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From: ron@wjvax.UUCP (Ron Christian)
Newsgroups: net.auto
Subject: Re: Fluid leak from tailpipe
Message-ID: <573@wjvax.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 10-Oct-85 13:29:30 EDT
Article-I.D.: wjvax.573
Posted: Thu Oct 10 13:29:30 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 15-Oct-85 06:12:07 EDT
References: <640@decwrl.UUCP>
Reply-To: ron@wjvax.UUCP (Ron Christian)
Organization: Watkins Johnson, San Jose, Calif.
Lines: 32

In article <640@decwrl.UUCP> moroney@jon.DEC (Mike Moroney) writes:
>
>Is the fluid water or radiator fluid?  If it's radiator fluid, I have bad news
>for your friend. It's either a cracked engine block, cracked cylinder head, or
>(if you are "lucky") a blown head gasket. Either way it's many $$$'s.
****

Wellllll, a blown head gasket isn't really all that bad.  I had water
in the oil in my '70 Ford Econoline (302 V8) which turned out to be a
head gasket, and I replaced both for a total parts cost of about $25.
Of course, it's a dirty, dirty job.  Come to think of it, I don't think
the $25 accounts for new coolant...  Make it less than $50 all told.

I'm not exactly a sterling mechanic, either.  This was the first time I'd
taken a gas powered car engine apart.  (This stipulation because I'd previously
had the head off the bunny diesel.)  The most important thing to remember
when replacing the head gasket is to get the mating surfaces *clean*.  If
you look at the block and say 'That's clean enough', it's not clean enough.
You have to get an engine back together and find out the new gasket leaks
to really appreciate this point.  But if it's the gasket, do it *now*!  That
water may be doing irrrepariable damage while you're trying to decide what
to do about it.

[BTW:  How many *new* cars do you think would go 180K miles without having
the engine opened?  Heh.]
-- 
--
	Ron Christian  (Watkins-Johnson Co.  San Jose, Calif.)
	{pesnta,twg,ios,qubix,turtlevax,tymix,vecpyr,certes,isi}!wjvax!ron

Oliver's law of assumed responsibility:
	"If you are seen fixing it, you will be blamed for breaking it."