[4x4ish]

95% sure i have a cracked head gasket in my 1.6efi vitara. will take it to suzi auto in next few days to get confirmation.

i keep coolant toped up, why do they crack? please list all the reasons youz know and i will try to investigate what happened and fix it so it doesn't happen again.

maybe others can benifit from this thread to avoid it happeneing to them coz its a pure waste of money. Not too happy!

thanks

[JrZook]

blown headgasket or cracked head?

[4x4ish]

most of the time its a head gasket.

[mondo]

there is usually an underlying reason as to why a head gasket fails, this is usually due to a warped head, which then creates a gap the gasket cannot fill usually around cylinder 2 and 3. this is what i found after a warped head

[SuziBlu]

Most of the time its heat related.

[Ben_Sierra]

On my Sierra it was a dodgy repair by a previous owner, caused it to go a couple of months after I bought it...


The cylinder head bolts were barely finger tight!

[ball]

Ben_Sierra wrote:

On my Sierra it was a dodgy repair by a previous owner, caused it to go a couple of months after I bought it...


The cylinder head bolts were barely finger tight!

An alloy head that has lost it's hardness due to severe overheating can cause the head bolts to lose their clamping ability.

[Ben_Sierra]

ball wrote:

Ben_Sierra wrote:

On my Sierra it was a dodgy repair by a previous owner, caused it to go a couple of months after I bought it...


The cylinder head bolts were barely finger tight!

An alloy head that has lost it's hardness due to severe overheating can cause the head bolts to lose their clamping ability.

I changed the gasket over a year ago and no dramas since, so I can't see the head being damaged...

[royce]

its just what they do, no metal can cope with going hot cold hot cold forever

[4x4ish]

something triggered it, i need to stop the cause so it doesnt happen after its fixed.

[4x4ish]

ok ill start the list from what little i know:

1. coolant leak through faulty/ old hose.
2. radiator blocked or leaking.
3. thermostat not opening up properly and letting water flow though properly.
4. a hose could be blocked somewhere slowing water to flow properly.
5. water pump is faulty.

Royce, what u said could be true but its a last option after all the other things prove to be non faulty.

thats all i know. any addons to this?

[Scrawny]

As it's been stated already, headgaskets usually blow due to an overheat at some stage. What are the signs showing on your one? Milky oil? Bubbles in radiator?

[SuziBlu]

Good spot to look is inside the oil cap, where you take the cap off to top up the engine oil, if that has cream there, blown head gasket more than likely.