Gasket gone?

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BigTom
Joined: Thu 26 May, 2011 12:52
Posts: 20

  Z3 roadster 3.0i
Location: Tenby

Gasket gone?

Post by BigTom »

Today i had a horrid shock. When i started my 2001 Z3 3.0 all i saw was white smoke. Has my head gasket blown? The heater has been working fine, there has been no rough running and it has always started fine. Theres been a little mayo under the filler cap but i believe this to be common on cars only doing a small mileage. Luckily.as the car had been sat all day and inoticed the smoke as soon as i started i think that damage should be limited. Its only done 42,000 miles with a full history. Any thoughts?
Thanks all.
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hornel Z3M
Joined: Sun 16 May, 2004 20:33
Posts: 1120

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Location: RAGLAN

z

Post by hornel Z3M »

Hi Tom. Firstly if you have been starting the car and not driving it to normal temperature then you have just a condensation problem, assuming the white smoke was from the exhaust. I had that problem last year and now i dont start the car all winter. :wink:
pedro20001
Joined: Sat 29 Jan, 2011 20:34
Posts: 361

  Z3 roadster 2.2i
Location: tamworth

Post by pedro20001 »

Perfectly normal especially short journeys. just condensation.
BigTom
Joined: Thu 26 May, 2011 12:52
Posts: 20

  Z3 roadster 3.0i
Location: Tenby

Post by BigTom »

Thanks for the replies guys but when I say lots of white smoke I mean LOTS of white smoke! The car was driven daily for work. Standard temp seemed to be reached as was doing about 5 miles each way. Thanks again.
johnwayne
Joined: Sat 21 Feb, 2009 11:05
Posts: 114

  M roadster S50
Location: sheffield

white smoke from exhaust

Post by johnwayne »

Hi Tom, a limited amount of white smoke isn't unusual at this time of year but if you have excessive amounts it could certainly be the head gasket.

When the engine is not running coolant finds it's way via the faulty gasket and into the compression chamber.On starting the engine this coolant is quickly turned into vapour and emitted from the exhaust. This should decrease when running at normal operating temperature but if left will cause distortion to the head and further engine damage may result.

One consolation is that you have found the problem early and the head gasket is not a major repair.

Best of luck :rtm:
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Gazza
Joined: Tue 04 Oct, 2005 20:58
Posts: 9521

  M roadster S54
Location: Romford Essex

Post by Gazza »

I agree, sounds like a gasket.

Was it anything like this <iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/1XhIl9oiV6M" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Don't buy a cheap replacement gasket, a garage friend has fitted the cheap ones from ECP etc and they blow in a very short time.
Gazza

"Understeer is when you hit the wall with the front of the car, oversteer is when you hit the wall with the rear of the car. Horsepower is how fast you hit the wall and torque is how far you take the wall with you"

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BigTom
Joined: Thu 26 May, 2011 12:52
Posts: 20

  Z3 roadster 3.0i
Location: Tenby

Post by BigTom »

Thats just what my car did. Just without the flames as far as I know! Thanks for the replies all, I really appreciate it. I'll keep you posted on developments.
pedro20001
Joined: Sat 29 Jan, 2011 20:34
Posts: 361

  Z3 roadster 2.2i
Location: tamworth

Post by pedro20001 »

tom, just wandering how you got on; has the gasket gone? ( hope not )
BigTom
Joined: Thu 26 May, 2011 12:52
Posts: 20

  Z3 roadster 3.0i
Location: Tenby

Post by BigTom »

Sorry its been a while for my reply but work kills what little spare time I seem to get.
Anyway, the garage picked the car up on Weds of last week. They started it first time with no problem. It was a very rough idle sounding quite like a two stroke moped instead of a silky straight six! After looking under the oil filler and a general preliminary nose the two mechies seem to agree its the gasket. I will be phoning them later this evening to see what they found after towing it to the garage.
I will update asap.
Thanks all.
BigTom
Joined: Thu 26 May, 2011 12:52
Posts: 20

  Z3 roadster 3.0i
Location: Tenby

Re: Gasket gone?

Post by BigTom »

Well heres an update. Its not the gasket but its the head thats cracked! No idea how or why. Had a gas exchange test done and it comes up positive. So, a new head needed. Any ideas guys?
Del
Joined: Sat 19 Nov, 2011 18:35
Posts: 2136

  Z3 roadster 1.9

Re: Gasket gone?

Post by Del »

Appreciate that this is only a forum with brief exchanges, but did your garage actually remove the head or just apply a chemical test to the coolant? My understanding is that the only way to be 100% sure the head is cracked (as opposed to a blown head gasket) is to actually remove and inspect it.
BigTom
Joined: Thu 26 May, 2011 12:52
Posts: 20

  Z3 roadster 3.0i
Location: Tenby

Re: Gasket gone?

Post by BigTom »

Well guys, after working like a slave for the summer I've finally got the cash spare for the fix! The heads going off tomorrow to be mended with a skim and re-fit of everything. As I've been in contact with the guys at Qualitycylinderheads.co.uk over the summer not only have they knocked off the VAT but are also doing a port and polish for me all for £450! Not bad i reckon.
I'll keep everyone updated and I appreciated all the comments, thanks all.
resunoiz
Joined: Tue 04 Sep, 2012 16:12
Posts: 162

  Z3 roadster 1.9

Re: Gasket gone?

Post by resunoiz »

BigTom wrote:little mayo under the filler cap .
in the oil filler "hole"?
in that case, I'm afraid is really the head..

EDIT read now is the head cracked...worst solution. infact the "mayo" is a symptomps that oil and water melt together, the gasket would have been better IMHO.. :head:
BigTom
Joined: Thu 26 May, 2011 12:52
Posts: 20

  Z3 roadster 3.0i
Location: Tenby

Re: Gasket gone?

Post by BigTom »

Thanks for the new replies guys. To answer an earlier post, the garage did all proper tests to diagnose the problem. Theyre a great lot and are not adverse to accepting folding vouchers at a lower price!
But the whole thing has left me wishing that I'd kept my TVR Chimaera which never went wrong! So much for BMW reliability!
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Bench
Joined: Thu 03 Mar, 2011 13:03
Posts: 152

  Z3 roadster 2.0
Location: Flitwick

Re: Gasket gone?

Post by Bench »

That literally must be the first time a TVR has been praised for being more reliable than a Z3. Must admit after just selling my Zed i am concerend that i will never find anything as reliable. ION almost 10 yrs of ownership the most that went wrong was cam and abs sensor...and i probably could have cleanted them up if i wanted to.
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