KA24DE- burns coolant, floods back into overflow res. HELP!!

[Paddys13]

The other day my car started burning coolant to the point i could smell it ALOT. After it got hot i saw smoke coming out from my engine bay and immediatly thought it overheat but the temp gauge was at normal opperating temperature. Turns out it was just the coolant bubbling into the overflow res. I thought it was the head gasket cause it has all the symptoms of it, so i did a compression test on it and they all came up within spec (1-4, 155;175;180;160). I think it may be the radiator but i'm not sure. Help would be much appreciated!

[moso]

your compression difference is beyond spec (14psi) and that 155 cyl is just above the absolute min of 151. i would be suspect of the no1 cyl, what does the plug look like?

[Paddys13]

The plugs all look like they've got burnt coolant on them. nos. 3 and 4 are the worst, no. 1 is actually the best. i retested no.1 and it came up 165 this time. now i'm thinking no.4. ugh. 240's not for the faint of heart.

[moso]

I'm sorry to hear that, looks like your in for a HG. my suggestion is to at least have the head checked for warping as its fairly common to see an aluminum head on a cast iron block warp slightly when they overheat. overheating is the most common reason for head gasket failure. i would seriously consider replacing the coolant temp sensor as well cause its probably bad.

[Paddys13]

thanks. yeah i replaced the temp sensor a while ago but i guess it was a crap quality. my only problem with doing a HG is that the previous owner said it's bored out but could't remember the spec which means i'll be out of a car untill i can find the specs and get the right head gasket. and i seriously hope it didn't overheat and warp the head that would make me extremely sad lol.

[moso]

I would be really surprised if you need a 91mm, chances are its a 90mm. a ka24de block bored over .20 is going to be 89.5mm, if its .40 it will be 90mm, always go even or slightly bigger, never smaller. and as far as the head is concerned, your better off having it checked than changing the HG a second time because you didn't, to be honest knowing that it was bored i wonder if the PO had the head checked out when they rebuilt the lower half.

[THE_ROOK_671]

Check your thermostat. that part right there is the most forgotten part in the cooling system. i highly doubt your cts was bad. if your thermostat is taking long to heat up the motor or is stuck it can cause over heating problems.

[Paddys13]

thanks for the advice. we replaced the theromstat along with the temp sensor, we're replacing the waterpump, stat again, and i'm gonna take the head off to make sure it isn't warped or the headgasket screwed, most likely getting a new headgasket for S'n'Gs

[Paddys13]

Moso and Rook. thank you for the advise. you both were right. gasket had a small hole on the exaust side, so we put that headgasket in a bottle stuff in it to hold it over till i get the money to machine the head. after that the thermostat failed and mad the hole bigger...on top of that my alternator died at the same time (but after 295,000 miles i can't blame it.)...so now i await my head studs and gasket delivery so i can get her back on the road.