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[robert]

Hi,

Bother, I think I may have a blown head gasket on my 16V 33. Symptoms are:
1. Water drops on inside of oil filler cap.
2. Loss of coolant water (about 1 litre per 1/2 tank petrol).
3. "Mayonaise" at top of oil filler .

Questions:
1. How can I tell which side of the engine the problem is on.
2. Can I take the heads off without getting the engine out.


Thank you.

[ZeNiTh-PbArM]

hi

to tell which side leaks, remove plugs to see if one looks like it's burning coolant fluid too. you can look in the chambers through the plug holes, too, but on the 16v i think this is particularly hard to do.
look for an obvious leak of oil or water under the engine.
a compression test can sometimes give an idea (two mearby weak cylinders means blown gasket between)
some specialists use a special fluid to pressure the cooling system and can see where it leaks.
if you don't succeed to determine which gasket is faulty, you still have 50% chance to find the good one on the first try.
if i were you i would replace both head gaskets anyway, having made sure the heads are totally flat (have them machined if they dont), both timing belts with the four tensioners at the same time ; perhaps the water pump, too. be sure to top up with coolant fluid of the best quality, this is very important and very often ignored.

you can do the job with the engine in car ; it should be the hell of a pain in the ass, and there is a special tool to access the cylinder head bolts (you can see a picture in the "tools" section of this website)

good luck
zp

[alexj]

Water drops on inside of oil filler cap and some "Mayonaise" at top of oil filler can be seen on a "normal" engine that's done short trips in winter - probably due to condensation that needs a good hot run to clear out.

But, the loss of coolant water isn't normal. Check carefully for leaks and if you don't find anything, then follow the suggestions from ZeNiTh-PbArM regarding compression checks etc.

Regads, Lex

[johnboy]

.2 Can I take the heads off without getting the engine out.


Hi there,
yes you can do the job in the car,i put a 16v in my s2,the bent 8 valve's on one side and one on the other,so im pretty good at doing this job now if you undo the mount on the cross member and undo the cross member on what ever side you are doing,you will have to slacken the other side of it aswell. but put a little jack on the middle of the cross member and undo the top mount.then drop the engine abit,so it clear's the top mount,this way you can move the engine over abit,this should give you abit more space to undo the head bolt's,the bottom front one is a pig to get to if i remember,but it can be done.the socket for the head bolt's is a T55 bit.then repeat this on the other side.hope this make's sence good luck john
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[Toad]

my boxer develops ware & a little mayo when used for shorts trips but twice a week i do a 70 mile trip at 50-70 which always clears it up.

it also uses water. I think this is beacause when I changed the thermostat, I did'nt use a sealing paste on the pipes. the leak would be ion top of the engine so water would evaperate when it hits the hot block. so puddles wont form. it may also only leak when the engien is running & the system has built up pressure.
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[robert]

Hi all,

Thanks for your help. I'll have a crack at pulling the plugs out and having a look.

Cheers, Robert.