johnnyddn Posted July 26, 2015 Share Posted July 26, 2015 (edited) Would this be from a bad head gasket? I don't have a problem doing a gasket change. I was just wondering if this was a symptom of a cracked head or anything. Edited July 26, 2015 by johnnyddn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pac_Man Posted July 26, 2015 Share Posted July 26, 2015 Cracked heads aren't entirely unheard of. Was the head gasket recently replaced? And if it was did you inspect the bottom of the head for flatness? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnyddn Posted July 26, 2015 Author Share Posted July 26, 2015 The motor work was done by the previous owner over 10 years ago so I don't really know the history. I've had blown headgaskets before in other cars where the oil and water mixed and even had smoke from the tail pipe. This car has none of those symptoms besides this coolant leak so that's why I was wondering if anyone has seen this before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miles Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 The threaded area appears dry and clean. Why not clean the wet area down to the metal and then observe over time where the moisture is coming from. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnyddn Posted July 27, 2015 Author Share Posted July 27, 2015 The moisture looked like it was seeping out of the spark plug socket when it was running. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miles Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 Things you might check: compression test, inspect the water in the radiator, pull the dipstick-any water in the oil? etc etc I have had engines develop hairline cracks in the block and heads so a cracked head is possible. If you are not intimidated by pulling the head, do so and have a machine shop check it for cracks. Let us know what you find. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leon Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 How did the spark plug from that cylinder look, compared to the others? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnyddn Posted July 27, 2015 Author Share Posted July 27, 2015 (edited) Well got some bad news. After cleaning the area it looks like the water corroded and ate a hole through the head. The metal was so weak it just caved in with the pick I was using to clean the area. Probably why it didn't show signs of a blown head gasket. I feel I could get the car running fairly easy again if I could find another good head and swap them. But I'm almost to the point I think I'm just gonna give up on this motor and start saving parts for a LSx swap if I can't find a head in my area fairly cheap. Edited July 27, 2015 by johnnyddn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewZed Posted July 27, 2015 Share Posted July 27, 2015 Wow, that's pretty cool. You could try borini63, 88dangerdan, or zentech by message. They all sell parts. I think that borini63 might be in your neighborhood. That's a lot of corrosion though. Makes you wonder about the block also, like the core plugs. They're thin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony D Posted July 29, 2015 Share Posted July 29, 2015 Well I was going to say check for corrosion, but that's a new place to poke through for me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leon Posted July 29, 2015 Share Posted July 29, 2015 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnyddn Posted July 31, 2015 Author Share Posted July 31, 2015 Well, I found another N47 head at the local junkyard in a 1980 280zx. The cam cover is missing and it looks like it's been baking in the sun forever. It's also missing some springs and other components from the head, but the cam and cam caps are still there. It would still cost me about $100 bucks even though it's incomplete and I would have to pull the head myself. Do you think I should wait to buy a complete head? I also found a N42 head complete but it's about 5 hours away from me in Arizona. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88dangerdan Posted July 31, 2015 Share Posted July 31, 2015 PM sent Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malibud Posted July 31, 2015 Share Posted July 31, 2015 I was just thinking I have a n42 head laying around but I think dan beat me to it . Lmk if you need Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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