Just got my blackstone oil analysis back... not great

Was excited to get my results back from blackstone only to see that I have a small coolant leak. I had some weird issues with coolant in the past (you can check my post history if interested) and ended up taking my truck in to the dealership to have it checked out, and they found no signs of any leakage, and thought that it was most likely an air bubble in the coolant from when I did a coolant swap. Now i'm pretty concerned if my head gasket may be on its way out. The high silicon content is also puzzling. Any ideas on how to proceed? I'll likely be taking it to a different dealership and having them check out it again to figure out of it really is a failing head gasket. She has about 215k miles now so a failing head gasket wouldn't be the biggest surprise but it sure would be unfortunate. I also always change my oil every 5000 miles or earlier but had to wait until 7000 this time due to a weird and difficult work situation.

 

Aren't the 2005 and some 2006 V6 Tacomas known for getting head gasket issues? I thought Toyota changed something in late 06 or 07 to remedy the issue.

Sorry to hear either way, at least it's a small leak and you know about it now and can get it fixed before it becomes a major issue

 

Buy or rent a cooling system block tester, checks for exhaust fumes in the radiator. I heard if you check the plugs and any look super clean compared to the others, that could be a sign of coolant entering the combustion chamber. You could also do a leak down test.

If another dealer tells you you do need a head gasket, get proof, why they think it's blown. Then would also be a good time to replace the valve seals, if you do get it done.

Do you have any symptoms? Bubbling reservoir, a sudden loss of coolant, erratic temp gauge, overheating, milky motor oil, steam or smoke out the tailpipe? What year and engine?

 

Its a 2006, 4.0 V6 1GR-FE. The coolant level does fluctuate a bit but no other symptoms. I did have a gurgle behind the dash but after bleeding the air from the cooling system and driving more I haven't heard it in a long time.

 

There is a thread on here somewhere for people with 06 tacomas that uses the vin to decode when your engine was made. Some motors had iffy headgaskets from the factory, this was discovered a few months into 2006, yours may be affected though ive seen them go as early as 130k ish. Either way 215k is enough to warranty normal replacement as you said.

 

Update: dealer thinks it the thermostat allowing air bubbles into the water pump. Sounds kind of fishy to me. I told them to recheck it and give me a quote on doing the head gasket as well considering if they do the water pump the head gasket isn't too much more labor while they have it all apart.

 

I wouldnt let the dealership touch your truck with a 10ft pole trying to diag and fix a HG.

 

I’m a bit confused?
How would air in the cooling system allow coolant into the crank case?

Serious question.

 

I'm from the land of the mk3 Supras with 7M head gasket issues - can't see any way a leaking tstat allowing bubbles would show up as coolant.

OP, stick with the suggestions in this thread and diagnose yourself - pressurize the radiator and let it sit, watch for leaks. Test for combustion gases/products present in the coolant. Listen for gurgling/waterfall behind the dash. Check if the exhaust smells sweet with the glycol burning off.

If the HG is a known issue and Blackstone is picking something up but that's the only sign then monitor as they say - send another sample in less than 5k later. Verification won't hurt as long as no other symptoms appear and in that time you can prep for a possible HG job.

 

Yeah I don't think i'm going to let them do it. The water pump and thermostat thing makes no sense to me. Dealership seems untrustworthy. Just got the quote from them and they want $3470 for new water pump, head gasket, thermostat, and coolant flush. At that price i'd rather just swap the engine or do it myself when I have time lol. For now i'm going to keep monitoring it and maybe send another sample to blackstone in 5k miles and see what the analysis says.

 

I heard the gurgling a few months ago but after bleeding the cooling system and driving on a few long trips I haven't really heard it since. It was never consistant either. The truck has never overheated or produced sweet smelling exhaust. I'll try the combustion gas test next and see what happens. Thanks for the advice ya'll

 

A severe HG leak will continue the gurgling sound as more air is forced into the water jacket. If you were able to get rid of it by bleeding the air you should be good there.

 

I wasn't really worried about it at all until the blackstone report said it got coolant in the oil. Besides a HG how else would coolant get into the crankcase? At least for now they said it was a slight leak so hopefully I have time, whatever it is

 

Slight leaks are no immediate issue, just monitor as they say. The biggest problem comes from catastrophic BHGs, compete coolant system failure and overheating, then possible warped heads and all sorts of bad stuff follows.

 

Perhaps you used the same funnel to fill the radiator, didn't clean it good enough, then used it to fill oil?

 

3470$ from a dealer is actually a fair price for headgaskets. That's about what I would charge

 

Get a bore scoop that uses your smart phone. Pull the plugs and see if you have any shiny piston tops. If you do you found your issue. Pistons should have some carbon on them.

 

Drive 5,000 miles. Send in another analysis. And then see if it's still trending positive.

Of there's no black goo in your radiator or white smutz on your dip stick or oil fill cap... Keep driving and enjoying your truck. But see what 5,000 more miles has to say in your next analysis.

 

Silicon in your oil is almost always a sign that dust is getting into your engine. Usually through the air filter.