no_3of4

I've looked at many topics on here, but I guess I just have not seen the one that quite matches what I am seeing on my sons ride, but there's tons of info to dig through here. I bought this truck for him as first vehicle in January, has 203k, was "rebuilt" at 120k supposedly but who knows. It was loosing coolant slowly, and suspect head gasket, but told son to keep eye on temp and check fluids regularly, but I guess he didn't quite get the concept, so this week he blew up the plastic radiator and I suspect over heated it, but he says he didn't. However we replace the radiator, thermo, and cap and filled it up, ran it and saw no white smoke, no drips, and driving showed no issues with rough idle or loss of coolant on a 10 minute ride. Next morning he tells me its smoking more white smoke than he had seen before, but it quit. After school he says he cant see coolant in radiator, tops it off about 2 quarts worth, and starts home, halfway home he calls and says it was over halfway temp and rising and running rough so he killed it and pulled over, I get to it, top it back off and crank it and coolant spewing out of radiator with cap off, what I know of this is it exhaust getting into coolant system. But what I am curious about is it isn't make tons of white smoke that I have seen in the past with gaskets or heads leaking into exhaust. however, it is loosing about a quart of coolant in a 10-15 minute drive now. Any thoughts and ideas? its in my shop now and the dismantling has begun, today and this weekend should tell us more, since the engine will be cold and we can really get to work. any thoughts and advice is greatly appreciated. I had to do my 85 22RE a few years ago and it was a snap, but this V6 gonna be "fun". thanks

stefanc

White smoke is a symptom of a blown gasket but not required to have one I believe.

Keep us posted on how the rebuild goes.

no_3of4

It was definitely blown head gasket stefanc. We started the tear down that same afternoon, and had it rolling again on 4-21. It had blown 1,3,5, and 6 into the combustion chamber, and was bad on 5. The motor looked good still, clean no lips on walls, and good cross marks in cylinders, so we got remaned heads and went new with rest of build. Sadly the JackA's who did the rebuild last time siliconed on the injector plugs to the injectors so we had to replace all the injector plugs and injectors. they also silicone one of the injectors into the rail, it wasn't working real well obviously. But all is good now, just have a slight squeal in timing belt, which I guess is just the gates belt. It been pulled back down and verified all pulleys, they were new anyhow but had to make sure, but the squeal is getting quitter. Was told had the belt too tight, but there is no way to loosen, it uses a hydraulic tensioner, no adjustment. But spray back of timing belt with little water and it stops, doesn't matter where you spray it, so told son just drive it....AND watch the gauges from now on. Good thing is, he learned (I hope) some value in taking care of things.