Possible Cracked Head...

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-Defender110-

-Defender110-

Well-Known Member
Posts
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Location
limerick, Ireland
ok so i recently replaced the head gasket on my td5 2002 defender 110, after an overheating incident, i still havent found out what caused it to overheat, but its back on the road, all pipes seem to be leak free, temp gauge and sender are working normally, so is the thermostat, and im having no issues with overheating. however, often enough on startup it will puff decent enough ammounts of white smoke which clears later, and it does seem to be loosing coolant slowly, is it a hairline crack in the head or are there other possibilities? what are my options ?? :(
 
-Defender110- said:
ok so i recently replaced the head gasket on my td5 2002 defender 110, after an overheating incident, i still havent found out what caused it to overheat, but its back on the road, all pipes seem to be leak free, temp gauge and sender are working normally, so is the thermostat, and im having no issues with overheating. however, often enough on startup it will puff decent enough ammounts of white smoke which clears later, and it does seem to be loosing coolant slowly, is it a hairline crack in the head or are there other possibilities? what are my options ?? :(
Click to expand...
sell it;)
 
-Defender110- said:
ok so i recently replaced the head gasket on my td5 2002 defender 110, after an overheating incident, i still havent found out what caused it to overheat, but its back on the road, all pipes seem to be leak free, temp gauge and sender are working normally, so is the thermostat, and im having no issues with overheating. however, often enough on startup it will puff decent enough ammounts of white smoke which clears later, and it does seem to be loosing coolant slowly, is it a hairline crack in the head or are there other possibilities? what are my options ?? :(
Click to expand...

is it starting first time or is it cranking over a couple of times first?
 
It has a slight (SLIGHT) tinge of blue to it, but im losing no oil, and its breathing properly, and it smells pretty normal. the coolant drops irratically, for instance on a 5 mile journey it lost the contents of the overflow tank exactly, (i put that down to a badly bled coolant system) then it was grand for a good while, then on a 85km trip it lost about three quarters of a litre, but then on a 150km journey it lost practically nothing?? my MAF is bolixed too though. could this cause the smoke?
 
Could be a knackered header tank cap which leaks under pressure. Any signs of coolant around the neck of the header tank?

Are you doing short runs which dont give the exhaust time to get nice and hot? This leaves condensation in the pipes and boxes which steams off next time you start the engine.

MAF could cause some black smoke but not steam which you normally see as white.
 
@td5 tool: I assume so seeing as its on the recipt but he never mentioned it when i picked it up.

@shifty: Nope ive been very closely watching the coolant system since all this happened and theres definitely no moisture around the cap, but how would i go about checking the pipes for pinholes? that could be it but i cant see anything out of the ordinary around the engine bay. generally speaking they have been long journeys since i replaced the head gasket so i dont think its condensation, ill go take a video now and upload it. one second.
 
The TD5 should normally be filled with OAT anti freeze which is red or purple in colour and can be easily seen if it is leaking in reasonable amounts.
Believe it or not it also glows in the dark under a UV lamp which can be useful when looking for the tiniest of leaks. I found that out when I accidently spilt some and during a late night BBQ the UV party lights made it glow on the ground.
 
-Defender110- said:
Ok... that hasnt worked... its too dark.... but it couldnt be condensation in the exhaust, its way more steam than that...
Click to expand...
You'd be surprised how little water it takes to make a lot of steam. The average exhaust can hold a fair few pints during the winter months.
Back in the day we used to drill a small 1/8" hole in the bottom of each exhaust box to let them drain. At MOT time just put a small self tapper in to stop it blowing and take it out afterwards. Of course if you have a stainless exhaust its not so important to get the water out but the same priciple applies.
 
haha, now that should make life easier as long as i dont spill it :D on a similar note... (i think this could be the moment when i get roared at for being a fool) would filling the cooling system with water and a small bottle of halfords finest coolant stuff cause it to disappear slowly??
 
You are supposed to use a 50% mix of OAT and distilled water. You can buy the stuff pre-mixed or dilute it yourself. The difference in price is negligible but if you think about it you only get half the anti freeze with the pre mixed stuff as the other half is water.
Bog standard Ethylene Glycol will stop things freezing but there is some evidence that it eats the Aluminium parts of your engine over time. A Google search will explain.
 
You'd be surprised how little water it takes to make a lot of steam. The average exhaust can hold a fair few pints during the winter months.
Back in the day we used to drill a small 1/8" hole in the bottom of each exhaust box to let them drain. At MOT time just put a small self tapper in to stop it blowing and take it out afterwards. Of course if you have a stainless exhaust its not so important to get the water out but the same priciple applies.
Click to expand...

Ive a straight through mid section, decat. and ive never seen it smoke like this... :(
 
Shifty1962 said:
You are supposed to use a 50% mix of OAT and distilled water. You can buy the stuff pre-mixed or dilute it yourself. The difference in price is negligible but if you think about it you only get half the anti freeze with the pre mixed stuff as the other half is water.
Bog standard Ethylene Glycol will stop things freezing but there is some evidence that it eats the Aluminium parts of your engine over time. A Google search will explain.
Click to expand...


Do NOT mix different types of antifreeze

read the FAQ in the FAQ section
 
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