i already have a couple threads about the car but this is a general question about any car

what is the msot obvious and for sure way to tell if you have a blown headgasket

here is whats going on with the car

smokes a lil white smoke every now and then
just started to get a bit of foam in the antifreeze resevoir
oil is still rich brown
car over heats fastly but never max's out cluster
it still runs brand new,no rough idle no anything
the radiator fan does not come on when driving even at high temperatures

i was led to believe it was just the thermostat and since the radiator is not coming on when its hot im still thinking that the motor is just cycling the same old warm antifreeze because the thermostat is stuck close


if anybody could help me out with some pointers or anything i would greatly appreciate it,i just bought the car 4 days ago with a as is no warranty so i am broke
thanks

 

coolant in the oil = blown head gasket. If theres white smoke pouring out the exhaust non-stop = blown head gasket (it'll smell extremely rich). Since it's pretty cold out your cars gonna have some white smoke coming out the exhaust; this doesn't necessarily mean your head gaskets bad.

 

see thats thing,since its cold out i cant really say its smoking

i do have a running rich check engine code
but like i said,the oil does not look contaminated

can advance auto do emissions test on say a sample of oil from the block to test it for antifreeze

 

after the engine comes up to temp, pop the oil cap off, if there's a foamy white residue, good sign the headgasket is blown.

do both radiator hoses get hot when it over heats? or is one cold?

does the engine "use" coolant or oil?

when does it over heat, while driving or sitting at a light? does it cool down on the highway...etc?

 

i tried taking the oil cap off when it was running,but then it hesitated to stay running

and both hoses are relatively warm

and it overheats when driving,does not keep over heating when coming to a stop,and i just drove it 13 miles to keep it in my sisters garage and it warmed up to 3/4 of the cluster but didnt max out

 

did you change your thermostat?

the radiator hoses should not be cool to the touch.

I'd suggest changing the thermo. and bleeding the system of air, if you haven't already.

you can shut the engine off, before you check the 710 cap.

 

ok ill change the thermo,its a pain to do on the car

i started it,held the top radiator hose tight then rev'd it and it filled up with a warm feeling?

 

just drained the cooling system it came out green,shoulda the thermostat should have stayed closed restricting the antifreeze from coming out since the engine has cooled off

 

if u pull the dip stick out for the oil and see a creamy tanish color u have a blown head gasket....what kinda car is it? i had a 92 honda civic as a beater car once that over heated alot....replaced the radiator on it cuz the old one was screwed up and replaced the water pump do to it having a small leak around the bearing. it worked fine after that....also if u wanna see if the radiator is working let the car warm up and feel the radiator....start at the top and feel to the bottom.....be sure u feel the side without the fan...if part of the radiator is ice cold then u may need to replace it cuz it has a clog.....be careful doing this it gets hot but just put ur hand as close as u can without touching it. hope this helps you out.

 

that right there means your motor is worn the fuck out and has a problem!