Head Gasket issue

[SilvrT]

This isn't about my scoot but I suppose it could apply. Seems I have a coolant leak at the head gasket just where the head meets the block at the right front of the engine. It's a V8 Dodge 5.2L. There's no coolant getting into the oil and doesn't appear to be any combustion gasses getting into the cooling system (yet). The leak is very slow. I tried a couple inexpensive (less than $15) "stop leak" products but that doesn't appear to work. Been reading about a product called "Thermagasket". I know anything like this is only going to be a "temporary" fix and I'll eventually have to replace the head gasket (which I can do myself) but my garage is full of other stuff including my scoot and I really would prefer to wait until warmer weather before tackling this.

 

Has anyone on here had any experience with "Thermagasket" or other similar such products that you'd care to share?

 

I'm hoping to at least temporarilly fix this leak but I find it a waste of time trying one product and then the next only to find they don't work...would rather try something that at least someone I know has had success with.

 

Thanks

[Thom]

yep , remember when i though i had a head gasket leak in my 1g ? it was not a head gasket , it was the plastic pease with the o rings in the head , any way jricherd told me about that stuff , looked it up at autorx.com tried it works great !! cost a 100 bucks but i don't want to tear down Silver until i get the black is running [ i am not carl i only work on 1 m/c at a time plus no snow :stirthepot::rotfl:] anyway i like it

thom

[SilvrT]

yep , remember when i though i had a head gasket leak in my 1g ? it was not a head gasket , it was the plastic pease with the o rings in the head , any way jricherd told me about that stuff , looked it up at autorx.com tried it works great !! cost a 100 bucks but i don't want to tear down Silver until i get the black is running [ i am not carl i only work on 1 m/c at a time plus no snow :stirthepot::rotfl:] anyway i like it

thom

 

Thanks for the info thom ... I placed an order today. Hopefully it will get me thru until warmer weather when I can rip the engine apart myself outside and replace those head gaskets (might as well do em both) and anything else that needs fixin. Prolly a good time to have the heads shaved just in case they're warped (one most likely is) and have the valves ground and seated, springs checked and replaced as necc, oil seals... oh what the h&LL... might as well yank the pistons and put in new rings, con rod bearings, crank bearings, camshaft, ......... hmmmmmm .... mebbe simpler to just buy a brand new long block....or a whole truck!! haha

[jfarr53]

I had a 1991 Caddy Deville that sprung a leak and I used thermagasket. It worked for the most part.

 

If you get it - make sure you follow the instructions carefully. It is very sensitive to anti-freeze and will not stick to any surface with it on it. They tell you to take TSP or something like it and run it in the block. There are some other suggestions like running several tablespoons of Dawn Liquid detergent. The key here is to get the internal block as free of oil and anti-freeze as possible.

 

There have been some really good testimonials and since yours in on the outside, it will probably work just fine.

 

Jim

[SilvrT]

I had a 1991 Caddy Deville that sprung a leak and I used thermagasket. It worked for the most part.

 

If you get it - make sure you follow the instructions carefully. It is very sensitive to anti-freeze and will not stick to any surface with it on it. They tell you to take TSP or something like it and run it in the block. There are some other suggestions like running several tablespoons of Dawn Liquid detergent. The key here is to get the internal block as free of oil and anti-freeze as possible.

 

There have been some really good testimonials and since yours in on the outside, it will probably work just fine.

 

Jim

 

Hey thanks for this info Jim ... what do you mean by "TSP"?

 

Considering what you said here, I think I'll do the reverse flush first, then put in a cooling system cleaner... run that for a while and then reverse flush it again so that the remaining water is totally clear before I put the thermogasket stuff in. I'm quite familiar with this sort of thing as in my younger years I took training and worked as a mechanic (non-licensed).

[StuD]

 

TSP Tri Sodium Phosphate Any paint store will have it. :canada:

[SilvrT]

TSP Tri Sodium Phosphate Any paint store will have it. :canada:

Tenjooberrymud !

 

(bet ya got more snow than me!)

[flb_78]

Cut a slit in the rubber on the bottom of the radiator cap and let it vent off the pressure instead of building it up. It won't hurt the engine as long as you're not towing. I wouldn't put any of that "fix-a-leak" crap in a motor. It settles in the radiator in the coils.

[jfarr53]

Thermagasket requires pure water (tap is ok) and the thermagasket per instructions. Then you need to drive it 400 miles with the stuff in it - so you need to make sure you don't have freezing temperatures. Since I was real close to winter, I used the old "100 watt bulb in the trouble light" routine under the hood at night. Made sure I ran the car just before bedtime to keep some latent heat in the block.

 

Like I said, it worked pretty well - and I was using a ton of antifreeze through the exhaust and it pretty much cleared it up - about a cup every three weeks or so.

 

Once that is done, they will tell you to never use radiator flush again - or you will wipe it out.

 

Good luck - incidentally the Thermagasket people are great to speak with and will be very helpful (no I don't work for them).

 

Jim

[Guest KitCarson]

I checked the price on this stuff........Pretty steep!!!. Will it fix the situation completely.....I bet not!! Will it gum up the radiator? I will bet heavily on that one!!. I have simply never seen any in a bottle product designed to fix a leak ever work completely.....yes it will slow it down for a bit....for a time....then go back to leaking. Just like everyones favorite......SEA FOAM......I suppose it works a bit.......but if you want performance and instant response out of a set of carbs........the lazy way never works.......completely....you simply have to bite the bullet and tear them down and clean them......replace all the rubber parts and tune them up. Once a gasket becomes defective...and a little corrosion seeps in.......it will always leak and be a problem.......until you physically fix it. Just my penny's worth.......just never have seen any in the bottle stuff work.........just like those miracle cleaning products......just spray it on and wash it off....still you end up with a polish rag in your hand. Kit

[SilvrT]

I checked the price on this stuff........Pretty steep!!!. Will it fix the situation completely.....I bet not!! Will it gum up the radiator? I will bet heavily on that one!!. I have simply never seen any in a bottle product designed to fix a leak ever work completely.....yes it will slow it down for a bit....for a time....then go back to leaking. Just like everyones favorite......SEA FOAM......I suppose it works a bit.......but if you want performance and instant response out of a set of carbs........the lazy way never works.......completely....you simply have to bite the bullet and tear them down and clean them......replace all the rubber parts and tune them up. Once a gasket becomes defective...and a little corrosion seeps in.......it will always leak and be a problem.......until you physically fix it. Just my penny's worth.......just never have seen any in the bottle stuff work.........just like those miracle cleaning products......just spray it on and wash it off....still you end up with a polish rag in your hand. Kit

 

I partially agree with you Kit .... I don't expect this stuff to be a permanent fix ... just a "patch job" until the weather gets warmer so I can work on it without freezing my *blank*s off (starts with a "b" and ends with 2 "L"s and has an "a" in the middle) LOL

 

Having said that, I never pass judgement on something I've never personally tried out....it's good to hear opinions but I'm one of those "show me" kinda guys.

[SilvrT]

Like I said, it worked pretty well - and I was using a ton of antifreeze through the exhaust and it pretty much cleared it up - about a cup every three weeks or so.

 

At this point, there is no coolant getting into the combustion chamber or the oil or vice versa so I want to "nip it in the bud" before that happens. I've parked the vehicle until I the product is delivered.

 

Good luck - incidentally the Thermagasket people are great to speak with and will be very helpful (no I don't work for them).

 

Jim

 

So I've heard....thanks.

[Gem Setter]

I own a Dodge 5.2 as well and had a similar situation (No oil in water no water in oil). I first thought it was the intake gaskets as I found a Dakota forum that suggested these were a weak spot. After replaceing them I still had the leak. Further inspection showed it was the timing chain cover. Coolant travels through this cover to the water pump. I found my leak to be at this common problem area aluminum vs iron. Although this may not be your solution it is worth a second look. Good luck.

[SilvrT]

I own a Dodge 5.2 as well and had a similar situation (No oil in water no water in oil). I first thought it was the intake gaskets as I found a Dakota forum that suggested these were a weak spot. After replaceing them I still had the leak. Further inspection showed it was the timing chain cover. Coolant travels through this cover to the water pump. I found my leak to be at this common problem area aluminum vs iron. Although this may not be your solution it is worth a second look. Good luck.

Thanks for the info... I fussed over where this leak was coming from for a long time....it sure appears to be coming from between the head and the block very close to the front of the engine on the right side. Where the head and the block meet...I can wipe it clean, run the engine for a while and eventually will see coolant seeping out there. I was hoping it would be something like a timing chain cover but I doubt it.

[Marcarl]

[ i am not carl i only work on 1 m/c at a time plus no snow :stirthepot::rotfl:] anyway i like it

thom

hey I only work on one at a time, Wayne gets to work on his own and have his own fun. I just lent him some room and got myself some nice company, well that could be debated, but looks don't count so much when you get older, like over 60, so I'm practising.:whistling:

[SilvrT]

Well, I got the product...arrived here in less than 2 weeks. Total cost including shipping to Canada was $129. I reverse-flushed the coolant, put in a can of rad-flush....ran it for about 15 min at around 2000 rpm....reverse-flushed it again. Then I installed a new 180 degree thermostat and at the same time replaced the thermostat housing (was rusting thru at the seam), put a new upper rad hose on and put the Thermagasket in...ran it again around 2000-2500 rpm for 15 min (after it came up to temp). NO MORE LEAK!

[SilvrT]

Well, I got the product...arrived here in less than 2 weeks. Total cost including shipping to Canada was $129. I reverse-flushed the coolant, put in a can of rad-flush....ran it for about 15 min at around 2000 rpm....reverse-flushed it again. Then I installed a new 180 degree thermostat and at the same time replaced the thermostat housing (was rusting thru at the seam), put a new upper rad hose on and put the Thermagasket in...ran it again around 2000-2500 rpm for 15 min (after it came up to temp). NO MORE LEAK!

 

Just wanted to post this followup in case anyone else out there is considering using this product. It's been almost 10 month's since I put in the Thermagasket and still no leaks. I ran it for a couple month's before I flushed it and installed regular antifreeze. We don't put a lot of miles on this truck but we drove it to Calgary and back when we hauled our new '06 RSMV home ... no cooling issues at all but I do notice that the 180 thermostat is a bit low for decent heat during the winter.

[friesman]

Just wanted to post this followup in case anyone else out there is considering using this product. It's been almost 10 month's since I put in the Thermagasket and still no leaks. I ran it for a couple month's before I flushed it and installed regular antifreeze. We don't put a lot of miles on this truck but we drove it to Calgary and back when we hauled our new '06 RSMV home ... no cooling issues at all but I do notice that the 180 thermostat is a bit low for decent heat during the winter.

 

 

Hey Rick , I am glad to see that your temporary fixes are as "temporary" as some of mine......:rotfl:

 

Brian

[SilvrT]

Hey Rick , I am glad to see that your temporary fixes are as "temporary" as some of mine......:rotfl:

 

Brian

 

 

heh... in a world of mechanical and electrical devices, NOTHING is ever PERMANENT ! But, if this stuff continues to hold, it's saving me a bundle in the interim. Just means more CHROME for the new scoot yeeeaaahhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!

[frogmaster]

OK now at the 20th post and I can not believe nobody mentioned your 2006 RSV has a five year warranty and why not let Uncle Yammie do all this work and expense? Confused?? Must have more $$$ than me.

[Squeeze]

OK now at the 20th post and I can not believe nobody mentioned your 2006 RSV has a five year warranty and why not let Uncle Yammie do all this work and expense? Confused?? Must have more $$$ than me.

 

Well, the initial Post is nearly a Year old, it's about a 5.2 Liter V8 Motor in a Dakota Truck and he didn't have the 2Gen by the Time he posted this in first Place.

 

 

:think:

[frogmaster]

Well, the initial Post is nearly a Year old, it's about a 5.2 Liter V8 Motor in a Dakota Truck and he didn't have the 2Gen by the Time he posted this in first Place.

 

 

:think:

 

Ahhhhhhh...... Now where did I place my glasses. Now makes cents TY

[friesman]

Ahhhhhhh...... Now where did I place my glasses. Now makes cents TY

 

If youre confused youre in good company, SilvrT has us confused just about anytime we talk to him......of course it might be the beer.........(him, not us).....

 

Brian:cool10:

[SilvrT]

If youre confused youre in good company, SilvrT has us confused just about anytime we talk to him......of course it might be the beer.........(him, not us).....

 

Brian:cool10:

 

 

HUH????????????????? :think:

 

:rasberry: