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Bought a "Stop Leak" filled car unknowingly....


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Stilljonesing
New User

Mar 2, 2006, 4:00 PM

Post #1 of 3 (2078 views)
Bought a "Stop Leak" filled car unknowingly.... Sign In

  
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(This post was edited by Stilljonesing on Oct 6, 2008, 12:38 PM)


Tom Greenleaf
Ultimate Carjunky / Moderator
Tom Greenleaf profile image

Mar 2, 2006, 7:08 PM

Post #2 of 3 (2070 views)
Re: Bought a "Stop Leak" filled car unknowingly.... Sign In

Arggh! I don't like the sound of this. If you already found stop leak then someone put it in there for a reason. If the veh overheated badly before you owned it it could have caused lots of damage. -- Like head gaskets, warped heads, sludge that you will almost never win against. A very small amount of high quality stop leak - like 1/4 of what the container says can stop a radiator leak if minor. After that the problem needs to be fixed. None really can fix head gaskets.

I suggest a complete flush and pressure check of cooling system, and when the stop leak is out of it the original problem should show up. Again -- if this engine has overheated hard, perhaps more than once, it's probably never going to be right. Your call on what to do but I would cut my losses and be honest but get rid of it. T



DanD
Veteran / Moderator
DanD profile image

Mar 3, 2006, 5:23 AM

Post #3 of 3 (2063 views)
Re: Bought a "Stop Leak" filled car unknowingly.... Sign In

There is a very simple test that can be performed to determine whether there is any form of carbon monoxide getting into the cooling system and I believe that the test is approximately 80% accurate.
The test doesn’t tell you if it’s a head gasket or the cylinder head itself has gone bad; just that there is contamination and the only way carbon monoxide can get into the cooling system is via one or the other.
It’s called a block tester or combustion chamber leak detector. Do a Google search there’s lots of info on the product.

It’s an inexpensive tool that you fill with a blue die and then draw fumes from the cooling system through it. If the die changes from blue to a yellowish color you have a problem that the engine needs to come apart to find the cause.
Ask your mechanic he should know what I’m talking about; it only takes 10 minutes to perform after the engine is up to temperature and like I said it’s fairly accurate.
If the test doesn’t show a problem start back at the basics as what Tom has suggested. Have the complete system flushed, the rad boiled out again but this time have them flow test the rad. If the rad isn’t 90% of new replace it. Sometimes that stop leak crap will not come out.
Cooling fan(s)? Have them checked for proper operation, electric and or mechanical.
Dan.

Canadian "EH"










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