bboothe

My stang started running hot a while back. I assumed it was my thermostat b/c i have a new aluminum radiator, new water pump, and new fan. I changed the thermostat to find that it wasnt the problem. I can fill my radiator up and it lasts 3 or 4 days before it runs low on coolant...I cannot find a leak anywhere. Im starting to wonder if i have a blown head gasket. How can I tell? How much will it cost to replace? I need some info!!! Thanks!

mdvaldosta

Do a compression test and look for any cylinders more than 10% lower pressure than the rest, you can also have someone pressurize the cooling system and see if its losing pressure somewhere (like in your heads).

roundman

make sure the radiator cap is holding pressure when the engine is at normal operating temps. if it isn't and the upper radiator hose doesn't get hard, then replace the cap with a new one and then see if you still lose coolant. if you're still losing coolant,
remove the radiator cap and fill the radiator with water. then start the engine and let it warm up and look for bubbles constantly coming up in the filler neck. you may have to increase the speed above an idle. if you get a lot of bubbles on a continuous basis, then you probably have blown a head gasket. a compression test will then tell you what side of the engine has the blown gasket. a really bad blown gasket will make white smoke come out the exhaust and it will smell like antifreeze.

bboothe

If it was a blown head gasket would i see any decline in performance???

roundman

Most certainly you would see a big decline in performance, at least 12.5% or more as the cylinder where the gasket is blown isn't making any power.

bboothe

I hope that it is not a blown gasket. I am gong to do a pressure test on it today. How much am i looking to spend to change it?

roundman

I don't have a clue, but it may run as much as $500 as just an educated guess. all depends on where you take it to get it fixed. you could always call around and ask for an estimate from several dealers or other repair shops just to get a better idea.

errknee

check the cap first it has hold pressure or it will loose coolant make sure that it is 50/50 mix
water boils at 212 and antifreeze boils at 239 with 3 degrees added for every pound of pressure in the cooling system very important aslo there is a dye (must use black light) that will show you your leaks and there is a system that checks for combustion gasses in the cooling system (it is some chemical that changes color if any is found) check the ac drain and defrost operation maybe a heater core is leaking????

vfast

if you can do it yourself you can do it under 100.00
there always stop leak*L*

ninjzx998

Under $100 is a bit low don't you think? At a minimum you will need a quality gasket and new head bolts since they are TTY, coolant, and an intake gasket. Not all that much more than $100, not sure because i priced out Cometic gaskets which run around $150, but you still should be looking around $60-$70 for the gaskets alone.