Burning antifreeze!

[Dan Simoes]

In my experience, the V6 in the 93-95 90s has a tendency to eat head
gaskets, I'm not quite sure why.  

Diana Johnson wrote:
> 
> Wow!  We our Audi has a twin sister!  We bought our '93 Audi 90 quattro
> with 100,000 mi. on it and within a couple of days noticed some white
> smoke and a bad odor after driving it.  It was definitely leaking some
> oil, so we took it to the dealership where they quoted us almost $2000
> to replace the head and valve cover gaskets.  We decided to try
> replacing the valve cover gasket ourselves, which seemed to slow the
> accumulation of leaking oil, but the head gasket is still leaking since
> there's a bit of oil still dripping, the smell has returned and the
> antifreeze is looking sort of orange.  In addition, the muffler sounds
> like crap and needs to be replaced.  The previous owner replaced the
> catalyst at 84K miles and I know he had a coolant leak which got into
> the interior.  I also found out after buying the car that the valves
> were machined at about 75K miles after the serpentine belt snapped and I
> assume they replaced the gaskets then.  They have probably been leaking
> ever since.  We've been debating whether to try to replace the head
> gasket ourselves, but we've also heard of others who have replaced it
> and still had it leak.  It sounds like we have to do something or we're
> going to be in for more exhaust system repairs like you have had.  The
> amazing thing is that it runs perfectly cool on 90+ degree days in 90%
> humidity.  I wish I knew what to do about it myself, but all I can say
> is that I feel your pain!
> 
> Diana Johnson
> johnson55119 at qwest.net
> 
> I recently had to replace the entire exaust system on my 1993 Quattro 90
> and found that my car was emitting white smoke just before and after the
> repair took place.  My Audi Mechanic told me that it was possible that
> the smoke came from burning Antifreeze which also ruins catalytic
> converters and mufflers.  This could have been the reason why the entire
> exaust system went bad at just 85K.  Burning antifreeze in my experience
> points to a bad head gasket or a cracked cylinder head.  I know that if
> it is a head problem then things get expensive real fast.  As it is, the
> new exaust system was a bargain of an aftermarket job done with Porsche
> turbo parts at about $700 labor free.  Any advice, or anyone else with
> the same experience from a 93 Quattro 90.  As a side note Audi also has
> a recall on all model 90 mufflers from 1991 to 1993.  Just my luck this
> didn't include Quattro's.
> Brandon Handy
> Physician Recruiter
> 1-800-548-9092 X# 30