kapil_m

Guys,

I took my car to the dealer after noticing oil in the antifreeze but no antifreeze in the oil.

The dealer told me that the block is cracked and I need a new motor. The gentleman at the dealer said they ran leakdown and compression tests. However, he did not say that they removed the head or anything like that. He also confirmed that there was no antifreeze in the oil, but that there was oil in the antifreeze.

Can the dealer tell definitively that the block is cracked by using just leak down and compression tests? Or is there a chance this is a cracked head or a blown headgasket?

They are recommending replacing the entire motor to the tune of 10K all in (new) and 7K for used.

What does this sound like to you?

Kind regards.

3ngin33r1

Well, if they are correct, $10k is one hell of a motor.

You can get them cheaper than that, look here, hell, look on eBay and you can get them for a fraction of $10k.

ian05s2k

that seems a little high. I would shop around a little before you commit to anything. YOu may look into a 2nd opinion

-Ian

dhayner

I don't think the dealer or anyone else can tell whether it's a cracked block, a cracked head, or a headgasket without pulling the head and looking.

iam7head

how the heck they can tell the motor is crack from the inside without pulling the head?

you are most likely to blew a HG, you will not find coolant in the oil just by looking, if you see milky/oil/thin film of oil in your coolant you have coolant in your motor oil.
bring it to somewhere else to pull the head, the hg should be replace, check the block for straightness and see if you have warp page in head/block.

milkbubble

With a leak down test you apply air into the cylinder while its locked at TDC. Then watch the gauge and see what % is leaking down and compare results to the other cylinders. You can also open the oil cap and listen for air. Of course some will get past the rings but you can hear it when a large amout of air is. Open the radiator cap and if you see bubbles then its getting past as well.

kapil_m

Thanks for the advice. This is very helpful.

FYI, from the dealer leakdown test they said it was the #1 cylinder that was leaking.

I spoke to another dealer and he said that the reason dealers don't want to take the head off is because that would cost anywhere from 600 to 1,000 dollars worth of labor (in the Boston area) and they would much rather go for the "catch all" and replace the entire motor.

Anyone know of a trustworthy dealer (or mechanic shop) in the Boston area that I can have do the kind of work recommended- i.e., pull the head and diagnose the problem properly and perform any necessary replacements (HG, head if need be, etc.)?

Thanks again for your help.

p.s. What milkbubble says (see below)-- is that a way of telling for sure that the block is cracked or is it a way to tell that you have either a blown HG, a cracked head or a cracked block and you should open the head to see which one of these it actually is?

"With a leak down test you apply air into the cylinder while its locked at TDC. Then watch the gauge and see what % is leaking down and compare results to the other cylinders. You can also open the oil cap and listen for air. Of course some will get past the rings but you can hear it when a large amout of air is. Open the radiator cap and if you see bubbles then its getting past as well."

3ngin33r1

So they are lazy and don't want to do the labor even though you'd be paying them for it and instead want to charge you 10 times the amount of pulling the head and just replace the entire thing.

Now that's customer service.

jyeung528

so cylinder #1 leaks...

but from where?

blkwidow

That's what happens when you go to Satan. Grab a book and pull the motor yourself. Would save you a small fortune. A few friends, cases of beer and food should get the job done