Causes for Oil in Coolant Reservoirs

It can spoil your day if you discover oil in Coolant Reservoir. In this post, we will go through the most prevalent reasons of oil in coolant and what you can do to solve the problem. There are a variety of reasons why oil seeps into coolant, and you should be aware of them.

Remember that coolant in oil and antifreeze in coolant are two separate concerns that require separate solutions. Hopefully, so that hundreds of pounds in replacement expenses may be saved. Contact your local vehicle technician before your next MOT testing service is scheduled to get this problem fixed as soon as feasible.

How can I tell if my coolant contains oil?

You should be able to see the colour of your antifreeze in the reservoir tank when you remove the radiator or coolant reservoir lid. Oil remnants will be seen in the radiator cap if oil has gotten into your coolant. Antifreeze comes in a variety of hues. Your coolant might be red, green, orange, or pink, depending on your engine's coolant standard.

If you remove your coolant reservoir tank and see an oily material, you most likely have oil in your coolant. What does oil in coolant look like, you might wonder? If you have an oil and coolant mixture, the reservoir tank will have a milky hue liquid. Check MOT status of your car and have our car mechanic repair this issue. Failure to address this problem in a timely manner will result in severe engine damage.

What Causes Coolant to Contain Oil?

This problem can be caused by a variety of causes. Let's take a brief look at some of the probable causes:

Leaky Head Gasket -

The head gasket prevents coolant and oil from seeping out or mixing by sitting between the head cylinder and the engine block. When a car's head gasket blows out, oil and antifreeze combine, which can lead to this problem. If your engine is overheating and there are oil remnants in the coolant, it might be a sign of a burst head gasket that requires immediate care. As this can result to a possible emissions test failure on your next MOT test, check your car's MOT status and have the overheating problem fixed. You may either take your car to a technician or get a head gasket tester kit to see if the head gasket is the source of the problem. Assume the head gasket testing finds that a leaking head gasket is the source of the problem. In such situation, you may either contact your technician to have your head cylinder removed and the bad gasket replaced, or you can continue reading to learn the method I use to fix a leaky head gasket without removing the engine. Unless you're a professional technician, we don't recommend removing the cylinder head yourself.

Oil Cooler -

Oil coolers are built into certain cars to maintain the engine oil at the proper operating temperature. If the oil cooler has a small fracture, oil and coolant might miss their passage route, resulting in an oil and coolant mixture. Your cooling system may suffer as a result of this. As a result, as soon as you detect it, you should correct it.

Overheating -

An overheated engine can deteriorate your head gasket more quickly. If your head gasket is broken, oil and coolant will mix together, which might be the source of oil in your antifreeze.

Cracked Cylinder Head -

Assume you have a cracked cylinder head; the oil will mix with the coolant. Allowing a mechanic to remove the head cylinder and check it extensively is the best method to determine whether you have a cracked head cylinder. If the cylinder head fractures, you have two options: replace the complete engine or replace the head cylinder. It will be less expensive to buy a used one from a local dealer and replace it with your own, regardless of which option you choose. Complete a MOT history checker online to see if there is a pattern in failures relating to this issue.

Damaged Engine Block -

Oil in Coolant is caused by a damaged engine block, not the head gasket. Because to the engine blocks' resiliency, this is the least likely situation. If your engine block is broken, the best choice is to replace it with a new or lightly used engine and get your car operating again.

Final Thoughts

I hope this post has answered the most of your queries about oil in the Coolant Reservoir at this point. We've effectively identified the symptoms, causes, and solutions to this issue. You may either try the fast fix technique or contact a professional technician for a complete check and repair whenever you see oil mixing with coolant.