[sixfofalcon]

You didn't let Bob borrow your car did you?

That's probably a leaky headgasket. Are you losing power yet? You could use block sealer, stop leak, or some other snake oil to stop the problem long enough to sell the car. The right thing to do would be to do a compression test and see which cylinder(s) come up short. Then swap that head gasket.

Before you go to that extreme, you should check your PCV system. It could just be condensation in the crankcase.

 

[sixfofalcon]

Locate the PCV valve (it's stuck into one of the valve covers with a rubber grommet), then trace the hoses back as far as you can. Look for cracked connectors or any place where air or water could be getting into the PCV system.

Based on the steam coming out of the dipstick, I would say it's likely to be a headgasket. It's not really an urgent problem (it won't blow your engine up or anything) but eventually you will lose enough compression that it won't idle right or have much pep to it.

 

[sixfofalcon]

Originally posted by mykej27@Jan 9 2004, 01:34 PM
If there was a coolant leak, the coolant will separate from the oil and you'd be able to see it once you drain your oil. You'll see green pour out of the drain along with the regular oil.

Not really. The coolant has a tendency to emulsify in the oil. That is what the light brown sludge on the dipstick is.

 

[sixfofalcon]

The block will only crack if Bob Gervais drives and/or maintains your car.

It's possible, but very unlikely.

PCV=Positive Crankcase Ventilation
It sucks fumes out of the crankcase and spits them back into the intake so they get burned up and go out the tailpipe with the exhaust. The fumes can dilute the oil and form acidic compounds that are basically just bad news.

A rebuild is seriously unnecessary. The Vulcan goes 250K+ before it needs one. Taking the heads off and rebuilding the engine are two very different things.

5w30 is recommended... 10w30 is OK, and 10w40 won't kill you, but isn't necessarily a good thing. The Vulcan engine is so tough that you can probably pull one at random out of a junkyard and it will run fine for a long time.

 

[sixfofalcon]

The EGR and PCV both dump into the intake manifold. Other than that, they are independent. The EGR (or lack thereof) wouldn't cause the problems you have, as far as I know.