Hmmmm.... getting worried....

[nadodude]

My car has had an oil leak since I bought the car. It did not burn oil, it for sure leaked it. Well the other day I stopped at a gas station to get some gas. As I was getting on the on ramp to the freeway, which is about 1/2 mile from the gas station, I looked in my drivers side mirror to see if I could merge into the lane and when I looked back I saw smoke coming from the rear. It then stopped as I picked up speed and havent seen it since, then again I havent really looked. This happened on wednesday, well about 20 minutes ago, I go to check the oil just to see if its a milky color and when i pulled the dipstick out, of course the oil is way low because I hadn't filled it in a while but there were whitish/yellowish/brownish looking bubbles. Do you think its because the oil is low? Or did I blow my headgasket? The car has been running fine by the way and the coolant looked fine....... Thanks. P.S. I am going to get an oil change tomorrow as I havent had one in about 4k miles.

[strad]

If you think there's coolant in the oil, take a sample and send it to somebody like Blackstone Labs for analysis.

[thejlevie]

Seeing smoke from under the car in the presence of an oil leak isn't unusual. What happens is that oil gets on the exhaust and makes smoke as it burns off.

Drain the oil and see if it contains a milky emulsion. A lack of emulsion in the oil doesn't mean that there isn't a head gasket leak, but it does indicate that you don't have a leak bad enough to allow coolant to mix with the oil.

[nadodude]

I just went to check the oil right now again and take some pics and I think I am just being paranoid. What I am really worried about is the oil level now after seeing the pictures. But can you guys see those microscopic bubbles? Sorry the quality of the pic is so bad. I couldnt even tell there was white bubbles on the dipstick until i held light and looked really closely. I test drove the car and the heater got hot really quickly like normal and there was no unusual smell what so ever. The car pulled really hard and quickly like it usually does and the engine temp was as far left on the blue so it was prob not the best idea to be flooring it but i had check, that was fun none the less haha. The car does not over heat and it has never gone past the mid line. I havent filled the coolant tank up in quite awhile either and the coolant light has not come on. So I think I am just being paranoid. If I wouldnt have seen that 2 sec of smoke while driving I wouldnt even be thinking about this......



Ok so I took the car out with a friend last night to see if we could diagnose this. I took the car to his house and it was only a 5 min drive from my house to his, so thats how much time the car warmed up, which is nothing. We let the car idle in front of his house late last night with a cool engine after I got there. When I revved it, white smoke came out so i stopped the engine and let it sit. The oil looked fine though and the heater was working perfectly. Later that night (about 2 hours later), my friend had to drop one of our other friends off at his dorm which was about a 20 mile drive from where we were at. I wanted to drive my car so they could see if it was blowing smoke during the drive. Well for the first 2 miles it had stuff coming out the back but when the temp got to the middle, it stopped smoking and the car was fine. I told my friend I was going to pass him and for them to look and see if it was smoking. I passed them and they said it ran real clean with no smoke. So then I floored it and white smoke came out for like a sec or 2 and then it stopped. On the way to the dorm I had to stop for some gas, and the car seemed fine, it started perfectly fine and everything. But I did notice the temp started to rise just a tad past the half way mark and it was stayed there on the way to the dorm. Then when we got to the dorm, which was about 5 miles away I turned the car off but when I went to start it, it wouldnt start at all, it just clicked, clicked and more clicking. My friend jump started it and it turned on fine. I have never encountered this problem before and it started perfectly fine at the gas station. As we were leaving I noticed the check light was on but I was hitting the brake pedal and I was like why is the check light not going out, so I looked at the check panel and it said it needed oil. So I immediately shut the engine off stupidly not thinking that we would have to jump it again. Of course when I try and start it, it just clicks and all the lights in the car go way dim and the clock and radio shut off like last time. We couldnt stop at a walmart for oil because it was 3 in the morning, so he gave me a bottle of 5-20 oil we looked for a milky sludge on the oil cap but it was brown and it looked like it normal. Anyways, he jumped it again and we let it idle and i revved it and my friend said there was no smoke what so ever coming out the back , but i did notice the temp was starting to rise. The entire drive back was fine but it would start to go past the half way mark if i was stopped at a stop light, but after I turned on the heater full blast for the rest of the drive back it didnt over heat at stop lights or anything. I floored it a couple more times in front of my friend so he could see and he said it ran really clean. When I got home, I tried to start it and it started up perfectly fine. IDK, this car is haunting me, maybe a halloween scare? Please help me out. Sorry for the long post. Thanks

[nadodude]

bump

[CHIF8008]

umm i did not read the whole thing but that pic shows bubbles in the oil. I WOULD NOT DRIVE IT! the bubbles mean that all the additives are all worn out and if they are used up-they wont pick up the crap in your engien. and if a small metal shaving comes in contact with the bubbles it will cause it to implode and put a hole in your engien.


you dont have to change the oil every so many miles, you always check if its velocity is good, the color and wost comes to worst you get bubbles. oil that you buy is not 100% oil its like half oil the rest are additives- and they clean the engien. if you put in sinthetic there is no oil in it. its all additives, which means that you rarely have to change it.

id go do a oil change right now