foxminer Posted May 6, 2007 Share Posted May 6, 2007 i have a discovery td5 on a 99 plate, i found there was oil in my cooling system and promtly drained it.On enquiring about this at a local garage they told me either the head gasket had gone or the head itself was cracked, but there are no signs of water in the oil (milky residue).Is there a way of checking this before it let a garage look at it, the job could cost in excess of £600 which i cant afford to spend if this is not the fault.any suggestions would be gratefully recieved. thanks Foxminer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les Henson Posted May 7, 2007 Share Posted May 7, 2007 Thoroughly clean the cooling system - add washing powder to the coolant (a tea-cup full will do). Drive around for a while to circulate the mixture and then thoroughly drain and flush the system. If the oil comes back, then you have a problem. Les. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxminer Posted May 7, 2007 Author Share Posted May 7, 2007 Thoroughly clean the cooling system - add washing powder to the coolant (a tea-cup full will do). Drive around for a while to circulate the mixture and then thoroughly drain and flush the system. If the oil comes back, then you have a problem.Les. Hi Les, thanks for the info but i`m told by my other half we don`t have powder will a "liqui-tab" do the same job?. thanks foxminer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les Henson Posted May 7, 2007 Share Posted May 7, 2007 we don`t have powder will a "liqui-tab" do the same job?. Some people are just too posh! Yes, you can use those - your whites will be whiter than white, and your truck will have that Spring Fresh smell for weeks to come Les. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
imspanners Posted May 7, 2007 Share Posted May 7, 2007 It may not be the head gasket. It could either be the radiator (if it's got the oil cooler inside the radiator). Check for 2 metal pipes going into the radiator. Or if it's got a water to oil cooler on the side of the block, it could be that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxminer Posted May 7, 2007 Author Share Posted May 7, 2007 It may not be the head gasket. It could either be the radiator (if it's got the oil cooler inside the radiator).Check for 2 metal pipes going into the radiator. Or if it's got a water to oil cooler on the side of the block, it could be that. Hi there, does this have something to do with it being a "EU3" OR A PRE "EU3" Model and how do you tell the difference?. As i say mine is a `99 model and i don`t know which one it is. thanks for your reply it`s much appreciated. foxminer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
western Posted May 7, 2007 Share Posted May 7, 2007 IIRC all Td5's are EU3 compatible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxminer Posted May 7, 2007 Author Share Posted May 7, 2007 Some people are just too posh! Yes, you can use those - your whites will be whiter than white, and your truck will have that Spring Fresh smell for weeks to come Les. Hello again Les, i have tried your suggestion "IT WORKS" but i think the oil has blocked the thermostat, my heater doesn`t work. I think this has been a long running problem on this vehicle i`ve only owned it for 6 months.I can`t get the cooling system to fully circulate to flush it all. Maybe the radiator is also blocked, the oil is quite "GLOOPY" it`s the only way i can describe it sorry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les Henson Posted May 7, 2007 Share Posted May 7, 2007 When sufficient oil gets into the cooling system it turns into what is known as 'emulsion'. This is a coffee-coloured thick 'gloopy' mixture. To check if it's in the heater matrix you would need to remove one of the pipes going to it and see if the gunky mess is inside. If the matrix is blocked enough for it to prevent the heater from working completely, then a lot of oil has at some time got into the cooling system. Occasionally you get an engine where the head gasket has been fixed, but the system wasn't cleaned out properly - you would get blobs of the emulsion appearing for ages afterwards. The heater matrix is like a miniature radiator, and once it's blocked it's almost impossible to clean it out and get it back to a decent working order again. You may find that you will have to replace it. Les. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxminer Posted May 7, 2007 Author Share Posted May 7, 2007 When sufficient oil gets into the cooling system it turns into what is known as 'emulsion'. This is a coffee-coloured thick 'gloopy' mixture. To check if it's in the heater matrix you would need to remove one of the pipes going to it and see if the gunky mess is inside. If the matrix is blocked enough for it to prevent the heater from working completely, then a lot of oil has at some time got into the cooling system. Occasionally you get an engine where the head gasket has been fixed, but the system wasn't cleaned out properly - you would get blobs of the emulsion appearing for ages afterwards. The heater matrix is like a miniature radiator, and once it's blocked it's almost impossible to clean it out and get it back to a decent working order again. You may find that you will have to replace it.Les. Could this also stop my radiator from flushing.My heater did work good it only stopped working a couple of days ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les Henson Posted May 7, 2007 Share Posted May 7, 2007 Disconnect the top and bottom radiator hoses, put a garden hose in the top and see what comes out the bottom. The emulsion may restrict the efficiency of the radiator, but I've not known one to be completely blocked by it. Les. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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