Cracked heads?

[cscopeland79]

Re: Cracked heads?

yeah, there's steam or smoke with the exhaust

[UDLOSE98]

Re: Cracked heads?

well, then you may be f'd

[cscopeland79]

Re: Cracked heads?

ok, i just had to buy a new 165.00 anatomy text book so assuming a shop is gonna want some money to tell me anything, i'm not gonna be able to do that. i'd hate to have pull both the heads off if only one of them is blown. any other suggestions as to how to figure that out?

[UDLOSE98]

Re: Cracked heads?

well it is still possible its a lower intake, but that seems to be more unlikely
only other ways would be to

a. visually inspect the heads for any leaking
b. remove your Y pipe so you can see which side is smoking

[Joey41]

Re: Cracked heads?

Don't put stop leak in as a temporary fix!!! I did this years ago when I didn't know better and it ruined my radiator, according to my trusted radiator shop. Had to buy a new radiator because it was all clogged up.

[cscopeland79]

Re: Cracked heads?

yeah, I'm not gonna put that crap in my car, just today I've heard more nightmare stories than I'd like to. right now I'm just depressed about having to get those heads off. it'll be the biggest project of this type that I've ever done. just looking at it i can tell it's gonna be a pain in the but to get down in there. half the engine is under the dashboard. Any tips or tricks would be greatly appreciated...

[stormwolf1972]

Re: Cracked heads?

i have used stop leak many times....the radiator shop is just trying to sell you a new radiator....i have used it too seal a cracked water jacket....vehicle ran fine for more than 3 years.......but youd be better off replacing the head gaskets....its a pain in the *** but its do-able...just need a repair manual and a good set of metric wrenches and sockets

[silverlightning]

Re: Cracked heads?

Stop leak is a short term fix. I know of some Unreputable car dealers that put that crap in just to get the vehicale to auction. I have traded my wifes impala in early this year and it had a bad intake gasket. The dealer told me he would put stop leak in it and retourqe the intake. And take it to the auction. Plus I have seen alot of cars with plugged collant lines because of this stuff.

[unvmyrs]

Re: Cracked heads?

I had the same thing happen in my car, but I have a 99. It started to misfire one day, so I thought it was a coil pack...wrong, it was a blown head gasket and it wasn't cheap to fix. I also tuned it up and flushed all fluids etc it cost me 2400.00 to get fixed at a chev dealership.

[unvmyrs]

Re: Cracked heads?

BTW, I know of a product called STEAL SEAL, which is very expensive, like 75 bucks a bottle, and it is supposed to work, without coating your entire inside of ur coolant system, but I never tried it. check it out!

[Camaro Dom]

Re: Cracked heads?

stop leak is just a quick fix. its the "short cut" solution for people who are too lazy/incapable of properly fixing the problem. Its like "fix a flat"... it'll only work for a few days maybe. If you went to a shop and they used stop leak to "fix" your car, how happy would you be with that shop?
dude, its like a flowchart. Find all the places that coolant flows, and start lookin at them. Look closely and you'll see if its leaking. head gasket leaks are common w/ u 3.4 boys so start there!