My '99 with 235k is losing a lot of oil and coolant is disappearing. The engine is running fine except for a very few random, rough starts - I think mostly when cold. No visble smoke, although the oil does smell of gas. Don't know what's normal but it's noticeable. I replaced the radiator about a year ago and I've checked for coolant leaks but all is dry. I'm losing what's in the reservoir about every 3-4 weeks. If my numbers are right, it's burning about 1 qt every 500 miles. There are no major oil leaks. I checked the PCV valve and there is suction at tube otherwise it looks ok. I'm replacing tomorrow anyway.

I suspect I may have a blown head gasket. I pulled the plugs tonight and the #1 & #2 plugs were so tight I thought I was stripping the threads. I've been changing my plugs for years and it took a lot of force to loosen and it continued for most of the threads. Cylinder 3 & 4 plugs were easy to get out. I took a picture and while it's not clear, the 1 & 2 plugs have .050 gap versus about .045 for 3 & 4. There's brown, almost like burnt coating on ceramic of #1 & 2 and I can't recall if that's normal. There is white ash on plug #3 that is not on any of the others. The oil on stick looks ok. I checked the radiator cap this morning and there were a few specks of oil on the cap but the fluid in radiator looked ok. When I started the car with cap off, the coolant was going to overflow the radiator. Is that normal?

My question is that is it possible that it's the valves that are causing the oil loss or are the oil rings worn - or maybe both. What would have caused the plugs to seize up? I'm sure I used anti-seize. I'm going to do a compression test but don't think that will help much from what I've read. I can replace the head gasket myself, but if it's the pistons I'm screwed. Don't have $$ to replace the engine or pay dealer to rebuild, so I'm really hoping for a less expensive fix. Thanks for the help.

 

do the compression test like you already suggest you should be doing...don't second guess yourself on that..it's a very useful test

 

I did the compression test. What do you think about these numbers?

1- 195
2 -185
3 -205
4 -200

 

You don't really have that high of mileage to think the rings are bad. I'm going with valve seals. Your numbers aren't really that bad. I would now buy a cooling system tester and see if you can now find the coolant leak with it. Normally when the head gasket has a coolant leak it starts with cylinder number 4 and yours seems fine.

I have never ever had a problem with my spark plugs and I have never used antiseize. They don't need to be ridiculously tight(should only be 16ft pounds no more) and you should never tighten them or loosen them with the engine warm. Replace them at or before 35k and you will always be fine.

 

For what it's worth, I borrowed a block tester from Autozone. First test nothing detected. Did a 2nd with engine hot and no change in blue fluid. Over the weekend I adjusted the valves, installed new plugs. Acceleration seems to have improved significantly, it sounds quieter. Before the weekend, I started to record oil consumption versus mileage but need more miles to compare. The mystery of the evaporating coolant is still a mystery. There is not a single drop of coolant anywhere. Was all over the engine with mirror and light, in every small space and found nothing. Rough guess is losing from max line to min about every 2 weeks. Will start recording numbers to get an accurate number.

Sorry about long post - but there's a few other symptoms. When I restarted the car for the 2nd block test, I could hear a distinct ticking noise, sounds like it's by cylinder 1 & 2. In less than 10-15 seconds, the ticking pretty much stopped. The engine was warm when I started it and oil level is fine. You thought the valve seals were the culprit - is the ticking related or another symptom of bad seals? I know the engine has some miles but over past 6 months, I've noticed at idle tapping sounds louder than what I've heard for the past 14 years. Since the valve adjustment, it sounds more like a new engine except for the brief ticking I heard in garage tonight. I was expecting the block test to show a bad head gasket, so was thinking I'd pull the head and look at valves. Do you think I should first replace the seals without removing the head? Are there any tips to doing the seals - if you think a weekend mechanic should attempt doing them. Thanks.

 

a ticking sound could just be an exhaust leak...when it's not sealed properly the ticking sound appears

might be wise to seafoam and see if any white smoke comes out of the exhaust

do you see any film on the inner windshield when driving ?..could be the heater core leaking..just a guess

 

Now that you mention it, I have noticed a heavier film on windshield over past few months. Cleaned windshield and noticed film reappeared sooner than in past. I'm assuming if core has small leak, there would be no fluid dripping into cabin, so will have to take a look at the core.

Before I adjusted valves, when idling in garage, the tapping from 1 & 2 cylinders was clear as day. Increase throttle which produced louder tapping. The valve adjustment did quiet things down a lot, but tapping is still there and when I give a little gas, it sure sounds like there is something going on with 1 & 2 valves as opposed to exhaust leak.

The block test was negative but I have found a very small amount of black film, a few drops of sludge under the radiator cap. Don't think over the years that I have found oil under cap - but memory isn't what it used to be. The fluid in radiator looks clean. I cleaned up cap and black film/oil reappears. Is it possible the gasket is leaking with a negative test?

 

tbh I'm not sure what a block test it and too lazy to look it up lol ...you should compression test the motor

it is completely normal for the car to make a ticking sound...however you normally won't hear it unless the exhaust is leaking and the sound is able to make its way out of the exhaust instead of going to the muffler and getting somewhat muzzled.