Head gasket vs bad coil/wires
- Thread starter jminz
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absalom
New member
Look for oil frothing under oil fill cap. Look for low coolant, dirty coolant, etc. If the misfire goes away after warming up this could indicate HG leak.
100% way to find out? Bring a boroscope with you and look in 3rd cylinder.
brillo_76
Elite Member
White smoke when you fire it up and run it for a while. Antifreeze level. Oil level and smell.
Unless you do a compression check and antifreeze leakdown tests, it's sometimes hard to verify if head gasket leaking.
Engine would have to goto full operating temperature as well.
If at night and dark you can mist the wires and look for any arching.
Why not just fix the wires, coils if that causing the misfire.
Maybe an injector plugged too causing misfire or even a bad spark plug.
It could be a pile of things causing a misfire and just looking at it makes it kinda hard to find the exact cause.
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fourfive
Senior Member
I use a combustion leak tester to check out used cars. I've heard it isn't always the most reliable test but its quick and easy to use. Look for common HG symptoms others have mentioned but the leak tester I linked is nice to have & they're pretty cheap. I've seen cheaper leak testers in the $30-$40 range.
Combustion leak tester:
https://www.amazon.com/UView-560000...1574716078&sprefix=combustion+,aps,146&sr=8-7
Combustion leak tester:
https://www.amazon.com/UView-560000...1574716078&sprefix=combustion+,aps,146&sr=8-7
+1 for this. also ask him to not run the car for a while before you check it out so you can hear a cold start. it'll produce more white smoke on the start if the vehicle has sat and more coolant has had a chance to drip and collect in the cylinder.
2owner4runner
New member
I am starting to think my head gaskets are toast
all 6 cylinders were good at 170ish but I guess I need to pull the heads
all 6 cylinders were good at 170ish but I guess I need to pull the heads
That's a little low, but still good. Why do you think you need to pull the heads?
I think generally speaking, any time you hear the statement "It just needs" you can go right ahead and assume the end of that is "a whole bunch of work"
If it just needed wires, I wonder why he didn't spend 30 bucks and a few minutes to get it running tip top. Surely it would be worth more that way.
If it just needed wires, I wonder why he didn't spend 30 bucks and a few minutes to get it running tip top. Surely it would be worth more that way.
brillo_76
Elite Member
Valid point. That phrase "It just needs" tells you it needs some serious
Yes like mine, Just needed some Frame work...LOL.
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brillo_76
Elite Member
Even or close to even is always very good for even lower compression.
As like Bad Luck why do you think you have to pull the heads??
You don't have a dead cylinder?? Is it because the compression is at 170??
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yep , if they are all about the same...even if low but equal..I would just suspect tired rings...but I sure would not start pulling stuff apart unless I had other issues
other issues like one dead or lots lower hole....fluid loss or cross contamination...a miss you cant fix otherwise with other fixes
brillo_76
Elite Member
Sometimes we dont have a choice. I 100% agree but if I have a choice of leaving an engine be or tear it apart. I will leave it be for as long as I can. However, this is me. Others can do as they wish it's their rigs.
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