WATER PUMP OR HEAD GASKET?

[mike v]

hi guys. really newb here, if the post is in the incorrect place let me know, i just bought a 2007 te 450 did an oil change and fixed several other things, this is my first husky, the problem im having is that did an oil change just about 50 km ago, everithing aside a minor oil leak that i fixed adding an o ring couldn handle, checked the level today and oil was grey, ran it for 5 km like that re checked the oil and it was really white, milk like color, coolant level dropped, went back home, the bike started but was loosing power and had trouble iddling.
did a search throug forum but no conclusive info found, could be water pump seal or blown head gasket?
how can i diagnose it?
thanks in advanc

 

[OlderHuskyRider]

You could try some of that fluid that turns color if there are combustion gasses in the coolant, though, I had a leaky head gasket and the test fluid didnt work for me.

http://www.nationaltoolwarehouse.co...kLD-1-9dAz0yM0KLFJwMv1AFXiZxjcGyf9BoCkU_w_wcB

 

[ray_ray]

First thing I had to do was check if is it a 2T or 4T bike? 4t ....

I've had a waterpump seal go out on my 08 TXC250 and all I got was milky-looking oil in the crank ... My bike always ran AOK with the waterpump seal leaking but being a 4t, you need to park it ...

Should the engine be smoking white smoke with a blown head gasket? Is it gonna run hot quickly? Not sure but plenty of real mechanics around here, so more qualified riders are here to help.

-- Sidenote -- I like the 07 4t model Huskies ...

 

[rancher1]

You can pull your water pump and have a look at the seals, if it doesn't appear to be the problem proceed to the head gasket.

 

[ray_ray]

I see storm clouds brewing here ...

 

[LandofMotards]

Check for freeplay on the propellar. If there isnt any its the head gasket

 

[LandofMotards]

Just reread it. If its loosing power and having a hard time idling then I'd assume it has to be the head gasket. Impellar cause it to run hot

 

[mike v]

The bike ran fine till more water entered the oil chamber, it had rough iddling and if i let off the gas it died, if i let it rest for about 5 mins ran fine and then again started riding rough, no white smoke, no coolant overflowing, no weird noises, when the bike was off you could hear the coolant boiling but not to the point that was really excesive, i openned the radiator cap but nothing wrong, i mean it didnt pour out.
Thanks in advance for the reply guys.

 

[lankydoug]

If you don't have any fancy tools, here's the best way to verify if it's a combustion leak to the cooling system.

1. Remove radiator cap, make sure fluid level is full. This must be done when bike is stone cold.

2. Replace Radiator cap. (cold)

3. Start engine and rev/snap throttle it two or three times and then immediately shut off the engine. (about 5 seconds of running time)

4. Remove radiator cap and observe it there is pressure in the cooling system. (listen for escaping pressure like when you open a beer)

If there is pressure present then it's head gasket or a crack that is letting combustion gasses enter the cooling passages. The logic behind this is that the engine only ran cold for about 5 seconds and could not have built pressure in the coolant from heat expansion. This means it's time to go digging in to the engine to find the problem.

If no combustion pressure is present then start at the most likely and easy to check places like water pump and ending with engine cases.

 

[Teambowles]

I'd say head gasket bro...once head or motor gets hot things expand and you get water in the oil. Had it happen to me in a Honda 450. Just a small leak in gasket but a big pain in the ass. I think any time oil is milky...water in it gotta be head gasket imo, pressure builds an it pushes into oil

 

[mike v]

Crap...now im expecting the wort case scenario...did more search and i realized that the bike was overheating..didnt realize it till knew the simptoms...and i drove it like that**************************************** F....K ME**************************************** kinda frustrated because ive only had these bike a few rides...awsome machine..but... here in mexico the parts are rare and kinda expensive, what can i expect from the overheating?
Can the bike still run ok and get away only with the head gasket? Or do i need to tear up and rebuild?
Drove the bike pinging and knocking, still when almost died a few times stopped and crancked it and ran, when i finally stopped removed the spark plug and it wss fine, the ussual carbon and gas smell, did a few tries without the S.P off and no water in cilinder and pressure came off the hole, no signs of being seised.
Kinda frustrated at this point, didnt wanna invest alot in it at this momment.. best and worst case escenario? Its going to the doctor today to diagnose but wanna be prepared

 

[vtskier]

I'd say head gasket bro...once head or motor gets hot things expand and you get water in the oil. Had it happen to me in a Honda 450. Just a small leak in gasket but a big pain in the ass. I think any time oil is milky...water in it gotta be head gasket imo, pressure builds an it pushes into oil

I am watching this too as I have the same problem... Checking the movement of the impeller shaft seems like a good test. Has anyone tried this one yet? I like the pressure test too and will give that a try!

 

[Cschedo13]

You can buy a cheap coolant pressure tester to fit where the radiator cap goes. Run the bike with tool on for a couple minutes. If the pressure on the tool guage is going above the cap specification you have a bad head gasket (combustion gasses going into cooling system and raising pressure) you can also add pressure to system with bike off and check if seals
Are leaking. Great tool to have and im sure you can find one relativly cheap that will fit.

 

[Huskynoobee]

If it were me I'd fix both since they're known issues on these bikes and call it a day.

 

[mike v]

went to the mechanic today, at first glance the water pump seal, but.... having trouble with the wp shaft, seized and the bolt its not coming off, does anybody knows an online store that i can get it from that ships to mexico? or somebody that has the shaft and willing to send it to me? thanks!!

 

[ray_ray]

Best and worst cases? Who knows ... Your just gonna have to step through each issue and see where it leads ...

Looking at the seal and the WP shaft is seized? Not 100% sure what you mean but on my 08 TXC, the WP shaft sits on a bearing and the timing chain in some manner ... The bolt you are referring to is the nut that holds the propeller on?

Are you dealing with anything that looks like this?

Seals do not support shafts in most case. A loose shaft probably means a bearing is going bad and if that shaft has a bad bearing, it will probably be toasted long before it wiggles very much. A step further and the wiggling shaft ruins the seal... Most seals I have changed you can't really tell it is bad visually but it leaks.

--

Here's a case you might wanna consider for that seal ... If that seal is bad and not totally destroyed, sometimes you can move it on the shaft and temporarily stop the leak and keep riding till new parts arrive...

--
You have stress tested that engine ..What brand of engine oil did you have in it?

 

[mike v]

ray ray, youre absolutely rigth, i meant the bolt in the shaft that holds the propeller seized, the bearing has a little bit of play, but not that much, my mechanic said, that in case that we cannot find the seal he has a friend that can custom made it, he has done it sometimes, we will start addressing this issue first, if we have coolant again in the oil we will know its the head gasket.
ray, we havent stress tested the engine, just removed the old oil, and the mechanic told me that nothing strange came out (besides coolant hahahaha)
the oil i used was motul 15w50.
will see what happens, ill keep posting.
congratulations to the forum, great place.

 

[ray_ray]

Sounding better ... Go ahead and break out that iPhone or other device and snap a photo of anything and post it here if you have the time.

ø8xØ16x10 mm <-- seal size from my 08 TXC....