Guest Rocknroll57 Posted January 18, 2014 Share Posted January 18, 2014 This morning I checked my dip stick and it looks like water got into the oil. I was wondering if I can just get the heads rebuilt or do I have to get the whole motor rebuilt? Please help with any advice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted January 18, 2014 Share Posted January 18, 2014 How much water? Water forms as a result of condensation. Running engines long enough to evaporate the condensation is always a good idea, especially in the winter. Short drives on cold engines is one of the hardest things you can do to an engine. Can you tell if the water has antifreeze in it? If not, you probably don't have any leaks. Most coolant leaks into the crankcase via cracked head gaskets. Change the oil, run the engine for longer periods of time, and continue to monitor the situation. Keeping your gas tank filled in the winter cuts down on condensation. Less volume of air to condense and more gas to absorb what condensation does occur. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Cannon Posted January 18, 2014 Share Posted January 18, 2014 I agree with Ed. Don't jump to the worst case scenario.Do a compression test on all 8 cylinders to see about bad head gasket.Put a cooling system pressure test pump on the radiator and see if it will not hold pressure overnight.See if driving it at least 60 minutes does not boil off the water.Did your oil read way overfilled on the dipstick? The water settles to the bottom of the pan and the oil reads high if you have a coolant leak.If you just have rusty cheezy crud all over your dipstick, it is probably just condensation. Change the oil and try again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rocknroll57 Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 I performed an oil change and turned on the car and let it run for 10 minutes and I checked the dip stick and it looked the same, looks like water is mixing with the oil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 Do a compression test on all 8 cylinders to see about bad head gasket.Put a cooling system pressure test pump on the radiator and see if it will not hold pressure overnight.See if driving it at least 60 minutes does not boil off the water.Did your oil read way overfilled on the dipstick? The water settles to the bottom of the pan and the oil reads high if you have a coolant leak.If you just have rusty cheezy crud all over your dipstick, it is probably just condensation. Change the oil and try again.Did you do the other things Jim suggested other than just changing oil? Doing a compression test on all 8 cylinders then doing a pressure test on the radiator and cooling system is just as important as changing the oil. Running it for 10 minutes isn't quite the same as driving it for 60 minutes. You have to really get the temperature up there to boil off the water. If you do have a crack that is letting water into the oil, then the reverse it probably true as well. Is there any oil in the radiator? Also if there's a crack that's letting water to the oil then that same crack will allow combustion temperatures into the water jacket and your car will be overheating. The condensation clings to the sides of the iron just like frost forms on your iced tea glass. Until you get it hot (thermostat temp) for a long time you won't boil the water out of the system. It's go no place to drain, it has to vaporize and work it's way out through the crankcase ventilation system. That's going to take a while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Cannon Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 I performed an oil change and turned on the car and let it run for 10 minutes and I checked the dip stick and it looked the same, looks like water is mixing with the oil10 minutes is nothing, especially if the air temperature is cold. Worse than not running it at all.You need to go out and drive it for a full hour, get it really hot all the way through.Where in the world are you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rocknroll57 Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 I am in pacoima in southern Cali Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cstang50 Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 I had this problem before and it turned out to be a pin hole in the timing chain cover. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1965rivgs Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 I performed an oil change and turned on the car and let it run for 10 minutes and I checked the dip stick and it looked the same, looks like water is mixing with the oilDoes the oil look like a milkshake? What is indicating to you that water is in the oil? Is the coolant level in the radiator dropping? Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rocknroll57 Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 Yes the oil looks like milkshake with a light brown color Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Cannon Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 I had this problem before and it turned out to be a pin hole in the timing chain cover.Yes, a common problem.Light brown milkshake color is not good.You might not need to rebuild the entire engine to fix this, though. Could be a head gasket, could be timing chain cover eroded through. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cstang50 Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 Yes, a common problem.Light brown milkshake color is not good.You might not need to rebuild the entire engine to fix this, though. Could be a head gasket, could be timing chain cover eroded through.I learned the hard way started off with head gasket but ended up being cover expensive lesson. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rocknroll57 Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 Thanks for all the help guys! Keep the info coming Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lrlforfun Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 (edited) 10 minutes is nothing, especially if the air temperature is cold. Worse than not running it at all.You need to go out and drive it for a full hour, get it really hot all the way through.Where in the world are you?OK Rock and Roll:READ THIS CAREFULLY! Do not drive this car for an hour. Moisture, especially the chocolate shake in the crankcase can easily wipe out bearings. They might be scored from the moisture already. I have replaced many a Nailhead timing cover which fixed the problem. In California where the temps rarely get well below freezing many engines have been the victim of running straight water and no antifreeze. This with the Father Time aspect of being 50 and electrolysis can easily punch a hole right smack dab in the front of the cover behind the water pump. Back in the day it was pretty easy. A compression test and a radiator pressure test would usually diagnose the water leak.The Buick dealers had a cover in stock for about less than $30. and unless you had broken bolts you were in business. Today the diagnosis is the same procedure with the exception that you really must check everything more closely because there are more vulnerable spots to let water/coolant in. FIRST.......DIAGNOSE, NEXT, VERIFY DIAGNOSIS, THEN REPAIR. Always remember that it's as important to find out why the part failed.Finally. Even if you correctly diagnose the water leak and verify your diagnosis, DROP THE OIL PAN remove a few caps and examine the crank. If it's scored you may as well plan on a quality rebuild. It's not what you might to have wanted to hear but i have been there and done this on many Nailheads through out the years. And BTW, I wish I had a dollar for every Nailhead that was incorrectly diagnosed. I am sure there were tens of thousands of unnecessary valve jobs done because of the choc. shake so remember......DIAGNOSE, VERIFY DIAGNOSIS, and ascertain why the components failed. Mitch Edited January 19, 2014 by lrlforfun (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RivNut Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 DROP THE OIL PAN remove a few caps and examine the crank. Not exactly a walk in the park with the Riviera. You'll need to loosen the motor mounts and jack the motor up some to get the pan off. Watch the distributor / firewall clearance when jacking up the motor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Cannon Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 Yea, I agree, now that I am hearing that it still looks like a milkshake shortly after changing the oil. Find the source of the water/coolant.OK Rock and Roll:READ THIS CAREFULLY! Do not drive this car for an hour. Moisture, especially the chocolate shake in the crankcase can easily wipe out bearings. They might be scored from the moisture already. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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