Oily residue in radiator?

dellapor

Registered User
I just installed a new water pump and the car now leaks radiator fluid like no other. I took off the hoses today to check em out and there was a dark fluid at the outlet at the top of the radiator. Is this oil? Does this mean i blew a head gasket? Im ready to take a sledgehammer to my car so someone please give me some insight.

Aki
 
Symptoms of blown head gaskets include, but are not limited to: Oil in coolant, or vice versa (milky oil or oil residue in coolant), overheating, eratic oscillating temperatures in the temp gauge, loss of coolant without it going anywhere and white puffy smoke out the exhaust. If your car was loosing a significant ammount of coolant and you couldnt see it go anywhere (spilling out) there is a chance you might have blown HG's. What was the purpose of changing out your water pump???

al
 
I definitly saw the coolant leaving my car... it looked like a freakin geyser! After further inspection, i noticed that my radiator has a lot of white "crap" inside of it. U think this might be a prob? I think my rad core is clogged. I have no white smoke at all. Also... I have no pressure in my radiator whatsoever. Any thoughts?

Aki
 
My radiator had the same white "crap" inside after a bad water pump. It looked like the previous owner put tap water in the radiator to top it off. The white stuff is just the minerals in the water hardening to the raditator. Yes, you need to get that stuff out of there. Look into getting a 3-row core if you can afford it. Also use steam distilled water to fill the radiator, no tap water or 'de-ionized' water.

Where is the radiator fluid leaking from?
When you replaced the pump, did you change your thermostat? hoses? radiator cap? clamps?

If you reused the old spring clamps on your hoses they will leak. A new thermostat and radiator cap are a must on a water pump change, they won't be far behind if they are the same age.

Get ready for a crank sensor - they tend to go bad after a coolant bath.

Aaron
 
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