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Blown head gasket :(

PostPosted: Sun Mar 30, 2014 12:55 pm
by JimD
Pulled into my driveway Friday night, and a a few minutes after I put it in park the chimes and lights started going off for overheating. :o
Before that she's been running awesome. :?
Turned her off, open the hood, could smell it was really hot, no leaks except for boiling out at the reservoir. Haven't noticed any leaks at all.

The next morning I checked the reservoir and it was full. Radiator was low. Still no leaks.
Started her up and immediately got bubbling in the radiator.
Sweet antifreeze smell from exhaust.
Checked the oil dipstick and it really didn't look like there was antifreeze contamination.
Took her to the shop and was running at high temp by the time I got there.....about 6 blocks.

I trust this shop. The service manager is an engine tech (Mitsubishi Certified) for umpteen years.
He confirmed the blown head gasket prognosis. :(

I figure I should replace the timing belt and water pump, too. She's got over 80K.

He's going to work up some numbers for me on Monday. Until then, Kool Beanz is sitting in their shop.
I'm having separation anxiety!! :shock:

2005 Limited NA, 82K miles

Re: Blown head gasket :(

PostPosted: Sun Mar 30, 2014 1:08 pm
by DIRECTOR
Sorry to hear that Jim! Seems like not a lot of miles to have that happen? I hope it all works out for you. At least most things that they have to do for a head gasket are the same as for the timing belt.

Re: Blown head gasket :(

PostPosted: Sun Mar 30, 2014 2:33 pm
by JimD
DIRECTOR wrote:Sorry to hear that Jim! Seems like not a lot of miles to have that happen? I hope it all works out for you. At least most things that they have to do for a head gasket are the same as for the timing belt.


Thanks, John.
I've never blown a head gasket before. Most of my cars have had well over 100K without major internal engine issues.

Re: Blown head gasket :(

PostPosted: Sun Mar 30, 2014 2:55 pm
by DIRECTOR
While not terribly common on the PT Cruiser, I have heard of it happening. Do you know if the cooling system has been serviced on the car. With the new anti freeze that lasts 5 years, people have gotten out of the habit of flushing out their cooling systems and putting in new coolant. Eventually, antifreeze will get acetic and may erode head gasket seals. Then there is the issue of an aluminum head and a cast iron block. These expand and contract at different rates and this can not be good for a head gasket.

Re: Blown head gasket :(

PostPosted: Sun Mar 30, 2014 6:27 pm
by JimD
DIRECTOR wrote:While not terribly common on the PT Cruiser, I have heard of it happening. Do you know if the cooling system has been serviced on the car.

The cooling system was serviced about 18 months ago.

Re: Blown head gasket :(

PostPosted: Sun Mar 30, 2014 7:43 pm
by DIRECTOR
OK, Thanks, just a thought!

Re: Blown head gasket :(

PostPosted: Wed Apr 02, 2014 12:28 pm
by MagicDj
Jim, sorry to hear your baby is in the shop. Yeah the expense of all this will suck, on the up-side, at least you'll know these things have been taken care and you won't have to worry for a while!

Re: Blown head gasket :(

PostPosted: Wed Apr 23, 2014 8:57 pm
by myredpt
Jim, how did it all turn out with your PT repair?

Re: Blown head gasket :(

PostPosted: Fri May 09, 2014 6:51 pm
by JimD
Thanks for asking, John.

It cost me more than I wanted to pay....but what doesn't.

I'm not totally happy with the way she's running.....kind of rough & gas mileage is down from what it was. For the work that was done, I think she should be running much better. I'm taking her back in this weekend to have them figure out why.
They have to recharge the A/C anyway, since their A/C service machine was out-of-commission when they replaced the head gasket. That will be free of charge (very punny?).

I think my front wheel bearings need to be replaced, too. I'm getting a lot of "whine" from the front end @ 20-40 mph. They'll be checking that out.

The front windshield washer is on the fritz, too. The back works, so I'm thinking it's either a clog, the bi-directional valve, or the pump. May as well have them fix that, too.

Does it ever end?

Re: Blown head gasket :(

PostPosted: Fri May 09, 2014 8:49 pm
by DIRECTOR
If they were off one cam tooth when they put it together it will run rough and have bad mileage.