95 Coolant issues, maybe head gasket? H.E.L.P

[JohnPuccio75]

Hey guys. I have a 95 zx 2+2. About a week or so ago I had a bit of a hard time starting the car, it was cold (50 degrees) so I pumped the gas, and when It started turning over I revved it a little.. not a whole though, just enough to get it going. When I got out of the car I noticed a small puddle of coolant that had ran down the small driveway, about a 4 or 5 inch round puddle. Since then I cant drive for more than a few block without the gauge rising steadily from hot to cold in about a 1 minute time period. Oil levels seem fine, I added more coolant to the radiator. It runs smooth, real smooth, but the over heating is obviously an issue. A very small about of white condensation or smoke comes out of the tail pipe when I start it up, but seems to go away after words. The exhaust smell is strong at first but fades after running for a little bit. The weather here has been around 40-65, Ive only tried driving in the day though and it hasn't been lower than mid 50's Id say.

About the car: (5, non turbo 2+2) its engine was swapped out for a new one at 100k. Now has 170 k. Changed all fluids when I purchased back in June, flushed the system, added synthetic oil. The oil is now about 3000 miles old. I was told that it isn't an issue, but should have it changed soon enough... I checked the dip stick and it has the right amount, its a light light brown color. I dont know if its always been a florida car, looks like it though. Can the change in climate cause any issues? I left there and it was 85, got to Boston and its 55-60 degrees. I also noticed a post about pressure in the gas tank and having the gas spew out on to someone. I experienced the same thing the few days after I purchased it, but it only has happened twice, and not since.

I drove the car from Jacksonville to Boston about a month ago. It was loaded down, the tires werent rubbing the wells, but it was loww. I pretty much did 55-60 the whole 1000 or so miles, temp gauge never got about half and same with oil gauge..

I was planning on storing the car over winter and saving a little cash to have some work done on it as far as cosmetics..but now Im thinking itll be mechanical.
I love this car, I learned how to drive stick on a TT Z back in the day, and this car takes me right back. Is it worth to fix? Thanks for your help.
John

[t.mcginley.jr]

Strong exhaust smell and a puddle of coolant at the exhaust definitely sounds like a head gasket issue. A good way to check is to take the radiator cap off when the car is idling and warm, if there is a continuous stream of bubbles then it's your head gasket. Also an oily film on the coolant is a sign, but doesn't always happen. It could be that the head gasket is just starting to go.

Is it worth to fix?

I love this car, I learned how to drive stick on a TT Z back in the day, and this car takes me right back.

There's your answer.

[Ziggy1621]

Its always worth the fix. Even a full rebuild would be worth it because you would still have a cool car. For the price you would get for it now, you would end up with a late 80's Corolla... Not cool!

+1 to the above one, check those, then if they show nothing, check your coolant hoses for a crack. Especially the heater hoses on the back of the engine at the top.

[JohnPuccio75]

t.mcginley.jr - Thanks, and I checked the radiator like you said.. nothing at all... after about 5-7 minutes it started steaming and bubbled out a little, so I shut the car off. Also - no sign of oil yet...

Ziggy1621 - I'll check those tomorrow in the day light.

thanks guys..at least I have an Idea of what Im looking for.

I dont know if its related, but the passenger door speaker is making strange sounds... Like a telegraph from Mars, or a H.a.r.p weapon.. even with the stereo off...

[t.mcginley.jr]

Your welcome!

If you have to put more coolant in then it's definitely leaking from somewhere if its not burning up in the exhaust. When you say the engine was replaced at 100k, what was it replaced with? A used one? JDM?

[Ziggy1621]

Also what side of the car was the leak coming from? And the funky smell at startup is just your cats, they're pretty old by now

[JohnPuccio75]

When you say the engine was replaced at 100k, what was it replaced with? A used one? JDM?

I believe it was a new engine. I have the paperwork somewhere here, If I remember correctly it cost $6000 or so.

Also what side of the car was the leak coming from? And the funky smell at startup is just your cats, they're pretty old by now

Its on the passenger side.

Also - I took it out for a ride after tightening the small hose at the top of the radiator, I noticed a little bubbling. It seemed fine but the temp still started to rise, and hasnt lost any power that I noticed. I'll have to check the hoses that you mentioned in the a.m. Thanks again guys

[nissanfreak12]

Where exactly was the coolant dripping at, passenger side front, back, rear part of engine bay? You can always do a leak down test to check head gasket, but with how you described it runs smooth, don't really think that could be your problem. Leak down test will definitely let you know.

Overheating that fast could be thermostat stuck closed or a bum water pump, even a radiator cap not holding pressure will cause it to overheat.

You should also check for codes in the ECU for the hard starting. I would be just a s concerned about that as you are with overheating.

[JohnPuccio75]

Where exactly was the coolant dripping at, passenger side front, back, rear part of engine bay? You can always do a leak down test to check head gasket, but with how you described it runs smooth, don't really think that could be your problem. Leak down test will definitely let you know.

Overheating that fast could be thermostat stuck closed or a bum water pump, even a radiator cap not holding pressure will cause it to overheat.

You should also check for codes in the ECU for the hard starting. I would be just a s concerned about that as you are with overheating.

Thanks Man... Im going to try this out a little later today. I read up on it a bit and looks easy enough. Im doing this myself with very little knowledge about car mechanics, and no garage or mechanic as of yet... A little tight in the pockets... I'd like to try everything I can do myself first before having a shop find EVERYTHING thats not right with the car...

The Radiator cap seems fine. nothing leaking anyway. I tried to take it off after driving a little but there was too much pressure and steam started pouring out. SO i closed it back up and waited a bit.

I cant quite see where the leak is coming from, I can tell that it runs on to the under body 'shield' from the left side. I cant get under to take that shield off.

There are no dash lights except at startup where the abs light on the right comes on for a second longer than the rest.

Thanks for your help, if you guys have any other ideas, lemme know... Thanks

[nissanfreak12]

Even though the cap "seems" fine, replace it. It is cheap enough, usually like $8.00. My guess is the coolant lines under the plenum or heater core lines. another way to check the thermostat is run the car, get up to operating temp. If it starts to warm up, check the lower rad hose, this hose should be as hot as the other hoses. If not, your thermostat is stuck closed. This will cause the car to overheat fast. Only remedy is replace.