Hi Everyone - I'm new to the forum, and also new to Jeeps & wanted to pose a question before I took any action.

I just bought a 2001 XJ, 146K - runs great. I have good oil pressure, it has not overheated, no puddles, etc. I've owned it almost 14 days...

So I've been reading through all the forums, came across the "0331" issue, and decided to check my fluid level, etc since I now own a 2001 - well, it's dropped from "full" down to the "add" line over 5/6 days, and when I pull the valve cap off, there is the yellow-ish build up on it that wasn't there during the test drives. Dipstick oil looks fresh - no froth, or anything I'd say looks abnormal. I may be starting to notice a bit of valve tap...and a little bit of white smoke out of the tailpipe.

So, down to my question - is it safe to assume that this is leading to at least a bad head gasket, and at worse, the dreaded 0331 crack?

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

 

Check for coolant flowing directly under the fill cap. This is the area between the 3 and 4 cylinder. I finally found it after the engine was up to temp and shut off. As the oil flowed back to the pan, I could see 2 little pin holes of coolant bubbling up in that area.


Head gasket diagnosis can be done with a kit that will check for the presence of exhaust gasses in the coolant. They can be bought or rented at auto parts stores.


Your problem sounds identical to what mine was doing. Oil did not look bad, oil pressure good, no overheat. I was losing coolant but over a much longer time period than you were. Coolant level would drop from "fill" to "add" in about a month.

 

I'm probably a bit off on my level drops - I'm going to top off & monitor more closely beginning tomorrow (waiting for paycheck to buy supplies).

So a quick check would be to run it up to temp, then pop off the valve cap & shine a light to check if I can see any coolant bubbling around?

 

Thanks for the response, by the way!

 

If you haven't already found this thread, read it.

Oh, yeah...and Stop driving it until you have things sorted out! Coolant in the oil can kill the bearings quickly (I am told).

 

My 2000, the head crack happen to me. It started losing coolant out of the reservation bottle. I could not find where it was going read about the 0331 looked down in oil filler cap. Looked in between 3/4 saw nothing. Untill it sat for a bit. Then I could see little sweating like beads of water along the crack. When I took it to the shop to have it pressure tested I didn't tell them what I found, I wanted to see if it would show up. But the test came back fine..I knew better so I went and fixed it myself... Now not all 0331 heads crack. Start by looking for leaks, heater core, hoses and so on. Go get it pressure tested to see if the leak can be found before you go off thinking is the head. If all checks out, I would started looking at the gasket. If the gasket checks out fine, replace and start checking levels of fluid after the replace..If it still happens and you can't find where its going. I'm sorry but you might of won the 0331 lottery. Now if you did win and need a new head the fixed 0331 head is the tupy 0331 I guess they fixed the head crack thing for the old 0331. Me I went with Clearwater http://www.cylinder-heads.com/Home__.html Good luck

 

Jamurrin - that's the thread that had me start looking into this - wish I would have saw it 2 weeks ago...

Duma - thanks. I'll be checking under the cap pretty good. My heat blows fiery hot, passenger floor is not wet in any way, and I've found no territory markings in the driveway that would signify any leaks.

Question 2 - I don't have cash to buy a new/used head. I also cannot be without a vehicle, so - could I potentially limp around my commute (less than 20 miles/day) for maybe a month, by adding some stop leak, like K&W Fiberlock? Keepi in mind this is strictly a TEMPORARY fix until I have the funds to fix it properly, since I need a daily driver & don't want to risk messing up the bearings/entire engine?

 

No don't use that stop leak stuff, it won't work. I don't like it. your best bet if you have to wait a little is to change your oil right now and put in some fresh oil. It sounds like you found it in time, if you have the 0331 crack before it takes out your bearings,,is oil psi good?

 

Well...my "expert" advice comes from reading this forum...nothing else, so take it for what its worth...

Suggestion #1...spend some time tonight searching and reading the forum (or others...there is a lot on the internet...let google be your friend!) Keep in mind it might NOT be a cracked head!

Suggestion #2...Do you know the previous owner? He might he might know some history...but getting info could be dicey

Suggestion #3...You need to get more facts here...Don't panic. Might not be as bad as you think. Pull the spark plugs to see if one or two are "steam cleaned" I think there are cooling system pressure test gauges you can rent/borrow from big box auto parts stores. You could even sample the oil and get it tested by a lab...someone on this thread suggested an exhaust test? Just gather what information you can.

Suggestion #4...you mention you have good oil pressure...are you seeing an INCREASE in your oil level? if not, your oil _might_ be OK...


If it really is gloom and doom, though, driving on diluted oil will make turn a $500 repair into a $1500 repair

 

The first thing you need to do if you have coolant in the oil is STOP running the engine.. If you keep running it in that condition you will be having to replace a lot more then just the head. The bearing don not last very long with water mix in the oil. What ever you do DO NOT pot any of that stop leak garbage. It will only cause more problems down the line.

 

Oil pressure is good, haven't noticed/checked oil level to see if its increasing. Dumb question, if the level goes up, would the pressure increase as well? My pressure has been very consistent...

Going to change oil & filter this weekend, & top off coolant. Once that is done, I'll keep a close eye on everything to see if I can see any cracks, pressure test, etc... and hopefully get my taxes done so I have some cash if needed...

 

(if the level goes up, would the pressure increase as well?) no

 

thanks everyone. Hopefully this exercise is just me being overly cautious. I'll update as I have more (better) info.

 

 

It don't think it is possible to be overly cautious with the cooling system. Let's pretend that your water pump is leaking...and that's the problem...If you ignore it, you could overheat your engine...and DRAMATICALLY increase the chance that you crack the head...and a $50 repair becomes a $500 repair (in ADDITION to the original $50.) If you continue to ignore THAT, then your engine will not get any lubrication...and you will have a several THOUSAND dollar repair!

You need to figure out the problem and fix it! No question about it!!