Oil in Coolant Res

7162 Views 15 Replies 6 Participants Last post by billymade, May 27, 2014

Threesticks

Discussion Starter · Mar 18, 2014

I have found a lot of oil in the coolant res of my daughters '04 1.8 turbo NB. In fact the res is full to the top and has been blowing oil all over the underside of the passenger side of the car.

There is no oil showing on the dip stick and there is no water inside the oil filler or on the dip stick.
What are the different ways that the oil can get in there?

Thanks for the help.

Steve

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Smileybug

· #2 · Mar 18, 2014

Head gasket would be the most normal culprit.

You said no oil is showing on the dipstick. If that's the case, then you are seriously low on oil, which is not good!

How has the car been running?

billymade

· #3 · Mar 18, 2014

Seems, discussions around here; have indicated mixing of oil/coolant can come from three areas:

1. oil cooler failure
2. turbo failure
3. head gasket failure

I would NOT drive the car; until you resolve the issue. You risk; destroying your engine, hopefully it hasn't been damaged so far.

I would do a leak down test of the head; that would confirm, if the head gasket is ok. A cheap tester can be purchase, from places like harbor freight; this requires, compressed air to operate.

Cylinder Leak-Down Tester
Pittsburgh Automotive - Item#94190 (Note: do a google search for "harbor freight coupon" for a extra 20% off.

Cylinder Leak-Down Tester

I personally; have not dealt with this issue, maybe others can chime in and tell you which/what specifically would cause the oil in the coolant and not in the crankcase oil. The classic case; would indicate the head gasket but the turbo/oil cooler have been discussed as other causes.

Do the leak down test and let us know; what the results are. The oil cooler; could be removed and pressure tested, confirm if it has any leaks.

Lets see; if others have had your specific issue and what it ended up being.

Keep us posted; as your troubleshooting and repair progresses.

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Smileybug

· #4 · Mar 18, 2014

Oil cooler leak would typically result in coolant in oil, not the reverse I believe. We had that failure on our Audi and we had coolant in the oil, but not oil in the coolant at all.

nyum96

· #5 · Mar 19, 2014

Oil cooler failure. Been there, done that, a pain to clean out of the system. More pressure coming from the engine then the coolant system.

Not a bad job to do.

tedybear

· #6 · Mar 19, 2014

nyum96 said:
Oil cooler failure. Been there, done that, a pain to clean out of the system. More pressure coming from the engine then the coolant system.

Not a bad job to do.

Considering the reverse. If the coolant got mixed in with the oil---That normally points to major engine repair, as coolant and crank/rod bearings do not get along.

For this member, do you have a suggestion on how to clean the oil out of the cooling system? Other then removing the thermostat and installing a flushing "T" and nailing it with a garden hose..... (That's kinda along the same lines as how we flushed out the green crap coolant when we replaced it with the Pink stuff)

S-

Smileybug

· #7 · Mar 19, 2014

tedybear said:
Considering the reverse. If the coolant got mixed in with the oil---That normally points to major engine repair, as coolant and crank/rod bearings do not get along.

Not true. Oil cooler failed in our Audi. Only had coolant in the oil. Replaced it and its running in tip top shape.

tedybear

· #8 · Mar 19, 2014

Think you might have gotten really lucky then. Normally any good amount of coolant in the oil wreaks havoc with bearings. Must be that VW approved oil works pretty well.

(On the lighter side? Haven't gotten to use the term "wreaks havoc" in a long time) LOL

S-

nyum96

· #9 · Mar 20, 2014

tedybear said:
For this member, do you have a suggestion on how to clean the oil out of the cooling system? Other then removing the thermostat and installing a flushing "T" and nailing it with a garden hose..... (That's kinda along the same lines as how we flushed out the green crap coolant when we replaced it with the Pink stuff)

S-

Basically, flush the system with cleaner.. flush again... and again... and again. Refill with coolant then have the system pressure flushed. Buy 3 coolant reservoirs because you will be throwing out a few because the oil will get trapped in it.

I took my car to the dealer to do a pressure check and flush, after the repair. They flushed with an additional 12 gallons. There will still be some residue but not enough to be concerned about.

Good luck. The repair is easy. The flush is time consuming.

Threesticks

Discussion Starter · #10 · Mar 26, 2014

More info

Well, I finally got some time to work on the car and with a borrowed gauge was able to determine that it isn't the cylinder head gasket that is leaking.
Next and easiest step is to pull the oil cooler and see how best to do a leak check and take it from there.

Steve

esse10

· #11 · Mar 26, 2014

oil/coolant mix

opcorn: Well let us know what you find out so other folks can learn from this oil/coolant mix experience.

nyum96

· #12 · Mar 28, 2014

Threesticks said:
Well, I finally got some time to work on the car and with a borrowed gauge was able to determine that it isn't the cylinder head gasket that is leaking.
Next and easiest step is to pull the oil cooler and see how best to do a leak check and take it from there.

Steve

It's either or. Buy the oil cooler and gasket since the compression is fine.

Threesticks

Discussion Starter · #13 · Apr 1, 2014

Oil cooler leaking

I removed the O/C today and when I put it into a tub of water and pressurized the coolant tubes with 20 psi there was a steady blip, blip, blip of bubbles coming from inside of it. Bummer, but it isn't too expensive or difficult to do. Only problem is fitting my hands into that small of a space.

nyum96

· #14 · Apr 3, 2014

Threesticks said:
Only problem is fitting my hands into that small of a space.

I went in from the top. Removed intake manifold and then go down. Much easier and faster. I can have it stripped down in 10 minutes. 30 minutes if first time.

Good luck. Dirty job. Mine went at 70k miles. I'm at 180k on my Behr replacement cooler.

Threesticks

Discussion Starter · #15 · May 27, 2014

Finally got it done

Sorry for the long delay, but I finally got the car back from the garage after replacing the oil cooler.
It took them almost a week and lots of hours to get the cooling system flushed. They are an independent Porsche repair shop that I have been using for over 20 years now and two years ago became a certified VW repair shop as well.
When this kind of failure takes place in the Porsche 944 N/A it takes them about an hour to flush out the cooling system when the oil cooler seals fail. The NB turbo has a more complex system and it took them about five hours of labor to get it flushed and ready to drive. One of the upper radiator hoses also decided to break at one of it's plastic unions and cost a little more that my daughter was expecting.
The plastic seems to be the Achilles heal of this car and the reason that she wants to sell it.
That's all that I have to say about that and if there is anyone in the Phoenix area interested, let me know.

Steve

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billymade

· #16 · May 27, 2014 (Edited)

Well, We are all glad to you got the car back on the road; I am sure that wasn't a cheap job from a shop that specializes in Porsches! Ugh! :-( there is a whole aftermarket for the Volkswagen plastic radiator parts in the engine compartment; for just very reason you're talking about! The heat gets to them, they deteriorate and break easily and this is especially the case of living in the extreme climate of the desert it's a lot worse! Ask me how I know! I live in New Mexico!

most of the aftermarket parts are machined CNC aluminum pieces, this really improves the integrity of the part and probably would be the last time you buy them! The parts aren't exactly cheap but if you keep the car; is probably worth it!

here is a Example of a. thermostat coolant Flange just released my 034 Motorsports::

http://store.034motorsport.com/034m...oolant-flange-audi-volkswagen-06a121121c.html

Another vendor that has a lot of metal Volkswagen Parts,

http://www.gruvenparts.com

Sent from AutoGuide.com Free App

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