinders, you don't want to hydro lock the engine. It's important to figure out where the coolant is going because if it is a basic leak, that will save you a head gasket. Your front passenger floor carpet isn't wet is it?

No, the dipstick looks normal. I think it's a leak from the cylinder directly into the coolant. It only gets air in the system while the engine is running (especially when I turn it off), and the coolant level stays the same unless it spills over at the pressure cap. I will try to do a pressure test. If I take the spark plugs out before pressurizing the coolant, I don't need to worry about hydrolock, right? Any coolant will squirt out of the spark plug holes when I turn the engine, and I will see which cylinder has the leak.

If you leave the spark plugs out when you first turn over the engine, you should be ok. Be careful when you crank it, water really shoots out of the plug holes! And yes, you should be able to see which cylinder(s) might be leaking. Good luck!

Most cooling systems should be able to maintain 14-15 psi. Thankfully the oil still looks ok. It's a mess when there's intermix

Thanks for the update. Torque-to-yield, or stretch bolts should always be replaced when removed as they are one time use. Many shops with a smog machine can use their emissions sniffer to check for exhaust gasses in your coolant tank. They don't submerse the sniffer but the fumes off the coolant will show a reading if the combustion is leaking

Joe,
I was told I had a leak in my head gasket but that they were able to fix it "chemically." However I am still experiencing overheating and loss of coolant and my passenger side floor carpet does get wet. Can any one suggest what to do next? Please!!

change the heater core it's a little radiator inside the dashboard probably has a crack in or something in it which is causing coolant to leak inside the car on the floor board causing the engine to get air in the system causing the temperature to rise or go up and down maybe overheat at times which is dangerous if not replcaed that may solve your problem

It was the head gasket, leaking combustion gases into the coolant. Last time they repaired the head gasket they didn't replace the torque-to-yield head bolts, so they were stretched and not tightened down enough.