Today I went out to the garage and started the car. When I did, the DIC indicated "Low Coolant". After consulting the owner's manual, I checked the level, which didn't really look too low, but I added about 1 quart of distilled water (I always keep a gallon around for refilling the humidor). I then took the car out for a little drive, about 2 miles. As I was pulling back into the garage, the "Low Coolant" indicator came on again and I noticed smoke/steam coming out from under the hood. :eek:

I popped the hood and saw a brown milky liquid oozing from under the right side fuel rail cover. I popped the cover off and saw that the leak appeared to be coming from where the head meets the block. I pulled the oil dipstick and sure enough, it looked like chocolate milkshake! It would appear that I blew a head gasket, don't ya think? :eek:

I called the dealership where I just got the car last month and spoke to the sales manager. He had the owner call me back about an hour later. He was very sympathetic and said that he would contact the Chevrolet dealer in Savannah and try to get the work done under warranty. The dealer where I bought the car is a Pontiac/GMC/BMW place and does not have anyone qualified to work on a C5.

I sure hope he can pull it off under warranty, or else I'm in BIG trouble. Anyone care to venture a ballpark figure what it should cost to have a head gasket replaced, including parts, labor, and fluids? When it rains, it pours! :mad

Down In The Dumps Dave :cry


[Modified by Drop_Top_Dave, 4:46 PM 9/5/2001]

 

Wow.. sorry to hear of your misfortune.

Estimates on time and labor.. hmm. I would guess approximately 2 hours to tear down, maybe 1 hour or so to clean, and 2 hours to reassemble? Maybe 6 hours shop time.. I'm sure results will vary!

Parts .. no big deal.. 1 head gasket, 1 exhaust gasket.

You will want a complete flush of the cooling system and engine block. A good oil change, followed by another soon thereafter..

6 hours labor @ 85.. $500.. add 50$ for parts, $200 for flushing and oil changes.. my guess would be about $750 back on the road..

Just my opinoin.. once you get a price it will be interesting to see how close I am.

 

Drop_Top_Dave,

Didn't the dealer provide a 30 day warranty or anything? Since you bought it last month, the dealer may be liable for repair.

Good luck.
Mark

 

Dave, sorry to hear that! That sucks, but it will be back on the road in no time. Good Luck!

 

6-8 hours labor sounds right. you may not be in as much trouble as you may think, BUT, since you have coolant in your bottom end, that couold be VERY serious trouble because coolant swells the rod and main journal bearings. i hope you took it upon yourself to drain the oil immediately. swelling will lead to premature wear on the bearings. if the car has been driven for a while like this, the damage mey have begun. it may be worth having the mechanic you take it to to drop the oil pan, take a rod and main cap off to check out the bearings. good luck.

 

drop-top, sorry about that, if they fix it under warrenty great, if they dont then build a stroker. :smash:

 

RWJ,

It just happened today, I'm certain of that. Probably only drove it like that for a mile or two, so it should be ok.

Skeeter,
I'd love to do that, but hell, I can't even afford to fix it, let alone stroke it. Especially since I just ordered that Borla XR-1 (in part because of you!) ;)

The owner of the dealership sounded like he was probably going to be able to get it done under warranty, so I'm not THAT worried, but I am still understandably very concerned. Also, since its a dang holiday weekend, I won't hear from him until TUESDAY. And I can't drive my shiny new 'Vette this weekend!!! Oh well, guess I'll take the Hog out for a spin!!

At any rate, one way of the other, IT WILL BE FIXED in time for the Cape Canaveral Corvette Cruise!!

Droop Lip Dave :cry

 

Sorry to hear of your bad luck, and I think you are the only one that I have heard of blowing a head gasket on a C5. I am sure there are others, but I dont think any one posted about it here. I am sure it's not distinction you wanted, but does make me wonder how the original owner drove the car. :( :seeya

 

New bearings now is a lot cheaper than a crank and bearings later. Even if you have to bight the bullet yourself,put in new bearings. :(

 

See if the dealership can hook you up with a GM Extended Warranty. You usually need to buy these before the warranty runs out, but with what happened, maybe they can pull some strings.

You can also check with Ken Fitchner.

Good luck!

Mike

 

:eek: ...wow, sorry to hear that Dave. This is the first time I've heard of this happening to an LS1. Sounds like you might be lucky & have blown the gasket on the outside vs. into or between the cylinders. Hope you can get assistance from GM. OH-OH..didn't see that there's goo in the crankcase ..as others have said, bearings are cheap insurance at this point. Make sure the techs pull BOTH heads & check for leaks on the other bank. If there's any signs of cylinder "wash", don't let them put it back together without you first consulting with a reputable LS1 tuner...this could lead to problems down the road.


[Modified by DynoDon, 6:54 AM 9/2/2001]

 

Sorry to hear about this Dave! Sometimes things that appear to be bad at first glance turn around to be good news. Let's hope this is the case. Try to get the dealer to thoroughly examine your car like the others have stated. Life is like a roller coaster...look at it like this...the next ride is up!!!


[Modified by vette-crazy, 5:27 PM 9/2/2001]

 

Hi Dave,
Sorry to here that. But it could be a lot worse. I had just 51 miles on mine '99 when I got the same symptoms. Just for the hell of it I checked the dipstick, filled with milk. Called the dealer and after about a 3 weeks of hell they bought the car back, a day before I was meeting with a lawyer. THey were just going to replace the head gasket, I said no way. THe engine was broken in with milky oil! The only proper way would be new rings and bearings or a new engine and they wouldn't do that, nor would I accept that. I bought a new car not a car with a rebuilt engine.
The dealer actually replaced the head gasket and resold it. :(
THey ordered me another and it came through as a 2000. :cool:

 

I was just checking out C5_Tech's homepage and found this recall code for the '98 C-5:
Is there a chance that this is what caused my problem? If its a recall issue, that would probably solve my problems! Any input?

F-150 Driving Dave :cry


[Modified by Drop_Top_Dave, 4:58 PM 9/3/2001]

 

I'd get it fixed, hopefully under warranty, and it would be for sale in a heartbeat, looking for another one. In fact, I would push the dealer to make you some kind of deal and take it back. One month and you blow a head gasket?? This could be a fluke or the beginning to a long nightmare. Good luck.

 

It could have been much worse. It happened to us, however, it caused a cylinder to hydro-lock & we threw a rod. You were lucky that you caught it in time. BTW we had no warning on ours.

 

Yeah, I really only drove it about 1-2 miles like that. The temp was higher than normal, but never got over 223. And I parked it and shut it down immediately. The dealership owner should be calling me in the morning. I'm kind of anxious to hear what he has to say. I'm trying not to get my hopes up too much. I've resigned myself to the fact that I may have to fix it myself. Either way, it WILL be fixed in time for the CCCC!!!!

Also, got an email from C-5 Tech, the '98 recall had to do with sparkplugs not seating right...so much for that!

We'll see....

Down Vette Dave

 

DTDave, I'm very sorry to hear about your troubles. I hope all goes well and they take care of you under warranty! My condolences.

 

that recall was for spark plug hole seats that were not machined right causing a compression leak around the plugs. :chevy

 

Clem was great to see you in BG this weekend.

What you could probably do (as I doubt they will buy it back) is have THEM get you an extended GM warrantee. Tell em it is either that or take the car back or put in a new motah.

That is probably too direct but you get the drift. Have them get the warrantee for you.

Snowman :cool: