Head gasket failures are usually due to severe engine overheating. If you suspect that you've got a blown head gasket on your hands then this is the tutorial that I'll help you diagnose it.
I'm going to explain the 4 tests that you can perform to find out if you've got a blown head gasket on your hands or not.
Contents of this tutorial:
APPLIES TO: This tutorial applies to the following vehicles:
- 3.1L V6 Buick Century: 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005.
- 3.1L V6 Buick Regal: 1994, 1995, 1996.
- 3.1L V6 Buick Skylark: 1994, 1995, 1996.
- 3.1L V6 Oldsmobile Achieva: 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998.
- 3.1L V6 Oldsmobile Cutlass: 1997, 1998, 1999.
- 3.1L V6 Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera: 1994, 1995, 1996.
- 3.1L V6 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme: 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997.
Symptoms Of A Blown Head Gasket
Blown head gaskets will usually cause one of two problems:
- The blown head gasket will cause the engine to crank but not start.
- The engine will start and run, but will overheat within minutes.
If the engine in your 3.1L V6 Buick or Oldsmobile starts and runs, and it has a blown head gasket issue, then you'll see one or more of the following symptoms:
- The engine overheats.
- White smoke is coming out of the tail-pipe and it smells like anti-freeze being cooked.
- The engine oil is thick and a tan to off-white color (mixed with coolant).
TEST 1: Oil The Color Of Coffee With Too Much Creamer
This first test takes less than 5 minutes to do. Since all we have to do is pull out the engine oil dipstick and check the color of the oil sticking to it.
If the oil looks like coffee with too much creamer (a milky white color), then you can conclude that you've got a blown head gasket issue on your hands.
If the engine oil looks OK, then the next step is TEST 2.
Let's get started:
- 1
Open the hood on your 3.1L V6 Buick (Oldsmobile).
- 2
Pull out the engine's oil dipstick.
- 3
Check the color of the oil and how thick it is.
- 4
You'll see one of two things:
1.) The oil on the dipstick is a creamy, off-white color and is thick as syrup.
2.) The oil is its normal color and viscosity.
Let's examine your test result:
CASE 1: The engine oil looks like 'coffee with too much creamer'. This confirms that one or both of the head gaskets are blown.
CASE 2: The color of the engine oil is normal. This is the correct and expected test result.
The next step is to check to see if compression/exhaust gases are leaking into the cooling system. Go to: TEST 2: Exhaust Gases Shooting Out Of The Radiator.
