[V8] Raced an R8...and lost/wierdness in Utah

[Dave Saad]

I am having one of those weird leaks now - only mine is coolant.  I  
have not been driving the V8 much since I am a poor student now, and  
the truck just works better for me with my bike and back pack, but  
you may recall that I had a terrible rattle a while back that turned  
out to be the timing belt adjuster had gotten gunked up with coolant  
and was sticking - causing all sorts of clankity noises.  There was  
also a really noisy lifter just to make things interesting.  The cure  
was some auto trans fluid in the engine oil for the lifter, and  
cleaning up the t-belt adjuster.  Motor has been running great ever  
since, and not a single hint of a tick anywhere in the motor. But it  
still pukes out some coolant every once in a while.  I finally put  
some fluorescent dye in there to see where it comes from and the  
answer is not making me feel good at all.  It seems to be from behind  
the right side timing cover. The drip path is from where the cover  
goes over the oil pump pulley.  I have yet to look in there to see,  
but the only thing I can think of is my brand new head gasket is  
leaking.  This will not make my wife happy, and really may mark the  
end of my ownership of this car.  The car has basically been sitting  
for almost a year since I began the motor overhaul project, got layed  
off, continued to spend money like a drunken sailor to get the car  
back on the road, had a persistent tiny coolant leak that eventually  
made me tear into the motor again to fix the t-belt noises, and now  
that I have been saying "this is it - it is fixed now",  there is a  
giant fluorescent green puddle under it. Hard to miss that one.   
Meanwhile the old Ranger that never requires a nickel of maintenance  
just keeps on chugging.


For part two of the story, I have had my V8 since 1999, second owner,  
and got it with about 90K on it, and it has about 160K now. I would  
be happy to drive it for another 100K, but at the present rate of  
2000 miles a year we will be out of gas by then.