Oil in water ?

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Model T Ford Forum: Forum 2014: Oil in water ?
Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Dick Fischer on Wednesday, May 28, 2014 - 06:14 pm:

Today was the day for a periodic oil & coolant change on my '12 Touring. The car doesn't go very much, so the time since last change was about 30 miles and more time than I'd care to admit.

When I began draining the coolant it looked like the familiar, yellow water & Prestone mix. But as it neared the bottom of the drain, the water began to show a bit of white, and then some oily, dark residue right at the end of the drain. (I hadn't run he car for at least 6 months prior to draining.)

So I refilled the radiator with clear water and drove around the block a couple of times (maybe a mile). Then I drained the water again. This time it was well mixed and whiteish, sort of like I had used soluble oil. But I hadn't. My typical mix is 30% Prestone plus Norosion. The Norosion has no effect on coolant color. Definitely not white.

I drained the oil and there was no sign of water in the oil.

The question is -- where can oil be entering the coolant ?

Thanks again for all the advice,

Dick


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Gene Carrothers Huntington Beach on Wednesday, May 28, 2014 - 08:47 pm:

Had the same recently and found the head gasket at fault. I'm pretty sure but haven't run it yet so can't rule out anything else.

I won't reuse a head gasket again!

I was worried about a crack in the block at the water jacket.

Good luck and hope a new head gasket fixes it.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Dick Fischer on Wednesday, May 28, 2014 - 09:52 pm:

Thanks for that, Gene. Of all the things to go wrong, the head gasket is about the easiest to fix.

I'm still trying to wrap my head around the idea of oil getting into the water. I can visualize water into oil, but oil into water ? And there isn't even any oil pressure to force the issue.

Dick


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By mike_black on Wednesday, May 28, 2014 - 11:12 pm:

Dick,
I've got a 52 Studebaker that has had oil get in the water since I bought it in 1975--never a drop of water in the oil though. Never done anything to it and never had any cooling problems either until I quit driving it a few years ago and parked it in the barn.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Gene Carrothers Huntington Beach on Thursday, May 29, 2014 - 01:37 am:

Check your plugs to see if their black with oil. The combustion pressure could force oil into the coolant is my idea.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Scott Conger on Thursday, May 29, 2014 - 12:27 pm:

I would agree with Gene. Our '19 had a steady oil weep from the head gasket since I purchased it. Finally got around to pulling the head and found a rough, rusty head was bolted down to a gasket that was installed backwards...two wrongs don't make a right! Oil from combustion chamber was working past the bumps and lumps of the surface of the head and made it's way to the outside just above the side water inlet. Could just as well have leaked across to a coolant passage and shown up in the coolant. We resurfaced the head and installed a gasket (the correct way around) and all was well.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Norman T. Kling on Thursday, May 29, 2014 - 04:28 pm:

A Model T doesn't have a pressurized cooling system, so the only pressure might occur when the water is boiling, but the system is open for expansion, so it shouldn't leak into the oil unless there is a leak.

The compression and power stroke of the engine, however, produce a lot of pressure. Oil in the radiator is caused by compression and power stroke forcing oil through small cracks or head gasket. This would typically happen if you have a leak in the gasket or crack into the water jacket near the top of the cylinder or head. The engine would be worn allowing oil to get into the cylinder and the pressure forces it into the water. Another possible cause would be if you have a water pump. The grease in the pump can also get into the water if you have a water pump.
Norm


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Dick Fischer on Thursday, May 29, 2014 - 05:24 pm:

After Gene's comment I did pull the plugs for a look. They are uniformly sooty, but dry. They look like there're from a car that only goes a few miles per year, which is true.

I wondered about the water pump. The car does have a pump (don't tell Royce). Just as a guess, I think the original bit of oil that I saw upon the first draining of the coolant was less than an ounce. But wouldn't water pump grease in the coolant look more like slime rather than giving the white look of oil in water ?

Dick


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