Possible blown head gasket

[GreenGemNYC]

So I’m an idiot and need some opinions. My 95 ATX had some issues staying running when cold, replaced the IAC valve, throttle position sensor, coolant sensor and a few other little things (cam sensor was replaced before I bought it, confirmed by my mechanic), got it running nice and smooth and idling normally. Sent it to body shop, had a full ground up paint job done (picture below is after paint, but doesn’t do it justice, it looks showroom new now) and headliner replacement but was at body shop for awhile since I wasn’t in a rush to get it done and owner is a friend of mine. Now it wouldn’t stay running again so I sent it to my mechanic and bad news, he says head gasket is shot. So now I have this beautiful lawn ornament. I’m torn between just biting the bullet and replacing the engine or selling as a project. It runs and the coolant isn’t milky or anything but it’s definitely burning a little bit of oil and is on it’s way out from what I’m told. Going to get a second opinion from another mechanic first. Does anyone have an engine in good shape to sell and/or recommend anyone with reasonable pricing for a swap in the NYC area?
TL;DR: new paint job but head gaskets possibly blown, fix or sell?

 

[zoomlater]

how many miles are on the engine now, does it have the original tranny?
I would consider finding a replacement engine since you had the paint redone
Can you do the engine swap yourself or will you be hiring it out?

 

[GreenGemNYC]

Its got 137xxx on the clock, original trans, and I don’t have the space or the time to do it myself, so I’d be hiring it out. Getting a second opinion, because from what I’m hearing a head gasket failure on this generation of sho is pretty rare.

how many miles are on the engine now, does it have the original tranny?
I would consider finding a replacement engine since you had the paint redone
Can you do he engine swap yourself or will you be hiring it out?

 

[Irish Pride]

Definitely get a second opinion. These cars very rarely blow a head gasket and when they do its because it was run extremely hot. Change the rod bearings every 100k or so and these engines are bullet proof. Not to say you don't have some sort of issue but don't go by what the first or second person tells you. Try to find a mechanic that has some history with these engines.

-Chad

 

[GreenGemNYC]

Mechanic buddy of mine (who hasn’t looked at it) thinks it could be a bad oil cooler. Is that a possibility, and something that might fool a mechanic?

 

[Irish Pride]

As far as using oil, these will use some oil. My 95 will use a quart in between oil changes (5k miles). My 92 on the other hand doesn't burn any oil but it's a super low mileage unit.

-Chad

 

[zoomlater]

Its got 137xxx on the clock, original trans, and I don’t have the space or the time to do it myself, so I’d be hiring it out. Getting a second opinion, because from what I’m hearing a head gasket failure on this generation of sho is pretty rare.

If it isn't slipping, then those miles are not that high. NoSlo has over 300K on his original 93 ATX tranny, while I am already on my 2nd rebuild on my early build 94 ATX. On oil consumption, my 92 needed a quart every 1000 miles.

 

[rubydist]

I would discount your buddy's idea, because the symptoms of a leaking oil cooler do not resemble those of a blown head gasket. There is a little oil cooler on the filter that has coolant running through it, but I have never seen one of them leak one type of fluid into the other.

I agree with Chad, these engines rarely have head gasket issues, and they do not occur from sitting at the paint shop. So, unless someone at the shop did something stupid, the odds of it actually having a bad head gasket are low.

However, since its been sitting a lot, the odds of it having bad gas or a stuck injector are pretty high, so I would start in that area.

 

[RonPorter]

I would definitely find another mechanic! No oil in coolant? No coolant in oil? As was said, blown head gaskets are very rare. And even if it were, without obvious comingling of fluids, it would still run pretty normally.

 

[sperold]

Any codes, current or stored?

Look for oil in spark plug wells, bad plug or bad wires. The wires usually last almost forever, except when you have a series of onlookers poking around under the hood. The O2 sensors can go wrong and not set a code sometimes, but not often.

The exhaust gas recirculation system on the automatics can give you grief, but that often produces a code.

Does it smoke or really smell like oil?

The throttle position sensor (TPS) can go out of range, but that usually sets a code.

The Idle Air Control Valve (IAC) gets lazy sometimes, but can usually be cleaned.

Check your air box and filter element, a body shop is a good place to pick up lots of dust.

 

[BaySHO Performance]

Unless the car has overheated badly, you won't have a blown gasket. A loss of oil could mean worn piston rings or valve guides.

The first step in finding out why it won't stay running is to check the codes and go from there.

http://wiki.wikisho.com/wiki/EEC_Self_Test_Procedure