Blown head gasket

andy444

I know it's blown because my car had trouble accelerating and I've took it to a (different) garage and that's what they diagnosed.

I had travelled maybe twenty miles from service to car engine playing up.

foxy-stoat

Was there any coolant in it?  Did you get any warning lights?

Maybe they forgot to put coolant in and charged you any way.

andy444

I don't know if there was any coolant in there to be frank. I had the thermometer icon flash on my dashboard when it starting playing up.

I'm guessing it'll be difficult to prove that it was the direct result of them doing anything in any case.....

AdrianC

andy444 said:

I had the thermometer icon flash on my dashboard when it starting playing up.

You mean the "overheating, stop now before you damage your engine" warning light?

Mickey666

andy444 said:

I don't know if there was any coolant in there to be frank. I had the thermometer icon flash on my dashboard when it starting playing up.

I'm guessing it'll be difficult to prove that it was the direct result of them doing anything in any case.....

You didn't think that was worth mentioning in your original post?

Sometimes getting a full picture of events on here is like getting blood out of a stone

foxy-stoat

As your Corsa doesn't have a temperature gauge, only a warning light to say its over the normal/safe running temperature, that would of been the clue that it was running too hot.  Either the thermostat is stuck shut, no coolant due to leak, not enough in or air locked, fans not kicking in, etc etc.

Did you stop immediately and open the bonnet to see if there was anything wrong or just carried on driving it?

When you took it to another garage did you check the coolant before you set off?

andy444

I have to admit that I am not mechanically minded and that I don't know a lot about cars which is mostly why I posted my OP in the first place.

I'll tell you the full story from when I had the service done. I had the service performed last Thursday and I drove home without any problem. From memory I didn't use the car on the Friday or if I did it was for a short journey without any problems. On the Saturday I drove the car for a short distance to visit somewhere nearby and I did hear an unusual sound from under the bonnet whilst driving like a dripping sound or some sort of rhythmic sound but I happened to have some items on the floor by the front passenger's seat so I thought it might be an item knocking against the car bodywork and I didn't think more of it.

On Sunday I drove somewhere around 6/7 miles from me. From memory I don't think I heard any sounds on the journey there. On the journey back is where the problems started. I can't remember the exact order of events, but I think what first highlighted to me that there was a problem was that the thermometer icon flashed and that I had real problems accelerating. I stopped my car at the nearest possible occasion where I lifted up the bonnet to check the car engine. There was steam coming up from the radiator I assume (apologies, I don't know much about cars) but there didn't seem to be much else wrong and I revved my car a few times to check the engine was still performing satisfactorily which it seemed to. I was only three miles from home so I thought if  I could just at least get home I could get my car looked at another day.

I proceeded home but within a hundred metres another icon flashed on my dashboard (no sure which one, it contained an exclamation mark) and I again had trouble accelerating so I stopped again where I could. I tried revving again and white smoke came from the exhaust pipe so I recognised it was unsafe for me to continue so I called the AA to come and have a look at the car. After I told the AA man my story and he had a look at the engine, he expressed his view that it was likely a blown gasket and a garage would have to have a look at it. He said it would be OK to drive to the nearest garage in my village which was nearby and he accompanied me along the way just in case I needed assistance. With it being Sunday I left the car at the garage with the aim to go there first thing to get my car looked at.

I returned first thing Monday and got the car checked and they got back to me later that day that the head gasket had indeed been blown. I asked the owner whether the service a few prior had caused it and he was rather dismissive of that stating that gaskets can blow at any time. So my car will have a new head gasket fitted next week.

I've owned the car for around five years with no gasket problems and I've wondered whether it was a just a coincidence that the gasket should blow not long after I know the car had been prodded about for it's service. But maybe it is just one of those things. 

andy444

PS. My local mechanic did add some coolant to my engine before I made the half mile trip back home after getting it looked at. I don't know if this means the car had no or little coolant in the engine beforehand.

angrycrow

So we now know the cause of the hg failure. The time to stop driving was when the first warning light came on. Either your radiator was pictured after the service, possibly a stone hitting it or the servicing garage failed to properly reconnect the radiator hose after draining the old coolant. Your mechanic should be able to tell which. 

The temp warning light was letting you know the coolant had escaped. You then popped the bonnet and saw the steam which was your second warning not to drive on. Despite these warnings you continued to drive. This is likely when your hg failed due to the car being driven whilst overheated.

If the servicing garage had failed to reconnect the hose properly and you had stopped when the warning light came on you probably could have had the car recovered back to them and it would have been a very easy fix. The garage can't be held liable for your decision. To continue driving after the fault was apparent. 

My money is on a hole in the radiator and this being nothing to do with the service. When changing coolant you have to bring the car up to running temp to purge the air from the system. Any leak would have been obvious at this stage. 

DiddyDavies

andy444 said:

There was steam coming up from the radiator I assume (apologies, I don't know much about cars) but there didn't seem to be much else wrong and I revved my car a few times to check the engine was still performing satisfactorily which it seemed to. I was only three miles from home so I thought if  I could just at least get home I could get my car looked at another day.

That will probably turn out to be one of the most expensive thoughts that you've had in a long time.