OH God!! Steam from under the engine!

[91tercelowner]

OK, so this morning I took the car for a test drive since getting the new thermostat yesterday. It warmed up to halfway pretty reasonably (it's cold out here, so it took a while but way faster than with the old thermostat).

Then I idled for a while in my parking lot. No steam.

Then I went inside for 15 mintues, came back out and started the engine.

STEAM!!

I popped the hood, and this time it seemed to be swirling all around the engine. I let it run a while, and it didn't stop steaming.

I even tried again later, still steam from under the engine.

Note, the timeframes: yesterday I had the thermastat put in. A week ago, a guy tested it by running it with the hood up and no steam came.

The week before, after I almost overheated on my cross state trip, someone put coolant both in the reservoir and in the radiator. Too much actually, way over the FULL line. The next day after this, I took a test drive (same route as today). Then sat idling in a parking spot. No steam. Went into a store for 15 minutes, came out and started the engine and plumes of steam came. Then stopped after a while. So I just assumed the reservoir spilled onto the engine from overflow... but again, I went to a mechanic (as descrived above) who ran the engine, and no steam.


But what about now? Todays steam all of a sudden from under the engine? Could the guy have wrecked something while installing the thermostat?

I am totally freaking out. Especially since the thermostat guy said I may need a head gasket which would cost $1500!! I don't have that kind of money!! (He is not a mechanic, BTW, he only installs cooling systems.
HELP. What does this all mean?

[Daox]

I take it you couldn't tell where the steam was comming from?

Testing to see if your head gasket is bad isn't hard. You just need a compression test done. Its quick and easy to do.

[91tercelowner]

It just seemed to be swirling around from under the engine and all around it.

What is a compression test?


Also, why did this only start to happen immediately AFTER having the new thermostat?

And more importantly, now that this is happening, does this mean I should not drive it? I mean, if steam is coming out and through the hood, can I drive down the road 1/2 mile to the store? Or is this an emergency?

The guy I want to take it to is about 15 miles from here. Will I make it, or burn my cars engine up?

[Daox]

compression test info:
http://64.78.42.182/sweethaven/MechT...Num=7&modNum=6

I would try to avoid driving it. Steam comming from any part of the engine is not a good sign. If you keep driving it long enough does the temp gauge go past halfway? Double check that there is no oil in your coolant. If that is okay I think you'll be alright to drive to the mechanic. However, I'd watch your temp gauge closely.

[91tercelowner]

Daox,

When I got it back from the work done--getting the new thermostat installed-- I took it on a test drive. Small loop, maybe 4 miles?

It slowly went up to half way and stayed there (whereas before it would have stayed at Cold).

Only after I turned the engine off, then restarted it 20 minutes later did the steam come out. I let it run awhile, hoping it would just burn off, but it continued to steam. But the temp gauge did not go above 1/2.

I have not taken it out since.

This DID NOT happen before the thermastat was installed. Do you think he could have messed something else up?

Also, he filled coolant above the FULL line in the reservoir. Is it possible that too much coolant caused too much pressure and something blew? Or is the overflow released from a valve on the reservoir?

You are such a help, I don't know what I would have done without you.

There is a body shop guy that sometimes does little things for me, like spark plugs. No heavy duty mechanics. He is right at the bottom of the hill, maybe 40 feet away.

If he put the car on the lift, might he be able to tell where the steam is coming from, and whether the thermastat installer screwed something up?

[Daox]

I'd recommend having the compression test done. That'll tell us if the head gasket is bad and that could explain the steam comming from all over.

[91tercelowner]

just took it to a body shop guy I trust. He revved the engine, make the steam come out.

He thinks it's a cracked head. Suddenly, I am longing for it to JUST be a head gasket.

A cracked head is doomsday, right? Thousands??

[Daox]

An entire engine from a salvage yard should be well under $1000 and I have seen them for as low as a few hundred. Labor is usually what costs a ton, and swapping and engine doesn't take that long.

[91tercelowner]

the word around here is that a new head would be a couple of grand, a new engine including labor would be at least 4 thousand.

I live in North Jersey, gouging capital of the country.

[Daox]

A salvage engine looks to be $400-600 in NJ. (Check www.car-part.com) Installation will take say... 6 hours @ $80/hr your looking at $480 for labor. Roughly $1000 for to replace the engine.

Or, you could look into having a new head installed. A head is about $150, rebuilding it is about $150, and I don't know how long replacement will take a shop. I'd look into this.

[91tercelowner]

Those figures are amazing,.. but no one around here is willing to take that kind of money for either job.

They all take a big profit, and there isn't really anything I can do to control that.

[91tercelowner]

I still have not done anything about my car. Not driving it, either.

Here is the thing that is bugging me. The steam from around the engine only started immediately AFTER having the thermostat replaced.

I mean, I took it for a test drive, right after I got it back.

Only then, and not before, did steam come from the engine.

That tells me, this is a result of getting the new thermostat.

Can you guys explain how that could be--could this guy have done something to my car, or screwed up putting the thermostat in?

[hevster1]

Originally Posted by Daox

I take it you couldn't tell where the steam was comming from?

Testing to see if your head gasket is bad isn't hard. You just need a compression test done. Its quick and easy to do.

A compression test may or may not tell if you have a bad head gasket. Where in NNJ are you? I would charge you 25.00 for a full diagnostic. If I need to make a road call it is 50.00. I am in Columbia off exit 4 of 80. This way you will be sure. If you are near Bogota I will be there this Saturday helping a friend at his shop. You can come there if you like.

[4speedsleeper]

Originally Posted by 91tercelowner

I still have not done anything about my car. Not driving it, either.

Here is the thing that is bugging me. The steam from around the engine only started immediately AFTER having the thermostat replaced.

I mean, I took it for a test drive, right after I got it back.

Only then, and not before, did steam come from the engine.

That tells me, this is a result of getting the new thermostat.

Can you guys explain how that could be--could this guy have done something to my car, or screwed up putting the thermostat in?

Its seems to me you should not be driving a car at all. Because you have taken advice from the best people in this forum, and still dont have a clue on what to do? you should go back to bicycle mode because your not ready to maintaine an automobile.

[91tercelowner]

Thanks for the offer, Hevster. but I am more way north and west. I would be afraid to drive that far with steam coming from under the hood. I drove 1/4 of a mile today and steam came out. It also ran poorly (which could be plugs, actually), I was afraid I wouldn't make it. The guy there said--well, see my other post. He was going to charge nearly $200 and was already hinting without even doing a test, that my engine was bad. Didn't even consider that maybe the steam was coming because the other guy screwed up installing the thermostat.

I didn't use him, though. I just left and went home.