Cracked Head - Yikes.
Hey guys,
I've been sort of MIA for a while, my car's been running great, and I sort of stopped checking in on the posts day to day to limit how much I was spending on improvements to the car. I was hoping this year would be a year I just enjoy the car, and don't have any major projects...Lady A had other ideas (although they were my fault).
I store the car at my grandfather's, about an hour from my house. Went out to the car this weekend excited to get my first ride of the year here in New England. Knew I'd have to take it out of storage (check the fluids, refill the radiator since I run water in the summer and drain it for the winter, check the tires, etc).
Started filling the radiator, and found water gushing out of a huge crack on the top of the head. So much for the year of no fixes! Can't blame the car though. In the fall when I went to drain the radiator, I opened the petcock and nothing came out. There is a plastic sheet under the car, and it was wet, as sometimes the petcock leaks on my car. I assumed the water in the radiator had all leaked out because it had been sitting for about a month since the last time I drove it. Turns out it must have already frozen (this was in late October / early November).
Check out the damage in the attached pictures. Looks like I'm switching back to using coolant, which I had been avoiding since it sprays on the side of hood if it leaks or overheats occasionally. I was using water with a rust inhibitor the last few years with no issues, but at least for fall and winter, I'm planning on switching back to coolant so it can't freeze in the winter.
I got the head off over the weekend. Need to look over the block some more next time I'm near the car and ensure it's ok, but it appears the damage was only on the head. You can see in one of the pictures that the cylinders were holding water, which had leaked into them due to the crack. I'm thinking because the cylinders held water that there shouldn't be cracks in the walls, but need to do a little more inspecting before knowing for sure. I got the water out of the cylinders this weekend.
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