PhillipisHappy
New member
Hello,
Long time lurker first time poster.
I have a 2006 Dodge Sprinter 2500
259,XXX miles on it now
I bought it with 237,XXX
I have driven it from the SF bay to Montana and back 3 times, up to Seattle and back once and it has never given me any issues other than a few old hoses that cracked/split and a turbo resonator that needed to be replaced.
I had to top it off with coolant here and there, and some oil every now and then, for a 14 year old van I figured its just par the course.
Just within the last week things have gotten bad for me.
I had a coolant hose break, so I went ahead and replaced them all with hoses I got from Europarts-SD.
Then I had a few of the hoses shoot off, I thought I just didn't tighten the clamps down enough so I tightened everything down.
Then the seam on my radiator gave out and would shoot out coolant when I put the van under heavy load 2,800+RPM with sufficient boost.
No idea when the last time the radiator was replaced so I bought a new one and put it in. Everything appeared good as I drove around town.
I hit the freeway to see if any hoses would give out, gave the van a good push and then the low coolant light came on and my heart dropped.
I pulled over and opened the hood - exact same coolant pattern around the seam of the tank, no coolant anywhere else it had to have broken the seal on the plastic tank again. Now I figure I've got a bigger problem.
If I baby it and keep it below 2,500 RPM and low boost pressure I don't have any problems, but driving like a grandma pisses off everyone around me.
My coolant system is getting pressurized. I found TROLL's thread and his videos on youtube. My symptoms appear to be the same as much as I wish this wasn't the case I think I have a head gasket failure.
Then just a few days after this I opened my oil filler cap and oil started sloshing out. This has never happened before, I have topped off my oil with the van running before and all was well. There is some light white vapor coming from the oil filler cap and dipstick if I remove it.
I talked to Vanski since he posted that he is from the East Bay - where I live - and he put his number up. Very helpful guy, I told him what I am experiencing and he said it is almost certainly a HG and possible the whole head will have to be replaced if the warping is bad.
1.5-2k if everything goes good, if its opened up and other things are wrong looking at 4-6k for a rebuild. Or 8-9k to get a used motor dropped in.
**QUESTION**
How long can I drive with my engine like this and how bad is it for my van? Will it potentially damage other systems costing me more money?
The van has never over heated, and once it loses some coolant it sort of just stays there, but once I add more to top it off and turn the light off it shoots it out after some time.
I had a road trip planned that I saved up for the entire year and this all happened the week I was planning to leave.
The trip will be about 2,000 miles. This is a loaded camper van.
I figured if it will hold out and work for the 2,000 miles and I can fix it when I get back that would be awesome instead of losing my engine and my trip.
If the engine is already on its way out (Not sure if it is?) is there any harm in driving it as it is now and coming back to rebuilding it or dropping a new motor in after the trip?
I realize this is not the right way to do things and I may be playing with fire, I'm just not very knowledgeable and that is why I decided to stop lurking and post for the first time. I've spent the last 4 days reading different threads and my head hurts. I wish I was more mechanically inclined and I would have just ordered the HG and got started on a tear down, but I really can't trust myself with anything like that. I've only ever changed a starter, replaced this radiator, and changed my fluids along with some other bolt on bolt off parts like a viscous fan clutch and water pump.
I have receipts from the previous owner that the injectors were replaced, head was machined and valves were ground, so It sounds like he just did the HG not too long ago, there is no mileage for the head, but injectors were at 234,XXX miles. What could cause a failure so quickly?
Thanks for your time and sharing all your wisdom.
Long time lurker first time poster.
I have a 2006 Dodge Sprinter 2500
259,XXX miles on it now
I bought it with 237,XXX
I have driven it from the SF bay to Montana and back 3 times, up to Seattle and back once and it has never given me any issues other than a few old hoses that cracked/split and a turbo resonator that needed to be replaced.
I had to top it off with coolant here and there, and some oil every now and then, for a 14 year old van I figured its just par the course.
Just within the last week things have gotten bad for me.
I had a coolant hose break, so I went ahead and replaced them all with hoses I got from Europarts-SD.
Then I had a few of the hoses shoot off, I thought I just didn't tighten the clamps down enough so I tightened everything down.
Then the seam on my radiator gave out and would shoot out coolant when I put the van under heavy load 2,800+RPM with sufficient boost.
No idea when the last time the radiator was replaced so I bought a new one and put it in. Everything appeared good as I drove around town.
I hit the freeway to see if any hoses would give out, gave the van a good push and then the low coolant light came on and my heart dropped.
I pulled over and opened the hood - exact same coolant pattern around the seam of the tank, no coolant anywhere else it had to have broken the seal on the plastic tank again. Now I figure I've got a bigger problem.
If I baby it and keep it below 2,500 RPM and low boost pressure I don't have any problems, but driving like a grandma pisses off everyone around me.
My coolant system is getting pressurized. I found TROLL's thread and his videos on youtube. My symptoms appear to be the same as much as I wish this wasn't the case I think I have a head gasket failure.
Cooling System Being Pressurized - Head Gasket or Other Issue?
2006 Sprinter -- Trying to pinpoint the root of my issues before I dive in. I just took this video to show the behavior I'm seeing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WO02kowJ-k&feature=youtu.be symptoms: --losing coolant, about 1/2 gallon lost and then it seems to not lose any more coolant...
sprinter-source.com
Then just a few days after this I opened my oil filler cap and oil started sloshing out. This has never happened before, I have topped off my oil with the van running before and all was well. There is some light white vapor coming from the oil filler cap and dipstick if I remove it.
I talked to Vanski since he posted that he is from the East Bay - where I live - and he put his number up. Very helpful guy, I told him what I am experiencing and he said it is almost certainly a HG and possible the whole head will have to be replaced if the warping is bad.
1.5-2k if everything goes good, if its opened up and other things are wrong looking at 4-6k for a rebuild. Or 8-9k to get a used motor dropped in.
**QUESTION**
How long can I drive with my engine like this and how bad is it for my van? Will it potentially damage other systems costing me more money?
The van has never over heated, and once it loses some coolant it sort of just stays there, but once I add more to top it off and turn the light off it shoots it out after some time.
I had a road trip planned that I saved up for the entire year and this all happened the week I was planning to leave.
The trip will be about 2,000 miles. This is a loaded camper van.
I figured if it will hold out and work for the 2,000 miles and I can fix it when I get back that would be awesome instead of losing my engine and my trip.
If the engine is already on its way out (Not sure if it is?) is there any harm in driving it as it is now and coming back to rebuilding it or dropping a new motor in after the trip?
I realize this is not the right way to do things and I may be playing with fire, I'm just not very knowledgeable and that is why I decided to stop lurking and post for the first time. I've spent the last 4 days reading different threads and my head hurts. I wish I was more mechanically inclined and I would have just ordered the HG and got started on a tear down, but I really can't trust myself with anything like that. I've only ever changed a starter, replaced this radiator, and changed my fluids along with some other bolt on bolt off parts like a viscous fan clutch and water pump.
I have receipts from the previous owner that the injectors were replaced, head was machined and valves were ground, so It sounds like he just did the HG not too long ago, there is no mileage for the head, but injectors were at 234,XXX miles. What could cause a failure so quickly?
Thanks for your time and sharing all your wisdom.