dead ls motor.....took the valve cover off tonight and there seems to be radiator fluid in the valve train/head? the car started up a couple of days ago and was bearly running smoking and all, open the radiator cap and lot of hot air comes flying out. what could be the cause of this?? blown gasket due to the car running hot?

should i get a new head and gasket slap it on if the block is not craked or screwed up? this is my moms i don't really know what happen to it can anyone help?? the motor itself has about 125k.

 

ttt

 

If you have coolant in the valve cover, you are probably looking at a blown head gasket at least. Don't just slap a head gasket on. Have the head checked at a machine shop for warpage, pressure tested for cracks, and resurfaced if necessary. Also check the block for warpage with a straight edge. I think that the maximum allowable block warpage is .003", but I would have to check. After you repair the block/head and replace the head gasket, you need to find the root cause of the overheating. Was the radiator or any of the cooling system hoses leaking? Low coolant will definately cause an overheating problem. The thermostat may have been the cause of your problem as well. Replace it either way with an OEM thermostat from your local dealer. If everything above checks out o.k., make sure that the cooling system fans operate normally. The cooling fan switch may be faulty, or the cooling fan motors themselves could be at fault. You need to fix any cooling system problems you may find, or you will be replacing the head gasket again. Good luck.