I Think I Killed It

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I don't normally like to go above 80, because the car is over 30 years old and the 3 cylinder engine is probably more fragile than most, but I was getting tailgated on the expressway this evening and allowed my speed to creep up around 100. Burning smells ensued (not necessarily from the car, Taiwan has a lot of burning smells) so I got off the expressway and took slower roads home.

Car started making exhaust-blowing noises, which I attributed to a blown exhaust. I'd noticed it had got a lot rustier earlier that day. Stopped but couldn't see a leak in the dark without a torch. Noise got worse. Close to home, seemed to loose a bit of power, so maybe not just a blowing exhaust.

Back home, with torch, still can't see an exhaust leak, but note there is no coolant in the reservoir.

That's head gasket, and/or warped head, isn't it?
 
Do you have a catalytic converter? Maybe it's plugged?

Maybe the coolant was gone before yesterday. Red herring.
 
shouldn't be if you never hadexcessively high temps.

any oil weeps that might have gotten hotter than usual?

see if there's air/exhaust going to the header tank with the engine running.
 
I'd put some coolant back in and see how fast it goes down. If you goes through the coolant with no visible leak , probably is a head gasket. You did have it reved up. I'd also check the radiator cap in case its not holding pressure.

What kind of coolant are you running? 30 year old head gaskets might not like some of the newer coolants, and can degrade.
 
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Originally Posted By: eljefino
Do you have a catalytic converter? Maybe it's plugged?

Maybe the coolant was gone before yesterday. Red herring.



No, I don't. Wouldn't have though that'd make a blowing noise, but I have no experience of catalytic converters, and don't much want any.

Coolant was at the full line this morning, before setting off, but I didn't check it during the day and didn't notice its level when I first looked for the exhaust blowing.

No sign of coolant on dipstick.
 
Take a gun and shoot it. Not worth the $$$$ to repair. !00 mph in a three cylinder vehicle? I don't think so.
crazy.gif
 
Originally Posted By: HosteenJorje
Take a gun and shoot it. Not worth the $$$$ to repair. !00 mph in a three cylinder vehicle? I don't think so.
crazy.gif



new Mirage estimated at 125 mph top speed

There must be lots of liars out there because I had no problem finding many 3 cyl owners who claimed they took a measured mile run in their 3 cyl and were in the 100-110 mph range at top speed.
 
Originally Posted By: HosteenJorje
Take a gun and shoot it. Not worth the $$$$ to repair. !00 mph in a three cylinder vehicle? I don't think so.
crazy.gif



I don't think so either, but then, I don't think we're still in Kansas, Toto.

The rest of the world uses kilometers.
 
In your place, I would check and refill the coolant (and all other fluids) and take it for a test drive at "normal" speeds. See if it drives as usual or if it starts to use coolant again. You could also drain some oil out (or do a full change) to see if it has water/coolant in it.
 
Originally Posted By: Ducked
Originally Posted By: HosteenJorje
Take a gun and shoot it. Not worth the $$$$ to repair. !00 mph in a three cylinder vehicle? I don't think so.
crazy.gif



I don't think so either, but then, I don't think we're still in Kansas, Toto.

The rest of the world uses kilometers.


I was wondering about the units on the 80 and 100 numbers...
 
Originally Posted By: spasm3

What kind of coolant are you running? 30 year old head gaskets might not like some of the newer coolants, and can degrade.


Don't know. It's green, with Chinese writing on the jug.

I'd get it translated but it probably doesn't say anything meaningful anyway. I'd doubt its anything very exotic, though, since it was a supermarket own-brand and not very expensive.
 
You may have lost a head gasket, as someone said fill the system and do a leak check. A HG is easy on this engine.

Originally Posted By: HosteenJorje
Take a gun and shoot it. Not worth the $$$$ to repair. !00 mph in a three cylinder vehicle? I don't think so


Skoda Fabia 1.0 will do 100 Mph the 1.2 can hit 120 Mph and both are 3 cylinders.
 
Wait for daylight. Refill the cooling system. Look for external leaks. Start engine and confirm it is running on all cylinders. When you start it with the radiator cap off, a blown head gasket will have bubbling and coolant blowing out of the radiator even when the engine is cold. This is generally the first symptom of a small leak, it may happen even without getting coolant in the oil or steam from the tailpipe.
 
In other country, people are not as fast throwing away cars as it is in the US.

If it is a 3 cylinder car, it is probably small and easier to work with.
I am sure there are people with resources in Taiwan that can fix the car economically.
30 years old does not matter.

What kind of car is it? may be check in the forum that discuss your car and see if it worth fixing.
 
Originally Posted By: eljefino
Do you have a catalytic converter? Maybe it's plugged?

Maybe the coolant was gone before yesterday. Red herring.



He would never have reached 100 with a plugged converter.

Have someone hold a rag on the tailpipe while running and then check for exhaust leaks. Top off the coolant and monitor, make sure the coolant isn't mixed with the oil.
 
Originally Posted By: JHZR2
Originally Posted By: Ducked
Originally Posted By: HosteenJorje
Take a gun and shoot it. Not worth the $$$$ to repair. !00 mph in a three cylinder vehicle? I don't think so.
crazy.gif



I don't think so either, but then, I don't think we're still in Kansas, Toto.

The rest of the world uses kilometers.


I was wondering about the units on the 80 and 100 numbers...


Well, "around 100". Probably about 120. Not fast by "normal" standards, but maybe too fast for this car. More acceleration than I usually use too.
 
Originally Posted By: JMJNet
In other country, people are not as fast throwing away cars as it is in the US.

If it is a 3 cylinder car, it is probably small and easier to work with.
I am sure there are people with resources in Taiwan that can fix the car economically.
30 years old does not matter.

What kind of car is it? may be check in the forum that discuss your car and see if it worth fixing.


They are VERY fast to throw away cars here. Cultural thing. Old car = loss of face (low status).

I'm told mechanics are cheap, though.
 
Originally Posted By: Ducked


They are VERY fast to throw away cars here. Cultural thing. Old car = loss of face (low status).


That would suggest there would be some decent deals to be had on not very old used cars.
 
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