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Ye Olde (8v) Head Gasket?

'87 Scirocco 8v; 167K; head gasket w/ 23K

Would like to get some thoughts on my suspicions.

Been noticing a darkening of my coolant over the past few months. Kind of the thing at first you disregard as perhaps it is just old, then start to look and say, "hey, that ain't right". Poured some out and yup, nice gold-green-brown color and smells and is oily. Soooo...

Noticed too that the engine has run a bit warmer and the coolant reservoir is lately getting overpressurized (oil-coolant mixture will appear around base of cap threads).

Those are the only symptoms. No real drivability issues whatsoever. This leads me to think, crap, the head might be warped. Other possibility is the standard oil cooler (new gasket and cleaned out also about 23K ago). I see no external leakage anywhere.

So - I yanked the head. Given that I am in an apartment and winter is approaching (although it has been a very warm fall here in Virginia), I wanted to get the work done JUST IN CASE. Probably should have done a compression test first. But this is a beater and well, so what.

Going to take the head in for checkage and see how it goes. I really wanted to just get another year's worth of drive out of this as much of it has been mechanically rebuilt. Turn around time for the head, should it indeed be warped, will hopefully give me time to get it back in and adjusted/running before the cold fall rains (cue Guns & Butter).

I am going to post pics of the headgasket tomorrow as I don't see any damage to it, but would like people's observations.

Reply to
philboeye
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My moneys on the oil cooler. Vw has very few issues with head gaskets.

Reply to
Lost In Space

Well, I tend to believe it is now the oil cooler, too.

I checked the head for cracks and warpage - NONE. Head gasket was in great shape as was the block deck. So what is left but the oil cooler? I really don't know.

$100 for a new one and I don't wanna foot that, especially if it ain't the oil cooler. I'd actually like to check the integrity of the current oil cooler but know of no way that can be done. Anyone have any ideas on that?

Reply to
philboeye

How did you check the head for warpage and cracks? If you only did a visual check, such flaws may not be apparent. AFAIK, the only reliable check requires that the head be removed, then checked for warpage with gages and checked for cracks with a zyglo or similar examination.

Reply to
Papa

Well my head gasket failed in my 83 GTi engine (in my 83 Audi 4000S). I put it on in 1991 (140K miles ago). Coolant leaking out by timing belt. You could see a crack in the head gasket that the coolant followed out. When I do see bad head gaskets, or warped cyl. heads, it usually pressurizes the cooling system but does not appear to leak oil inside of coolant. My 16V engine, 1991 Passat with 112K miles, has a new oil cooler but I still see some slight oil build up in the coolant. It definitely leaks a little coolant and oil around the head gasket though. This will be the next project on my Passat (AKA my money pit) along with a new brake master before the winter hits.

So does your 87 Scirocco have an oil cooler?

Look at what a bad oil cooler can do to a 1.8t engine in an Audi A4 given time.

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BTW the Audi A4 is fine now with a new oil cooler after flushing it with Dawn dish detergent and clean water a few times.

later, dave (One out of many daves)

Reply to
dave AKA vwdoc1

Do like I did, just remove both coolant lines to the oil cooler and hook them up together. Then run the engine and watch the oil come out of the oil cooler via the coolant pipes. Look here......

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later, dave (One out of many daves)

Reply to
dave AKA vwdoc1

Wow, I've never seen anything quite like that. Disgusting as a word doesn't quite cut it.

Checking the head - I had removed it and cleaned the mating surface well. Took a steel straightedge and a .004 feeler gauge and measured all possible angles. I am not even sure I could have snuck a .002 gauge through any area. It was very tight.

Reply to
philboeye

Well check the oil cooler and see if that is your problem. Of course you need to install that new cyl head gasket. ;-)

Reply to
dave AKA vwdoc1

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