How long has this been going on? Could it be air pockets working their way out after the work that was performed? It usually doesn't take too many miles but with the heater blocked off it will take longer.
How long has this been going on? Could it be air pockets working their way out after the work that was performed? It usually doesn't take too many miles but with the heater blocked off it will take longer.
I was thinking it could be air pockets. Since I changed the coolant I've added probably close to a liter over 4 or 5 top-ups...the amount and number of top-ups makes me think it's not just air pockets.
If you can try bleeding the air out of the system and then an air pocket seems to magically re-appear, it's a head gasket. Air pockets are unlikely though, as those would usually let it pull back from the overflow tank.
Thinking about it, how old is the rad cap? I'd be tempted to replace it just to be sure it's good.
Rad cap is less than 3 weeks old.
Update: Turns out the coolant's being burned off, intermittently and in small amounts. First saw the steam from the exhaust at night when a truck was stopped behind me with foglights on. Later a bunch spewed out in broad daylight. At least every 3 hours I had to pull over as temps started to climb, open the radiator cap and let the coolant spew out, and refill the system to get going again.
So a new head gasket is the best-case scenario.
Is the g13a open or closed deck? I've seen a few g13b's with corrosion around the top of the water jacket around the cylinders which leads to pretty minor head gasket leaks.
Also, has the inlet manifold got water jackets? A possible inlet manifold gasket leak would provide similar symptoms. It's also more likely that the coolant is evaporating prior to entering the cylinder if that's the case.
The G13A is open deck, and they're known to share that same problem.
I know there's some coolant going through the intake manifold so an intake gasket leak is another possibility. I'm not going to buy any parts before the exact problem is identified - I might need to go with a thicker head gasket if the head (and/or block) has to be cut anyway (don't want to increase compression).
I wouldnt worry about it raising compression any noticeable amount, ive cut enough heads to know even warped ones dont need but a few thousandths which might bump you from 8.75:1 to 8.8:1 lol. But i do advise to bare minimum check the head very good before you slap it on and better yet have someone pressure check it for you. It sucks replacing a headgasket just to find the head was cracked all along
sounds like a 1.6 16v swap time. Also I dont think the intake manifold will leak into the head that much, most will just weep out at the mating surface since iirc the jackets are below the runners. I will go look in a minute at my factory one from when i went to a Myside2.
Edit also g13's like to blow the head gasket between cyl 2&3 iirc and be careful as the head gasket looks like it will go either direction but it will block an oil passage if its on the wrong way.
Edit #2 yes the coolant passages are all below the runners and the big one in the back is well below the runners. Most are at least half an inch or more away with the big one being the furthest away at an inch and a half or more.
MrChaos wrote: and be careful as the head gasket looks like it will go either direction but it will block an oil passage if its on the wrong way.
Yeah, he probably has that problem on a 4ag.
Damn, GB, maybe it's time to consider a RN Truck to get you around while you fiddle with the toys. They are cheap here. Dunno if any are left on your island. And, as I learned when I had a Europa motor rebuilt by a local shop 35 years ago: If you want it done right, do it yourself. Or, as I put it at the time, I can screw up a motor a whole lot cheaper than they can.
I've been seriously considering putting a G13BB in there, since the Aisin carb problems I've also been having are getting worse and becoming more and more difficult to fix. Installing the 1.6 block requires suspension mods (extended front bump stops) or oil pan mods, and engine accessory mods, and I'd rather keep the displacement down to reduce fuel consumption, and not mess with the G13A's excellent oiling system. With the G13BB I can reuse the G13A's oiling system and engine accessories. Suspension travel is by far the biggest bottleneck in offroad speed anyway.
The G13BB swap would be great if not for the trouble of paying for it while my other car also has a dead engine and I toss aside the G13A that was rebuilt less than 2 years ago.
Praga RN? Nope, I don't think there's even a single Eastern European vehicle here.
The 4AG was still getting some oil to the head BTW, but not much. Should find out what happened with that in a couple of weeks.
mmmm twincam. can always go rotary.
Probably not much help to you given I'm on the other side of the globe, but I've got a full g13b top end, loom and computer sitting around.
I'd definitely source parts locally wherever possible, the various import duties on car parts are crazy expensive.
On that note though, after thinking it through, a G13BB swap is not going to be affordable any time soon so I'll have to fix up this G13A.
The problem's also getting worse rapidly. This morning when I went to top up the coolant before driving to work, when I turned the radiator cap to remove it and bunch of coolant spewed out forcefully from the overflow tank's puke tube. That says the coolant system is now being pressurized from the cylinders. And it ran on 3 cylinders for quite a few seconds after starting, which suggests wet spark plugs. Also I think I saw the first hints of milkshake under the oil cap yesterday. I was hoping I could nurse it along for another couple weeks but I think it has to come off the road real soon now.
Never try to nurse one along ESPECIALLY if water is mixing with the oil, will ruin all the bearings in a hurry, not to mention they like to die at the most inoportune times, like my girlfriends old a4 hydrolocked in the driveway. Id try to do a mad thrash headgasket replacement starting friday after work or better yet take friday off and work then, so if something goes wrong you might have a store open
I'm not even gonna wait until Friday, I'm thinking about getting it to a shop tonight. I've already lost one G13A to pretty much the same problem.
Looks like I'll be doing two oil changes and three coolant changes on this engine all within a month 
Just thought I'd update, I got the sammy back on Friday, it was a blown HG and the head and block both had to be cut. Compression may be bumped but it resists pinging better than ever now, even with more ignition advance. I've been driving it over the long weekend, and since I've taken care of some residual drips from the radiator fittings the coolant level has remained stable.
In reply to GameboyRMH:
Yeah, extra water in the combustion chamber and/or rough edges due to corrosion can really create lots of chances for wacky ignition. Glad its fixed!
You'll need to log in to post.
