Oil found in the coolant tank (intermix) please help!

[Boxster_Love]

Hi....I just bought Boxster S 2006 and after I drove it for 2 days the LOW COOLANT LIGHT turned ON...I stoped and I added 1 Liter of coolant...the warning light went off but after one day a coolant leak from the right rear wheel area started to flow into the ground I opned the trunk and I found that the coolant is overflowing from the plastic cap of the expansion tank...the coolant has a strange color and consistency which later shown to be an oil-coolant intermix.....the car never showed overheat...the oil is clean no evidence of coolant in oil but only oil in the coolant. I took the car flat-bedded to the local Porsche dealer workshop...they told me that they have to change the heat exchanger (oil cooler), and ATF cooler, also they wanted to do a proper flushing of the coolant system before they can tell the reason of that intermix. The possibilities they explained that it may be a heat exchanger failure, blown head gasket, cracked cylinder head....I dont know what to do...they ask for a huge amount of money to do these preliminary tests and they warned me that if the reason was not in the oil cooler then a new engine is the only solution....please if anybody had similar problem I will be more than grateful to hear his/her advice.

[jhandy]

Everything they are saying is correct, aside from the new engine. If it is a head gasket or a cracked head, then there are people that can repair, or replace the heads, and certainly a head gasket can be replaced.
If the block is cracked, the motor is usally toast.

What you most likly did wrong was when you added coolent, you did not open the bleeder valve and there was air in the system from the boiling coolent. And/Or you did not put the cap on tight enough.

It does not matter now, just send it to a qualified shop.

[Lil bastard]

@ jhandy,

This would be the reason for the coolant overflow, not for any of the possible failures stated by the dealer.

I don't want the OP to think that he somehow caused the issue. Even running 1 ltr. short on coolant isn't likely to have caused a head to crack or head gasket to blow, even in the heat of the UAE.

Cheers!

[jhandy]

you are correct, and I did not mean to imply that it was his fault. I would be looking at the person I bought the car from.

I was drawing from personal experience when I made those comments. When the coolent boils, it makes air, and then refilling the coolent alone without bleeding did not fix my issue. Fill and bleed, then fill and bleed, and fill again, finally fixed my problem. It all started because it did not tighten the cap on well.

I was thinking that with air in the system, it made a hot spot in the heads, and that cracked them.

It is very possiable that the cooling system was leaking before hand and/or the intermix was already present when he bought it.

factory heads are 3K each.
you can buy from vertex for 1300.
http://www.****************************************.com/ShowItem/138809%20Porsche%20Boxster%20Rebuilt%20Cylinder%20 Head%20Cylinder%204-6.aspx

[Boxster_Love]

Thanks all for your comments...I want to update you that today the workshop called me and told me that when they opened the oil cooler and the ATF cooler to send them for leak testing they found that there is an evidence of water in the gear ATF they are hoping that the oil in coolant is from ATF. I am just waiting now for the result of the seal leak test for both oil and ATF coolers.

[jcb986]

Originally Posted by Boxster_Love

Thanks all for your comments...I want to update you that today the workshop called me and told me that when they opened the oil cooler and the ATF cooler to send them for leak testing they found that there is an evidence of water in the gear ATF they are hoping that the oil in coolant is from ATF. I am just waiting now for the result of the seal leak test for both oil and ATF coolers.

If it is your one lucky stiff....hoping that's it's not a head.