dads suburban big job??

[93civicex]

hey all here is the dilema, at first, he was throwing a code for something with the thermostat. a few weeks later, yes i know it was a while, i drove his car and dont remember if it over heated or not... shouldnt have been driving.. but anyways it died on me. everytime we drove it, it had a smell of coolant but couldnt figure out where it was. i think then it was just the intake gasket maybe right?? well now it throws a code, misfire cylinder six, and yes there is dreaded water in the oil. does this mean the head gasket is blown? it starts and everything is find it just gets hot real quick and loses is water fast as well. anyony with help please do, i have to have this job done in a week, and am used to working on hondas my whole life.

[mobil_12]

It still could be the intake gasket.
If the gasket is leaking internally, it will leak coolant into the oil. It can also leak coolant into the intake runner for the different cylinders.
The gasket can also leak externally.
Chevy trucks with 5.0 and 5.7 v8s are prone to intake gasket failure. Thats where I would start.

[nosefirst]

Try some Bars Leak.

[Austin8214]

Originally Posted by nosefirst

Try some Bars Leak.

Bad advise fix the problem right.

[nosefirst]

"Bad advise fix the problem right"


Is it really so bad? Think about it. Could you drop everything right now to "fix it right"? Someone else stopped their leak for 50k just by adding it according to their post on this forum.

My own 98' 5.7 w\103K was loosing coolant very slowly w\no apparant vissable leak, and now it has stopped since I added it. Is it harming the engine?

If I had to drop everything right now just to "fix it right" it would literally cost me ten times what it would to fix it later.

So why is it "bad advice"?

[Austin8214]

Originally Posted by nosefirst

"Bad advise fix the problem right"


Is it really so bad? Think about it. Could you drop everything right now to "fix it right"? Someone else stopped their leak for 50k just by adding it according to their post on this forum.

My own 98' 5.7 w\103K was loosing coolant very slowly w\no apparant vissable leak, and now it has stopped since I added it. Is it harming the engine?

If I had to drop everything right now just to "fix it right" it would literally cost me ten times what it would to fix it later.

So why is it "bad advice"?

I am just not a fan of some half ass fix that may leave me walking later. Anyway from the sounds of his post his leak is in his head gasket Me personaly I would not want to try the bars leak to fix a head gasket.
Besides I have seen some of that quick fix stuff plug a water jacket in the head then you have a prolbem.

[93civicex]

well we tore the intake off and the gasket was torn and shredded to hell, it did look nasty, right now we are gonna throw in some diesel fuel and flush out the motor so far. there really is no way to check the head gasket from here is there? i went to auto zone the experts of all autos ha, and the dude said with this year (99) the head gaskets do go out alot and if it did over heat as i suppose, i didnt pay attention cuz i was out of it, but do know the engine killed it self. still started after wards tho. also how prone are the heads to warping if they over heat? thanks for all the help guys.

[93civicex]

oh and i also forgot to mention the spark plugs showed no sign of water being on them... if there was a problem with the head gasket, would there not be some indication on water on the plugs, just a guess but it is something i always looked for when workin on hondas.. they were just very dark, as if they had gotten quite hot, and looked 75000 miles old which they were, barely any contacts left

[nosefirst]

When I realized that I'm going to be yanking the intake like every one else, first thought that came to me was "might as well yank the heads too". Have them "fluxed" and resurfaced, grind the valves and replace the guides.

That is of course unless your not going to keep the rig.

Thanks to Bars Leak, looks like I'll be able to wait till this Winter when I'll have the time.

[93civicex]

well we finished up the job, new plugs, new intake gasket, new thermostat and a few oil changes to make sure all the water was out of the oil, cleaned her up, sitting right at 160 and never gets a degree hotter. i was so keeping my fingers crossed that i didnt have to deal with a head gasket, thanks to everyone for your help advice and encouragement. if you want it done right, do it yourself, right, the first time. it was very bonding for me and dad as well, being that i took responsibility for it going this far, i overheated it when i was a bit tipsy and not paying attention the to temp. lesson is boys and girls, dont drink and drive especially in a vehicle that has a blown intake gasket