Blown Motor/Head Gasket.. WWCRD?

[AndonD454]

So this weekend I had the pleasure of seeing white smoke pour out of my Mustang exhaust pipes. Smells like some nasty chemicals burning, assuming its coolant. Fun stuff.:fuuuu:

 

I checked the oil for coolant, it didn't seem to be obviously low on coolant and the oil didn't seem to have water in it, but I didn't run it for more than 10 min after the smoking happened. It really only smokes badly in 1st, as I'm accelerating, once my speed is consistent it seems kind of okay..

 

Anyways, assuming that its a blown gasket or cracked block, what would you guys do here? Car is in excellent shape, 90k miles, 04 GT premium, black on black, 5 spd. Biggest issue is that I still owe 5500ish on it. I have a winter truck to drive, so at least I have time to decide what to do. Here are the options I'm considering:

 

1) Have block inspected, and rebuild motor (if possible). Pros: car would be running again, like new engine I could put more miles on & enjoy the car. Cons: fairly expensive, wasn't planning on keeping car forever, rebuilding a 2V isn't ideal, when they can be swapped

 

2) Swapping out motor for 2v 4.6/5.4. Pros: Only "cheap" option left if I have a cracked block, may be cheaper than rebuilding, lower labor costs Cons: I doubt I could handle this myself without extensive research and tool rental/purchase, what if new motor dies after a few thousand miles? My luck is terrible

 

3) Building new motor, probably aluminum block, forged internals, 4v. Pros: makes my inner gearhead/child happy, moar pwr, fun after its done. Cons: $$$$$$$, probably couldn't afford to get it running for a year or more, spending big money and its still a mustang worth maybe 8 grand

 

4) Parting out/selling. Pros: No initial investment, might be able to pay off car with parts money. Cons: losing a few grand, would still have to rent tools to pull motor, would take big time/effort investment, shipping parts, dealing with ebay BS maybe

 

 

This is my first experience like this, and I know it happens, so I figured I would get some input from the people who may have dealt with a situation similar to this in the past.

 

Thanks

[STEVE-O]

You need to see what the actual issue is before you can decide any route to go.

[zeitgeist57]

Sucks to hear.

 

If you got rid of the car, would you likely be buying another Mustang or similar car? I.E...you wouldn't get rid of the Mustang to get a Corolla...

 

If you really like the car and want to continue rocking it for awhile, I'd swap the engine for another shortblock. It's a 2V Mustang, not a 4.2L V8 Audi or 5.2L V10 Lambo; engines should be plentiful and cheap, and easy to remove/install.

 

Once you've repowered your Mustang, and you have the room, maybe look at rebuilding the 4.6L 2V that just blew the head. Now you have time on your hands to work/learn out the process. I woudn't bother, though: you're better off doing a better engine.

 

AAAAAAAAAND......if the swapped block blows, you've got the original (rebuilt by you!) 2V 4.6L to swap back in. OR...you can spend time doing up a nicely built engine you can swap back into the Mustang in a couple of years. :thumbup:

[AndonD454]

You need to see what the actual issue is before you can decide any route to go.

 

I agree, but won't the labor for taking off the heads and inspecting it be costly? Or is it worth whatever the cost to ensure the issue is actually what I think it is?

[noobiemcnooberson.]

You wouldn't necessarily need to pull heads to determine a blown head gasket. Pressure testing the cooling system should be sufficient

[AndonD454]

Sucks to hear.

 

If you got rid of the car, would you likely be buying another Mustang or similar car? I.E...you wouldn't get rid of the Mustang to get a Corolla...

 

If you really like the car and want to continue rocking it for awhile, I'd swap the engine for another shortblock. It's a 2V Mustang, not a 4.2L V8 Audi or 5.2L V10 Lambo; engines should be plentiful and cheap, and easy to remove/install.

 

Once you've repowered your Mustang, and you have the room, maybe look at rebuilding the 4.6L 2V that just blew the head. Now you have time on your hands to work/learn out the process. I woudn't bother, though: you're better off doing a better engine.

 

AAAAAAAAAND......if the swapped block blows, you've got the original (rebuilt by you!) 2V 4.6L to swap back in. OR...you can spend time doing up a nicely built engine you can swap back into the Mustang in a couple of years. :thumbup:

 

 

Ha well, I don't think I would ever buy a corolla, but yes, replacement would be another toy.

 

You said replace shortblock, so assuming you mean rebuilt replacement (using current engine parts), or are you saying just pull a junkyard 2v for now, as is?

 

Not a bad suggestion, if block isn't damaged. Honestly I wouldn't mind rebuilding a motor slowly just for the experience, and I would assume that this one wouldn't be TOO terrible to learn. I would hate to get in over my head though, and have to take it in to get assembled.

 

I really just don't want to dump a ton of money into this thing, unless I'm going to keep it forever and make it way better than ford did

[AndonD454]

You wouldn't necessarily need to pull heads to determine a blown head gasket. Pressure testing the cooling system should be sufficient

 

Good point, but this wouldn't necessarily be able to tell you whether the block or the gasket is the issue, correct? Only that there is a leak?

[Geeto67]

Steve-O is right, you need to know where you stand before you can take one step forward.

 

for all you know your catalytic converter could be eating itself and it has nothing to do with a cracked block or blown head gasket (not saying this is a possibility, just giving an example of how something else could have you spend unnecessary money). White Smoke also is not exclusively coolant, Sometimes it can be other things.

 

if you don't have the ability to perform simple diagnostics then take it some place and let them tell you what it is. Otherwise, start with a coolant pressure test, then a leakdown and compression test. Also pull the plugs and read them to see what each cylinder is doing. I'm surprised there isn't a CEL - for an 04 you would think either would throw some kind of code.

 

Edit, I just asked an SN95 guy in the next cube from me and he said check your plastic intake manifold. These sometimes warp/crack and can drop anything from coolant to condensation into the cylinders. Says it is a common problem.

[DKilbourne]

Burning coolant smells sweet, not nasty.

[SRTurbo04]

Option 5. Trade that bitch in and let the next person deal with it.

[AndonD454]

Steve-O is right, you need to know where you stand before you can take one step forward.

 

for all you know your catalytic converter could be eating itself and it has nothing to do with a cracked block or blown head gasket (not saying this is a possibility, just giving an example of how something else could have you spend unnecessary money). White Smoke also is not exclusively coolant, Sometimes it can be other things.

 

if you don't have the ability to perform simple diagnostics then take it some place and let them tell you what it is. Otherwise, start with a coolant pressure test, then a leakdown and compression test. Also pull the plugs and read them to see what each cylinder is doing. I'm surprised there isn't a CEL - for an 04 you would think either would throw some kind of code.

 

Edit, I just asked an SN95 guy in the next cube from me and he said check your plastic intake manifold. These sometimes warp/crack and can drop anything from coolant to condensation into the cylinders. Says it is a common problem.

 

Honestly I'm surprised that it wasn't throwing a code. I do have MIL eliminators behind the cats, but shouldn't the O2 sensors by the manifolds still send something?

 

Also, thanks for the intake manifold advice. Will check it after work, and see if I can find anything abnormal, though I'm not sure if it would be easily visible. Either way, its good to know there is a possibility of a reasonable fix. It's nice to have a glimmer of hope.

 

EDIT: Seems like more of a problem with the old style all-plastic intakes rather than the 03-04s, but will still check!

 

It's never overheated (or even been hotter than normal running temp), so I don't know what would cause major failure, besides me driving the piss out of it from time to time.

[Geeto67]

EDIT: Seems like more of a problem with the old style all-plastic intakes rather than the 03-04s, but will still check!

 

From what my mustang cube mate tells me they have these issues all the way to 2007 with the 4.6 engines despite manifold design changes. but it is all hearsay.

 

who knows why things break. for all you know you could be burning a plastic bag off the muffler that you picked up while driving. FWIW a lean condition can blow white smoke because the barrier layer and the piston are being burned up, or a melting spark plug could do it as well. This is why the simple things like reading the plugs (ie checking them for color) or doing a compression test are so important.

[Ryan218]

Coyote swap time.

[AndonD454]

Coyote swap time.

 

If they weren't so damn expensive

[Guest GMoney]

From what you describe I highly doubt there is any issue at all. If your seeing white smoke that poors out from your exhaust you would be also seeing a loss in coolant even if you only ran the car for 10min after the smoke. Also it wouldn't only happen in first gear if it was a true issue with coolant entering the engine somehow, it would happen any gear and anytime the car is under load.

 

My guess is its now starting to get cool over night and your just seeing normal condensation coming from the exhaust.

 

Since your asking for recommendations I would have a leak down test done on the cylinders and a pressure test on the cooling system. Easy to do yourself and shouldn't be more that a few hours labor at shop, but again from what you describe I still believe you don't have a single issue.

[AndonD454]

From what you describe I highly doubt there is any issue at all. If your seeing white smoke that poors out from your exhaust you would be also seeing a loss in coolant even if you only ran the car for 10min after the smoke. Also it wouldn't only happen in first gear if it was a true issue with coolant entering the engine somehow, it would happen any gear and anytime the car is under load.

 

My guess is its now starting to get cool over night and your just seeing normal condensation coming from the exhaust.

 

Since your asking for recommendations I would have a leak down test done on the cylinders and a pressure test on the cooling system. Easy to do yourself and shouldn't be more that a few hours labor at shop, but again from what you describe I still believe you don't have a single issue.

 

I agree, the "only first gear" thing is strange, unless the extra acceleration force is causing the coolant to come through a spot where it may not normally flow? Not sure if a place like that even exists.

 

However, when I noticed the problem, I had been driving it all night (Friday night), and noticed it only when I was almost home, and the amount of smoke coming out is wayyy too much to be condensation (not to mention the smell). I was fully engulfing cars behind me in smoke. Will definitely test (or have a shop test) cooling system pressure and compression though.

 

Thanks