Help Oil in water

jeff605 · 25th April 2010, 17:34

Hi, just had a head gasket replaced, done about 300 miles this weekend, checked the header tank and found a layer of what looks like new oil floating on the water. None evident on oil level rod, no emulsion on filler cap. I intend to clean the header tank out to make sure it's not just a spill durig the replacement before contacting the garage. Is this a " standard" sort of problem - if so where'sthe oil getting in from - or a bad job by the garage ? Annoying thing is I wanted to do it myself having changed many head gaskets on several makes of car including Rovers, but the other half wouldn't let me. NEVER had a post change problem with any I've done either !! Any suggestions before I listen to a load of guff from the garage gratefuly received. Jeff

T-Cut · 25th April 2010, 22:01

It's possibly remnants of oil that got into the coolant system when the gasket failed. However, you say this is new oil, which seems a bit ominous. Could it be mousse/emulsion? This is usually yellowish even from old oil. Certainly make the garage aware of your concerns asap. I'd try to syphon/absorb the floating oil from the tank every few days. It should eventually disappear. If it's persistant or gets worse, then they didn't fix it properly. I assume it's a 1.8 (?). Keep a regular and beady eye on the coolant level.

TC

Gary · 25th April 2010, 23:00

Good advice from TC…….If you think about it the water system is pressurised so easy to get water in the oil but not so easy to get oil in the water if that makes sense.

EnEnGee · 26th April 2010, 11:57

From the experience of HGF on my wife's sons R214, I found it next to impossible to get all of the sludge out of the cooling system, and from the time of the repair until he wrote it off, there was always a thin film on top of the coolant, although the level was rock steady, and it wasn't loosing any.

jeff605 · 26th April 2010, 19:24

Thanks for the replies, I've experienced the problems of getting rid of the sludge - in fact once lost a sale of a KV6 because of it's presence - what concerns me with this is the oil appears "new", no emulsification. I spoke to the garage concerned who are Jag specialists, ( actually accepted I might know what I was talking about !! ) the mechanic could only suggest it was oil that had somehow got in the system during the rebuild, and agreed that I should carry on fishing it out for a while and see if it continued to keep coming or gradually disappears. He also assured me that they would deal with it if neccessary. So, I'll keep on checking Thanks again, I will update later,Jeff

25th April 2010, 17:34	#1
jeff605 Newbie Rover75 club Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: melton mowbray leicestershire Posts: 26 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Help Oil in water Hi, just had a head gasket replaced, done about 300 miles this weekend, checked the header tank and found a layer of what looks like new oil floating on the water. None evident on oil level rod, no emulsion on filler cap. I intend to clean the header tank out to make sure it's not just a spill durig the replacement before contacting the garage. Is this a " standard" sort of problem - if so where'sthe oil getting in from - or a bad job by the garage ? Annoying thing is I wanted to do it myself having changed many head gaskets on several makes of car including Rovers, but the other half wouldn't let me. NEVER had a post change problem with any I've done either !! Any suggestions before I listen to a load of guff from the garage gratefuly received. Jeff

25th April 2010, 22:01	#2
T-Cut This is my second home Rover75 and Mreg Corsa. Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Sumweer onat mote o'dust (Sagin) Posts: 21,753 Thanks: 341 Thanked 3,660 Times in 2,924 Posts	It's possibly remnants of oil that got into the coolant system when the gasket failed. However, you say this is new oil, which seems a bit ominous. Could it be mousse/emulsion? This is usually yellowish even from old oil. Certainly make the garage aware of your concerns asap. I'd try to syphon/absorb the floating oil from the tank every few days. It should eventually disappear. If it's persistant or gets worse, then they didn't fix it properly. I assume it's a 1.8 (?). Keep a regular and beady eye on the coolant level. TC

25th April 2010, 23:00	#3
Gary Avid contributor Rover 75 1.8T Club - Mitsubishi GTO Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Weymouth Posts: 107 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Good advice from TC…….If you think about it the water system is pressurised so easy to get water in the oil but not so easy to get oil in the water if that makes sense.

26th April 2010, 11:57	#4
EnEnGee Posted a thing or two CDT Tourer (SORN) & 2.0 V6 Saloon Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Sittingbourne Posts: 1,058 Thanks: 2 Thanked 11 Times in 8 Posts	From the experience of HGF on my wife's sons R214, I found it next to impossible to get all of the sludge out of the cooling system, and from the time of the repair until he wrote it off, there was always a thin film on top of the coolant, although the level was rock steady, and it wasn't loosing any.

26th April 2010, 19:24	#5
jeff605 Newbie Rover75 club Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: melton mowbray leicestershire Posts: 26 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Thanks for the replies, I've experienced the problems of getting rid of the sludge - in fact once lost a sale of a KV6 because of it's presence - what concerns me with this is the oil appears "new", no emulsification. I spoke to the garage concerned who are Jag specialists, ( actually accepted I might know what I was talking about !! ) the mechanic could only suggest it was oil that had somehow got in the system during the rebuild, and agreed that I should carry on fishing it out for a while and see if it continued to keep coming or gradually disappears. He also assured me that they would deal with it if neccessary. So, I'll keep on checking Thanks again, I will update later,Jeff