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What Causes a 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe to Die

blown head gasket symptomsThere are some makes or models of cars that take a reputation for blowing head gaskets.  1 such vehicle has such a bad reputation for head gasket problems at that place is a grouping of owners trying to go the manufacturer to accept a call back on them.  If you happen to ain one of these vehicles, don't worry information technology does not mean that you accept a bad automobile or that you are going to spend lots of money.

What is a Caput Gasket?

head gasket, blown head gasket symptomsAllow'south start by talking near what a head gasket is.  The head gasket lives between your engine block and cylinder head.  Every modern car has this gasket but they vary in their thickness and construction based on the manufacturer'southward design of the engine.   The caput gasket is so of import because it seals the combustion sleeping accommodation allowing your car to build the proper compression and comprise exhaust gases both of which aid in maintaining the efficiency of your engine.  The head gasket likewise keeps coolant and oil out of the combustion bedchamber which is of import for the same reasons you wouldn't want coolant or oil leaking anywhere else.

Now that we sympathize what a head gasket information technology, it's important to learn what head gasket failure symptoms look similar to avert higher expenses due to additional engine damage acquired by driving with a blown head gasket.  To sympathize the symptoms information technology can exist helpful to understand why a head gasket might fail.

Why Exercise Caput Gaskets Blow?

The head gasket forms a seal between the engine block and the cylinder head.  This ways your head gasket has to seal both extremely hot, high-pressure level combustion gases equally well equally engine coolant which can be anywhere from common cold ambient temperatures to the normal operating temperature of your engine.  Due to the wide range of temperatures and relatively big surface area, information technology is non unusual for caput gaskets to develop leaks over fourth dimension.  This tin happen regardless of the make or model of your auto or the type of head gasket used.  To better understand why a head gasket might blow, check out this commodity on why head gaskets blow .

Since the head gasket seals the coolant passage both from the atmosphere and the combustion chamber you can't meet much of the caput gasket on a vehicle with the engine installed.  Because much of the gasket can't be seen without disassembling the engine, blown caput gaskets symptoms tin be very difficult to diagnose.  Since a visual inspection usually will not prove a head gasket leak, it is of import to know the other symptoms so yous tin accurately diagnose a head gasket problem.

How To Tell if a Caput Gasket Is Blown:

  • Coolant leaking externally from below the exhaust manifold
  • White fume from the exhaust piping
  • Bubbles in the radiator or coolant overflow tank
  • Overheating engine
  • White milky oil
  • Fouled spark plugs
  • Depression cooling system integrity

External Caput Gasket Leak

A caput gasket leaking external would cause coolant to come up from below the intake or frazzle manifold and frequently simply happens when the engine is completely warmed up.  If there are no other cooling passages or hoses near the head gasket you may be able to positively place the leak as a head gasket leak, merely if at that place are other cooling passages nearby, yous may need to add a UV dye to the coolant  then watch the head gaskets with a UV light to positively place the leak.

White Smoke From Tailpipe

Almost head gasket leaks are internal to the engine allowing coolant to flow into the combustion chamber on every intake stroke.  When this happens to coolant burns/evaporates with the combustion process and appears equally white smoke coming from the tailpipe.  This fume can exist differentiated from moisture during a common cold commencement past a sweetness smell and volition go on even when the engine is warm.  If the leak in the caput gasket is large this white smoke can ofttimes be excessive and billow from the tailpipe.

Bubbling in the Radiator

Besides allowing coolant into the combustion chamber, an internal head gasket leak allows frazzle gases into the coolant.  This tin can cause bubbles to be in the radiator or coolant reservoir making the coolant look like it's boiling even when it's cold.  The bubbles are exhaust gases that force their way into the cooling arrangement during the combustion procedure.  An like shooting fish in a barrel do-it-yourself test for a blown head gasket is to perform a chemic test using this type of tester on your coolant to check for the presence of exhaust gases to encounter if this is happening in your motorcar.  This is the well-nigh effective blown head gasket examination and can give yous a positive sign of a blown head gasket.

Overheating Engine

If y'all've got a blown head gasket, your engine usually volition overheat after longer drives.  This happens both due to the lack of coolant as your engine consumes it, but also the efficient combustion process, the backlog rut from the exhaust in the coolant and the disability of your vehicle's radiator to cool the dirty coolant.  If your engine overheats information technology can cause lots of issues.  The biggest concern is the expansion of metal components past what they were designed for which can cause cracks and warping.  Also, information technology tin can permanently damage seals and gaskets cause other leaks in your engine.  Both of these problems often crave a total engine rebuild to remedy.

White or Milky Oil

As coolant leaks into your combustion chamber, it will seep by your piston rings into your oil.  Over time oil and h2o will mix and cause the oil to turn a milky white.  You can wait for this on your dipstick and effectually your engine oil cap.  Having water in your oil volition make your oil ineffective in properly lubricating your motor which will rapidly allow wear on your cylinder walls and on the crank and camshaft bearings.  Even if you don't bulldoze the vehicle, the presence of water in the oil can cause rust on machined surfaces which can lead to pitting in the metallic and necessitate and engine rebuild.

Fouled Spark Plug

As coolant burns in your combustion chamber, it will go out tiny white deposits on your spark plug usually effectually the basis strap and electrode.  Other problems tin can cause these white deposits and then this isn't a conclusive diddled head gasket symptom just if others are nowadays information technology could give you more proof.

Low Cooling System Integrity

If there is a leak from your head gasket, pressurizing your cooling arrangement and watching for force per unit area loss can help prove you have a diddled head gasket as well.  Since there could be other leaks you don't know about, this too isn't a conclusive test, but over again simply more indications that yous may have a blown head gasket.  Similarly, you lot can perform a leak down test which pressurizes the combustion chamber with compressed air and measured the corporeality of air that leaks out through the head gasket or any other opening the combustion chamber.

Can I Drive With a Blown Caput Gasket?

If you lot have multiple blown head gasket symptoms, it is important to drive your vehicle equally little as possible.  The hot gases and common cold coolant moving through the hole in the gasket tin quickly erode or warp the metal head or engine block leaving you lot with costly machining bills or even having to purchase new heads or a new engine and having water in your engine oil can destroy bearings rapidly.

How to Forbid a Head Gasket Failure

In that location are some ways you tin reduce your chances of blowing a head gasket.  The first is to proceed combustion sleeping accommodation pressures as low every bit possible.  If your vehicle is turbocharged or supercharged, make certain your boost level is set up to the factory setting to keep combustion pressures in bank check.  Also, brand certain your engine doesn't have any preignition or knocking from overly advanced timing or carbon build up.  Similarly, maintaining low engine RPMs will reduce stress and rut on your caput gasket so avert running your engine at loftier RPM.  Lastly, if your car has a manual transmission avoid downshifting to boring the machine and rev-match anytime you tin can to reduce pressure on your head gasket.

If y'all are rebuilding an engine, y'all tin can reduce the risk of a diddled caput gasket in the future by using properly lubricated head studs torqued in the proper sequence to the correct torque setting.  You can besides make sure your block deck and cylinder head mating surface are properly prepared for the new gasket.  Similarly, using a multi-layer steel or other metal caput gasket can improve the reliability of your engine.  For more information, bank check our complete commodity on how to prevent a blown head gasket.

These are just a few different steps y'all can accept to forbid a caput gasket failure, but sometimes even following these steps yous may still stop up with a blown head gasket. If not taken care of correct away, blown caput gaskets tin can turn into bigger engine bug that will end up existence even more than costly to fix downward the route.

How Much does a Caput Gasket Repair Cost?

Head gasket repair price can vary significantly from vehicle to vehicle.  Cost factors include:

  • Number of cylinder banks
  • Overhead cam VS pushrod engines
  • Head or cake impairment
  • other components replaced

Virtually of the price of a head gasket repair is in the labor costs and then the complexity of the job can change the cost significantly.  For example, a "V" way engine has 2 heads and information technology is all-time to replace the gasket on both and so the price increases significantly over an inline engine.  Similarly, an engine with overhead cams adds the complexity of removing the timing belt or chain which makes the task more complicated than information technology would be on a pushrod engine where you lot simply need to remove the rockers and pushrods.  Machine work can add lots of price to a head gasket task so knowing how much damage has been done to the head or block is important in calculating the toll of your head gasket repair.  Lastly, in that location are lots of other parts that can be replaced when repairing a caput gasket similar other gaskets and seals, belts, or the h2o pump and those parts costs can add up quickly also.  For more than information on calculating the head gasket repair costs for your car, check out our article on head gasket repair costs.

To quickly and permanently seal your blown head gasket, get to your local auto parts shop and pick up one of BlueDevil's head gasket sealing products.  If you lot accept a small leak or iv or 6 cylinder engine option up BlueDevil Cascade-Northward-Go 16oz Head Gasket Sealer .  But add it to your radiator and your head gasket leak volition be sealed as your drive!  For larger leaks or 8 cylinder engines, use BlueDevil Caput Gasket Sealer .  BlueDevil Caput Gasket Sealer requires the removal of your vehicle's thermostat and a complete cooling system affluent but is guaranteed to fix your diddled caput gasket!

Don't risk getting stranded or damaging your vehicle'south engine by driving with a blown head gasket.  End past your local car part store today and pick up the quick and like shooting fish in a barrel solution from BlueDevil!

  • AutoZone
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Pictures Provided By:

blown_head_gasket_symptoms.jpg – By Alex_Lshchenko – Licensed by Getty Images – Original Link
head_gasket.jpg – by Urfinguss – Licensed by Getty Images – Original Link

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