re: Oil in Water

["Leslie J. Singh" <Les.Singh@domain.elided>]

Stefano asked:
><<Hey cats,
>
>I know that water in the oil will cause engine damage because the oil is
>lubricating the engine, but what is the risk of waiting on a head
>gasket change when there is oil in the water? As long as I keep checking
>the oil and find it clean and up to the level, how long can
>one wait? I'm not quite ready for a gasket change on this car.>>
>

Perhaps I can help since I am in the process of replacing the head gasket
on our TwinSpark which, incidentally, has a duplex chain and not a
cambelt... thank goodness. Symptom of failed o-ring seals in the head
gasket was initial globules of oil in the header tank which after some
weeks turned to caramel ice cream then caramel milk shake. I have to admit
laziness/too busy/neglect etc for what happened later.... On the way back
from airport after picking up wife who had just returned from walking on
The Great Wall, the temperature went sky high and almost immediately the
milk shake stuff started pouring out onto the road ... nuts! Got the car
home with frequent stops and it was a mess. Before taking the head off, I
tried to flush most of the gunge out of the cooling system and ended up
spending a whole day with the garden hose clamped into one hose or the
other. The radiator was relatively clear but the heater core was obviously
blocked but cleared under high pressure which we have from the outside
water taps .. so high that we have to use header tanks to supply household
systems to prevent washers and seals blowing. 

Even with this gradual deterioration, no water got into the oil, and I have
never observed water in the oil in any Alfa 4 cylinder inline engine but
this is not to say that it could not happen. By contrast, that failure is
relatively common in some other cars; I repaired our team Jeep Cherokee
service car after a race at Bathurst after water had got into the oil. It
was a nightmare of a job because nothing would work to shift the gunk, not
even a water blaster. I eventually had to resort to using a spray bottle
filled with petrol which worked but it was a horrible job. Even after it
was relatively clean, the Jeep overheated on the long trip from Bathurst to
Canberra even though we were travelling in the cool of night and stopping
frequently to top up the radiator.

Moral of the story ... don't risk getting water in the oil. You'll need to
strip the engine down for sure.

Ciao tutti.

Les enjoying the GTV with tail out on age-hardened Pirellis in the wet
today.. :-)

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