riceboyler Posted October 23, 2012 Report Share Posted October 23, 2012 For the past couple of weeks, my 89 has been going through coolant like crazy. It has an aftermarket aluminum radiator (supposedly for a Chevy 350) that from what the PO told me had the end tanks epoxied on. Well, it's leaking badly. Yesterday, on the way home, I got stuck in traffic, and with very little water/coolant left in the radiator, it overheated badly. I got it home and immediately shut it off, opened the cap (with gloves and thick towel) and poured water in the radiator, which immediately began to boil. I topped off the radiator after a few minutes and left the car. This morning, I came out to start it and it would not start forever. I cranked and cranked and it FINALLY caught and ran like garbage for the first 2-3 minutes. Then, idle smoothed out, and it ran fine: oil pressure came up to where it should have been, etc. I didn't drive the car to work for fear of further damage until I get a replacement radiator (getting one of the 240SX (S13) CX Racing ones) but I think it may have blown the HG. The oil cap did have "milkshake" on it, so that's typically a pretty good sign in my experience. With my limited knowledge of these cars specifically, I'm wondering what the possibility is that I warped the head? I'm assuming these engines have steel blocks and aluminum heads, meaning the warp possibilities would be greater, but again, I'm not sure. The plan is to pull the head over the next few nights and at the least replace the radiator and HG. Any random advice for this procedure would be welcomed. I've done HGs on other cars before, but you guys know there are always little intricacies to each car that you only learn by doing. And yes, I do have the Service Manual downloaded and will be using it extensively. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speedyquest Posted October 23, 2012 Report Share Posted October 23, 2012 Don't take off either manifolds and then use those as a handle to remove the head. It simpifies things. Obviously you will want to disconnect the turbo from the manifold etc to remove weight but keep the rest there. Also double / triple make sure you don't drop the timing chain in the cover or it can skip teeth and cause you some headaches. Allen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spadey Posted October 23, 2012 Report Share Posted October 23, 2012 Do a compression check and you will know for sure although I'm pretty sure you need a new one. And if its the stock head I would bet money its cracked. Pretty much all the stock heads crack around the jet valves. They have done it to when people clam they have never overheated the car. Also how many miles are on the car I would say if its over 100k replace timing chain guides will your at and maybe do a balance shaft elimination but that's just kind of personal prefence cause they have been know to fail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riceboyler Posted October 23, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 23, 2012 It's at 136K, so that's a good suggestion spadey. Honestly, I'm kind of looking forward to tearing into it to see what I find. Not sure if it's still got Jet Valves or not, etc. Good call as well on the Compression check. I can do that tonight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riceboyler Posted October 23, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 23, 2012 Just to get clarification, I'm looking at this radiator: http://www.ebay.com/itm/CXRacing-Aluminum-Radiator-240SX-S13-SR20DET-12-Fan-/180682067258?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item2a117d8d3a&vxp=mtr It has the inlet/outlet in the correct place, as best I can tell. Thanks again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skullzaflare Posted October 23, 2012 Report Share Posted October 23, 2012 did you check your dipstick to make sure the oil looked fine? i have seen caps get milky just from condensation Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riceboyler Posted October 23, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 23, 2012 No, actually I didn't. I'll check that when I get home tonight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ucw458 Posted October 23, 2012 Report Share Posted October 23, 2012 The oil cap did have "milkshake" on it, so that's typically a pretty good sign in my experience. With my limited knowledge of these cars specifically, I'm wondering what the possibility is that I warped the head? I'm assuming these engines have steel blocks and aluminum heads, meaning the warp possibilities would be greater, but again, I'm not sure. Milkshake on the cap is a good sign of a bad HG. But what has me worried is how you put water in it. Sounds like the engine was off when you filled it. That's really bad for an engine. The fresh cool water doesn't circulate and cools the engine unevenly. You need to get the head checked out. It could be warped or cracked. Never add water to a hot engine with the engine off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riceboyler Posted October 23, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 23, 2012 Milkshake on the cap is a good sign of a bad HG. But what has me worried is how you put water in it. Sounds like the engine was off when you filled it. That's really bad for an engine. The fresh cool water doesn't circulate and cools the engine unevenly. You need to get the head checked out. It could be warped or cracked. Never add water to a hot engine with the engine off. Crap, you're right, that's exactly what I did. I didn't even think about that increasing the warpage. Something tells me I might have to find a head... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skullzaflare Posted October 24, 2012 Report Share Posted October 24, 2012 Crap, you're right, that's exactly what I did. I didn't even think about that increasing the warpage. Something tells me I might have to find a head... probably going to need bearings too, if it cracked something you have been running it on water oil mix Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riceboyler Posted October 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 27, 2012 (edited) Well, the good news is that (unbeknownst to me) I have a non-JV head, so hopefully, that will help. I'm still in the midst of pulling everything apart. Radiator is out (and man is it shot), water pump is out, valve cover, throttle body, etc. I also didn't realize it but somebody replaced the head bolts with studs, so I guess I can return those head bolts I got. I'm putting a couple of pictures in here to show progress thus far. MMMM. Milkshake... Edited October 27, 2012 by riceboyler Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ucw458 Posted October 27, 2012 Report Share Posted October 27, 2012 For future reference, head bolts on a G54B are reusable. Also blown HGs when using head studs is common. It was something about not enough torque and the stud loosening. I don't remember exactly. Maybe someone else will chime in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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