95 SWB smells like coolant and blows air bubbles

[kkrover]

My 95 has recently has all coolant hoses and t-stat replaced b/c of air in the heater core. Air bubbles came back and turns out the expansion tank cap was leaking, so replaced that. The bubbles have come right back, but before i go any further there are other issues that I am beginnng to wonder if they are related.
First issue is ticking (from LH bank). Indy says it is definitly the lifters, and also found the valley gasket leaking pretty good...which is a new leak. I bought the car 2 months ago and had my indy look everyhting over and it wan't there then. Basically the car runs fine, but just sounds aweful. They gave me an estimate and indicated that is was not the head gasket.
SO after they looked at and gave me the estimate, this morning I smelled a strong odor of coolant. The car has had minor coolant smell since dealing with the hoses, but would be a 2 on a scale of 1-10. Today it smells like a 7, and I notice a wet spot on the driveway directly under the left side of the radiator. Coolant level was fine..no loss, but did let of a good loud hiss when I loosened the cap.
There is oil on the cooler line and appears that is the source of the drip (i guess it could be vally gasket related). There was also a little steam coming from the front side of the radiator, but alas it will not do it again. Just smells strong. I have driven around, pushed it pretty good and checked under the hood and the temp. always stays right where it should be...no indication of running warm or signs of steam again..just smells like coolant.
I am starting to panic. In 2 months I've done the cat y pipe, all hoses, pressure tested it and it held well, and also flushed and topped off coolant. Also did the 60k service about 2 weeks ago.
So my question is: do you think all of this could be related. My indy said it is not the head gasket, but I am beginning to wonder. ANy advice would be greatly appreciated. I really want to get it running well and give me some confidence in her. Also if we're going to get into it, anything else I should service while the valley gasket, vc gaskets, etc.. are being done

[roverthen]

Just out of curiosity, who is your indie mechanic?

[OkieRover]

If you can smell the coolant it is exterally leaking. So not a head gasket as that would be different symptoms.
You need to give her the once over good and find that leak.
When I leak coolant from hoses I always get my garden hose out and wash the coolant from the little areas it deposits in. That way if I smell coolant its from a leak and waiting to be burned off from the last repair.

[kkrover]

my indy is Import and Vintage

Any thoughts on stuff to do when the lifters, VC & Valley gaskets are being done?

I'm curious then as to what the sympoms of the HG blowing are? I had my disco II' s done, and only thing I noticed before was the smell of coolant as well as the smell of oil burning on the exhaust maniold and I could see oil leaking around valve covers

[sven]

My 95 RRC had an external coolant leak at the corners of the head gasket. Ran fine but it leaked really bad. New head gaskets cured all that.

[OkieRover]

Head gasket failure has several symptoms.

Increased Pressure in the cooling system.

1. Causing fluid to blow past the cap on the expansion tank.
2. Causing hoses to prematurely fail.
3. Causing heater core to blow. The tank is plastic unless it's been repaired.

Coolant contains hydrocarbons and can be detected from a hydrocarbon test.

1. Coolant smells vaguely like exhaust.
2. Bubbles may be evident when watching inside coolant tank.

And then it blows and you have coolant in the oil.

1. evident as foam on the oil dip stick
2. or residue on the oil fill cap.

Did I miss any? Over embellish?

[Greg M]

Originally Posted by kkrover

My 95 has recently has all coolant hoses and t-stat replaced b/c of air in the heater core. Air bubbles came back and turns out the expansion tank cap was leaking, so replaced that. The bubbles have come right back, but before i go any further there are other issues that I am beginnng to wonder if they are related.

Did your mechanic suggest you get new hoses because of air bubbles in the heater core? If so i would find a new mechanic. Air bubbles (not an air lock) are usually caused by a leaking head gasket and the expansion cap failing could be your system overpressurized beyond the 15lb limit of the cap.

How recently were the hoses replaced? Like Okierover said, (how about those Bronco's Okie! ) your smell could be coolant that spilled in the valley pan and your leak could be something as simple as a leaking hose clamp. All this is pretty tough to diagnose without being able to see it.

My suggestion is to take your rig into another mechanic - doesn't have to be a rover mechanic - get a second opinion and do a hydrocarbon test. Basically they use a tester that will turn a different color if exhaust gases are present. Its not expesive and this will rule out the headgasket.

[kkrover]

no, my mechanic has been great. Bought the car and had the small 1" peice of hose above the valley burst. Stealership replaced it and allowed for me to have all the hoses replaced and the cooling system checked by my mechanic. It also came with aftermarket red heater hoses that didn;t lay flat and was told that caused the air. They replaced all coolant and heater hoses and pressure test and car is fine. One week later bubbles are back and it was the cap was leaking. Replace dit and fine for another week. Then had the 60k service and they said it was ok. One week later bubbles come back and have remained, and I get the faint smell of coolant.

[Greg M]

Originally Posted by kkrover

no, my mechanic has been great. Bought the car and had the small 1" peice of hose above the valley burst. Stealership replaced it and allowed for me to have all the hoses replaced and the cooling system checked by my mechanic. It also came with aftermarket red heater hoses that didn;t lay flat and was told that caused the air. They replaced all coolant and heater hoses and pressure test and car is fine. One week later bubbles are back and it was the cap was leaking. Replace dit and fine for another week. Then had the 60k service and they said it was ok. One week later bubbles come back and have remained, and I get the faint smell of coolant.

Oh, okay, that was helpful.

Still sounds like you could be developing a head gasket problem since you've had it in for service but now its steady. Mine was shot when i bought it, and i had air bubbles and occasionlly it would build up enough to overflow the expansion tank onto the ground. Do this - start your engine from cold, take the cap off the expansion tank and watch for bubbles. There won't neccessarily be a constant flow but rather an regular "burp". If you see any, i can promise you that you have a headgasket problem. Take it back to your mechanic and have them do the test to confirm.

[OkieRover]

Originally Posted by Greg M

(how about those Bronco's Okie! )

I'm going to say I know the temptation was too much. That was a well coached game for the Broncos. My hat is off to them.

Back the the Rangie.
Dude everything you have said tells me you are having a head gasket problem.
The hoses popping like I said is the second sign. Coolant past the cap on the expansion tank is the first.
I went through the same steps when mine failed.

The good news is if you fix it now it won't be as expensive as if you break down on a trip somewhere. Once they get the new head gasket on you'll have another 100k of worry-less driving. Which is what you wanted in the first place, piece of mind with your truck.

[kkrover]

besides the oil on the top of the water pump (was told vallley gasket leak) there is also now coolant on the the water pump, below the distriutor. Can coolant leak out of the valley gasket or is this further signs of the headgasket. Car also starting to run poorly, and stalled for the first time today

[TerryS]

Greg and Okie have a pretty good idea which end of the screwdriver to hang onto. I got a pretty good idea which end of the gunthe bullet comes out of too, and I agree, you need to have a heart-to-heart with your Indy.
Coolant leaks can be minor annoyances, but you need to know what caused them. An old system may be just tight enough not to leak, but when you start over pressurizing it, all kinds of things can, and usually do start leaking (As evidenced by the numerous ones you are noticing.)
Cooling systems do NOT create air, so if you're seeing bubbles, what do you 'spose is making them?

Worn lifters are the last of your worries right now, but since you'll have to intake off when the heads are off, thats when you put the new ones in.
Now would be a good time to mention that lifter noise comes from too great a gap between cam and lifter. That being the case, did the lifters wear, or was it the cam (or both?) For years, Land Rover had a well deserved reputation for using cams which had a very shallow case depth to their hardening heat treatment. Whether it was base metal chemistry, or heat treatment is unclear, but it was metalurgical. The Cams didn't last more than 80-100K before lobes were rounding off.

If you can't get to doing a motor job right away, and you don't need to drive the interstates, you can leave the pressure cap loose and just keep the revs down. Les, at AB, told me he had done this for months before he did his engine.

[TerryS]

In the FWIW department, statisically, the number of old, high milage Rovers still running with their thin steel head gaskets is far fewer than the ones that have failed and been repaired. Sure, there will alway be the guys saying "I have 200K and mine have never leaked". Trust me, those are the minority, and they will start leaking sooner or later. It's just a fact of life with Rover V8 engines, and properly done, a renewed engine will go another 150K without problem. Don't bury your head in the sand hoping the problem will resolve itself.

[OkieRover]

Originally Posted by kkrover

besides the oil on the top of the water pump (was told vallley gasket leak) there is also now coolant on the the water pump, below the distriutor. Can coolant leak out of the valley gasket or is this further signs of the headgasket. Car also starting to run poorly, and stalled for the first time today

That is probably due to your heater supply hoses popping or springing leaks. Like I said in the earlier posts, that happened to mine. I'd fix them and then I lost the heater core. That is an un-fun job to work on. I'd recommend getting those head gaskets fixed pronto. The labor alone on the heater core will be 600-800 dollars at a 75$/hour rate. It's a relatively cheap part but the labor is staggering.

[kkrover]

once again y'all are correct. Turns out she has the original steel head gaskets, so getting her all fixed up. New head gaskets, valley gasket, valve gaskets, lifters, and cleaning out the pick up.
Is it a good sign about the health, or PO care of the car, if OE head gaskets are still in it at 117k miles?
I can't wait to get her back and be confident of how good she'll run. Now I just need to get my wife off my a$$ about it. She thinks it is a lemon, and I just keep telling her it's not a lemon, it's english. She shouldn't complain anyhow as she did get a mint 99 disco II out of the whole deal. Ain't married life grand!