musthaveTang

hey all,

i got a '65 289 a month or so back. and its fallen on bad times!! a couple of days back, it has started running really ragged and letting out thick white smoke. and today it refused to start up. i am not well versed in car problems, but i think i have a big one here!

is it burning oil? does that mean that i have a major engine rebuild on my hands?

any replies will be greatly appreciated.

thanks for your time.
vamsi

68GEETEE

you may want to do a compression check to see what shape your engine is in. White smoke could be water in the oil, ie blown head gasket, or it could be something else.

www.mityvac.com/compression.html

RAdams

Since you said white smoke was coming out I would think it would be a blown head gasket just like 68GEETEE said.

69FECoupe

As has been said, start with a compression test.

musthaveTang

thanks for the tips guys. i will work on the compression check.

if it is a blown head gasket though, any idea what i am looking at financially and effort wise, to fix it. a rough idea would help.

thanks again

68GEETEE

if you need head gaskets, call several shops and see what prices you are quoted. A mechanic that knows what he is doing should have this done relatively quick, unless your heads need to be sent out for millwork, that will take some time and money. Should be the cost of the gaskets plus several hours labor as stated in a shop manual. Every mechanic charges different labor rates, so shop around.

69FECoupe

Was the motor overheated prior to the problem?

musthaveTang

there are a couple of shops that work on old cars around here. i will ask around.

also i think the car was overheating a little, the temp guage would nudge above the halfway mark after a few miles of running but would pretty much stay there. there never was any smoke coming out from under the hood or anything though!