pretty sure the head gasket's gone...

[mickc22]

:down:
I let her warm up to drain out the oil, had the rad cap off as I'd already given it a clean
when it was hot, a load of thick brown "goop" started oozing out the top of the open rad......
Head gasket? right?

So far I've removed:
-the bonnet, to make access easier
-the battery and tray, clean out the area
-the radiator, expansion tank and hoses

thought I'd flushed the rad out pretty good so I set it down, tipped up at an angle to drain out, and left it for a bit

when I started clearing up for the day, there was still loads of goop oozing out of it.
How do I make sure I've cleaned it out properly?
whats the best stuff to use?

any advice is welcome

cheers
Mick

 

[micrah220]

Just buy some holts rad flush and it should clear all the rubbish out. The coolant on mine hadnt been changed for ages and i used that and it cleaned it all out. Then You'll be able to see if youve got a problem.

 

[Micra 110]

Forward and reverse flush with the Hose pipe....full on!

 

[mickc22]

the goop is pretty oily, bit like runny brown mayo
will the rad flush deal with that?
I was thinking I'd need something more along the line of Gunk

As some of the coolant hoses are split I thought about replacing the lot with some colored ones. Is there anywhere that does colored hose sets?

I did see an article in one of the car mags about spaying your hoses, is this the only option, or just the cheapest? :grinning:

OOH! ooh!
I think I just found some...
rallynuts.com
.....have some assorted colors/kits, whether they have any for a micra is another question :laugh:

 

[micrah220]

the goop is pretty oily, bit like runny brown mayo
will the rad flush deal with that?
I was thinking I'd need something more along the line of Gunk

As some of the coolant hoses are split I thought about replacing the lot with some colored ones. Is there anywhere that does colored hose sets?

I did see an article in one of the car mags about spaying your hoses, is this the only option, or just the cheapest? :grinning:

the rad flush should deal with it but the gunk might cause some problems to the cooling system if you use it.

you could have a look for the coloured hoses on ebay, you should be able to find some on there

 

[mickc22]

found some here Artel Motorsports
they've got more colors too :grinning:

 

[micrah220]

that sounds good. have you had any luck cleaning out the radiator?

 

[mickc22]

nah not yet, just left it draining, I'll have a play with it on the weekend

 

[mickc22]

what's the best way to buy the gaskets/
As I need them, or just buy a head gasket set?
I found a set on express car parts for £32, is that a reasonable?

mick

 

[frank]

mick

if you leave the manifolds on, you,ll probably get away with the head gasket only, but if the car chuffs any smoke when you start up in the morning, you might be best to get the set that includes the valve seals

 

[mickc22]

thanks Frank
no haven't noticed any smoke on start up, think I'll just get head and rocker cover gaskets for now then
I did find a cheaper set over at Japarts in case any one is interested,