> >My 1991 Plymouth Sundance RS 2.5 TBI w/ 198,000 miles on it had a
blown
> >head gasket since this past summer. After it was comfirmed that it
was
> >blown, I continued to drive the car.
>
>Not wise.

I couldn't afford to fix it at the time. At times, it was the only car
I had available to drive.

>> A few months later, the oil started to look a bit funny.
>
>A few *months* you drove it like this? Were you *trying* to kill your
car?

Actually, I was thinking about getting another car at the time, so I
basically planned to drive it until it went out.

I don't know exactly the length of time I drove it like this. During
that period before the head gasket replacement, I was only using the
car like once or twice a week. I drove my parents' cars much of the
time, but I had to use my car when no other car was available.

> >Thinking that my oil was dirty (it was in there for over six months)
>
>This kind of abuse and neglect is a large part of how certain kinds of
>cars get a reputation for being "unreliable".

Anyway, I've had my car for about 4 years. It's actually been a very
dependable car. I go on a lot of long trips with it still. I really
like the car overall.

I usually keep up with maintenance and do a lot of work on the car
myself. However, at the time of the head gasket failure, I was pretty
sick at the time, had to go to the hospital in the summer, and couldn't
really do anything about it.

>> The oil resembled the appearance of chocolate milk !!! There were
also
>> white splotches inside the valve cover. Due to liability reasons,
they
>> wouldn't change the oil. They told me that the head gasket was
beyond
>> gone and said that I needed to get it Fixed ASAP!!! (why it needed
to be
>>done ASAP possible is beyond me).
>
>Because when the head gasket fails, lots of bad things happen. Coolant
in
>the oil. Oil in the coolant. Coolant in the combustion chamber (bye
bye,
>O2 sensor and catalyst!) Combustion heat where it's not supposed to
be.
>This is not an optional, "When I get around to it" fix.

The head gasket failed at the water jacket behind #1 cylinder. The shop
had told me that #1 cylinder was full of water when they disassembled
the head.

Fortunately, in my case, it appeared that pretty much all of the
ethylene glycol antifreeze had already leaked out through the exhaust
pipe. After this happened, I started to use pure tap water in the
cooling system. Apparently, the water I was putting in started to leak
into the oil. The mechanics told me that they didn't find glycol stuff
in the oil; just water. That's probably one of the reasons why I got
lucky and the engine is still running fine.

Also, after my car was fixed, I had to replace the O2 sensor. The one I
took out had white flakes all over it (possibly from the antifreeze
coolant).

>> Well, I took my car to the shop and got the gasket replaced and some
>> head work done as well. Since I've had the car back, it seems to run
>> fine as far as I know.
>
>...which appears not to be very far beyond the tip of your nose...

When the head was off, the shop did a valve job and milled/shaved the
head since it was warped. I was surprised that the head was not even
cracked. Overall, the mechanics told me that the engine is still rock
solid.

>> What do you think happened when I drove with coolant in the oil? I
>> think I drove it like that for about 20-30 miles before I got it
fixed.
>
>You drove it like that for *months* before you got it fixed. Coolant
is a
>rotten engine lubricant when cold, even worse when baked and whipped
with
>hot oil. Your main bearings, cam bearings, big and small end rod
bearings
>will have suffered.
>
>But that's OK, 'cause you obviously don't care.

I didn't really care that much at the time because I was going towards
getting another car, but I had later changed my mind and decided to get
this one fixed since my friend told me that it was cheaper in the long
run to fix what you have.