95SevilleSLS Posted May 31, 2007 Report Share Posted May 31, 2007 Every once in awhile I'll get some white smoke (sort of looks like vapor if it was cold outside) out of my exhaust of my 97 if I romp it. You can see it in the video I posted under 97 seville flowmaster. I was thinking it's burning antifreeze, but it doesn't smell sweet. It just smells like exhaust. I don't think it's using any antifreeze either, it's hard to tell with the non-see through recovery tank though. If it is antifreeze, how would I tell if my headgasket is bad? -Dusty- - 02 Seville STS, white diamond - 93 Sixty Special, Tan with vinyl top - 79 Coupe DeVille, Tan with Tan top - 06 GMC Sierra Z71, Black - 92 Silverado C1500, black and grey - 83 Chevy K10 Silverado, Black and Grey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ted tcb Posted May 31, 2007 Report Share Posted May 31, 2007 Coolant combustion test at a rad shop to see if exhaust gasses are present in the coolant. If you're not losing coolant, and your engine temp is in the right range, why worry about it? 1989 FWD Fleetwood, Silver 1995 STS Crimson Pearl on Black leather 1997 STS Diamond White 1999 STS Crimson Pearl 2001 STS Silver 2003 STS, Crimson Pearl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
95SevilleSLS Posted May 31, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 31, 2007 good point -Dusty- - 02 Seville STS, white diamond - 93 Sixty Special, Tan with vinyl top - 79 Coupe DeVille, Tan with Tan top - 06 GMC Sierra Z71, Black - 92 Silverado C1500, black and grey - 83 Chevy K10 Silverado, Black and Grey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cadillac Jim Posted May 31, 2007 Report Share Posted May 31, 2007 You can dampen your finger, touch it to the inside of the tailpipe, and taste it (ugh!!!). Then, flush your mouth with water and spit it out. You should be able to taste any unburnt coolant as a sweetish taste. I watched your video and it does look like steam to me. Whenever there is condensation in the mufflers, running the car will generate some steam out the exhaust. -- Click Here for CaddyInfo page on "How To" Read Your OBD Codes-- Click Here for my personal page to download my OBD code list as an Excel file, plus other Cadillac data -- See my CaddyInfo car blogs: 2011 CTS-V, 1997 ETC Yes, I was Jims_97_ETC before I changed cars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
95SevilleSLS Posted May 31, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 31, 2007 I just did a WOT because I was playing around and my temp went way up almost to the red. Would this probably be an indication that I have a bad headgasket? How hard are they to replace? Is it usually just the headgaskets that you have to replace? Those seem to be pretty cheap. What about silver seal? Would that possibly help it? -Dusty- - 02 Seville STS, white diamond - 93 Sixty Special, Tan with vinyl top - 79 Coupe DeVille, Tan with Tan top - 06 GMC Sierra Z71, Black - 92 Silverado C1500, black and grey - 83 Chevy K10 Silverado, Black and Grey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adallak Posted May 31, 2007 Report Share Posted May 31, 2007 I just did a WOT because I was playing around and my temp went way up almost to the red. Would this probably be an indication that I have a bad headgasket? How hard are they to replace? Is it usually just the headgaskets that you have to replace? Those seem to be pretty cheap. What about silver seal? Would that possibly help it? It will cost you some $3,000 -$3.500 at a dealer. The headgaskets are cheap, but you have to replace some 20 bolts as well. The bolts must be VERY expensive. Just kidding. That's the labor what is expensive. The saddest thing in life is wasted talent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ranger Posted June 1, 2007 Report Share Posted June 1, 2007 Get a cylinder pressure test or a coolant combustion test done. Forget the silver seal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daniel812 Posted June 1, 2007 Report Share Posted June 1, 2007 It seems that you are in the beginning stages of the problem. I would wait until you see smoke on a normal basis on daily driving or when your temp guage fluctuates consistantly. Its a lot of money, and it could very well last a while like this Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BodybyFisher Posted June 1, 2007 Report Share Posted June 1, 2007 Check your water pump belt, check/change thermostat, then test the coolant for combustion by products, search Napa, they have a tester. Sometimes a bad thermostat can be seen by looking at the moving parts/pindle for clean/buffed areas from friction because the spring pressure hase become uneven cocking the moving pindle. If this cocking is bad enough the thermostat will bind, if it binds closed, you will overheat. I hope this is something simple for you. Good Luck with this, I hate when this happens Pre-1995 - DTC codes OBD1 >> 1996 and newer - DTC codes OBD2 >> https://www.obd-codes.com/trouble_codes/gm/obd_codes.htm How to check for codes Caddyinfo How To Technical Archive >> http://www.caddyinfo.com/wordpress/cadillac-how-to-faq/ Cadillac History & Specifications Year by Year http://www.motorera.com/cadillac/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cadillac Jim Posted June 1, 2007 Report Share Posted June 1, 2007 The root cause of most Northstar head gasket failures is overage coolant that has become corrosive getting into the head bolt wells and corroding the threads, and the head bolts pulling out. With one head bolt pulled, you will have head gasket leakage on heavy loads that will result in a temperature spike about 30 seconds after a WOT or passing a car or pulling a hill, whatever. The mechanism of early head gasket failure coolant temperature problems seems to be as follows. The steam pocket caused by the leakage will go through the radiator and form a bubble under the thermostat, insulating it and temporarily keeping it closed. No head gasket leakage repair, alone, will repair a head bolt pulled out, or prevent other head bolts from pulling out. That's one reason why a good Northstar head gasket repair requires that all the head bolts be Timeserted. If your requirements for the use of the car are such that you can avoid stressing the engine and getting the temperature spike, you have time. I would follow BodyByFisher's advice and either verify or eliminate the head gasket ASAP. Then you can either plan the Timesert job, or continue to diagnose and solve the problem. -- Click Here for CaddyInfo page on "How To" Read Your OBD Codes-- Click Here for my personal page to download my OBD code list as an Excel file, plus other Cadillac data -- See my CaddyInfo car blogs: 2011 CTS-V, 1997 ETC Yes, I was Jims_97_ETC before I changed cars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
95SevilleSLS Posted June 1, 2007 Author Report Share Posted June 1, 2007 Well, I was going to check the coolant for bubbles as one way of checking the head gasket and realized that I shreaded my water pump belt doing the WOT. There was one little strand of belt left on there and that obviously wasn't doing the job. I bought a new belt for $8, checked to see if the water pump was seized (it wasn't) and put the belt back on. Works like a dream! BBF, you were right on the money! Again! I'm not sure what the white-ish smoke is, hopefully just vapor, we'll see how the situation progresses, but so far, no coolant loss. The coolant was changed in 2005 because whoever did it marked it on the side there. It's green, but I don't know if it's the stuff that doesn't contain silicates or not so I'm going to flush it ASAP. Thanks for everyone helping me out! Luckily it wasn't something major. -Dusty- - 02 Seville STS, white diamond - 93 Sixty Special, Tan with vinyl top - 79 Coupe DeVille, Tan with Tan top - 06 GMC Sierra Z71, Black - 92 Silverado C1500, black and grey - 83 Chevy K10 Silverado, Black and Grey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BodybyFisher Posted June 1, 2007 Report Share Posted June 1, 2007 darn, I hate to brag, but.... Glad you figured it out.... Are you using the cooling supplement? I'll tell you, I am a positive person, I don't push the panic button first, I eliminate lower level items first. Its dangerous to knee jerk. I have confidence in this engine, so I don't immediately go toward head gasket as some do. Some call that wearing rose colored glasses, I call it confidence in the engine and wanting to eliminate ALL causes before I hit the panic button. We have some members, Stealth as an example, that see the glass as half empty, I ALWAYS see the glass as half full. It comes from playing sports (basketball) I believe, because if you are not positive, you might as well hit the showers. Pre-1995 - DTC codes OBD1 >> 1996 and newer - DTC codes OBD2 >> https://www.obd-codes.com/trouble_codes/gm/obd_codes.htm How to check for codes Caddyinfo How To Technical Archive >> http://www.caddyinfo.com/wordpress/cadillac-how-to-faq/ Cadillac History & Specifications Year by Year http://www.motorera.com/cadillac/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BodybyFisher Posted June 1, 2007 Report Share Posted June 1, 2007 I just watched the video under your muffler thread. Was the car driven before that and fully warmed up or was that the first time it was started that day? Will it do that after the muffler system is HOT? One day I was just idling my car, and I noticed what I thought was a gas tank leak, upon closer inspection, black water/condensate was dripping out of one of the mufflers. They can hold quite a bit of moisture. Overall your exhaust was clean as a whistle before that.. I think if you had a coolant leak, you would have moisture immediately, I think what we are seeing in that video is normal. Get it hot and see if it still does it.. Pre-1995 - DTC codes OBD1 >> 1996 and newer - DTC codes OBD2 >> https://www.obd-codes.com/trouble_codes/gm/obd_codes.htm How to check for codes Caddyinfo How To Technical Archive >> http://www.caddyinfo.com/wordpress/cadillac-how-to-faq/ Cadillac History & Specifications Year by Year http://www.motorera.com/cadillac/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ranger Posted June 1, 2007 Report Share Posted June 1, 2007 Mike is correct. If all you do is short trips the condensation does not get evaporated from the muffler. There should be a small weep hole in the bottom (at least there used to be) that gets clogged. If you have one and don't do long enough drives to evaporate the moisture, make sure it is clear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thu Posted June 1, 2007 Report Share Posted June 1, 2007 Dusty, I sure am glad it's not the headgaskets! Whew! 2003 Seville STS 43k miles with the Bose Sound, Navigation System, HID Headlamps, and MagneRide 1993 DeVille. Looks great inside and out! 298k miles! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
95SevilleSLS Posted June 1, 2007 Author Report Share Posted June 1, 2007 BBF, I've had bad luck all me life so I look at the glass half empty. It was weird that it happened at that time. I was noticing the white smoke and was thinking about a head gasket and then the water pump belt broke making me think that it was overheating due to the head gasket. The mufflers were just put on, so the chance of moisture in them is nil. I'm not going to worry about it at the moment. And BBF, no, you're right, the mufflers weren't hot when I took that video. I had just started it for the first time that day. Ranger, I don't think these flowmasters have a weep hole. Thu, I'm glad too! That would have been a bad situation. I'm expecting something to go wrong with 156,xxx miles, but it just doesn't want to break down! -Dusty- - 02 Seville STS, white diamond - 93 Sixty Special, Tan with vinyl top - 79 Coupe DeVille, Tan with Tan top - 06 GMC Sierra Z71, Black - 92 Silverado C1500, black and grey - 83 Chevy K10 Silverado, Black and Grey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BodybyFisher Posted June 2, 2007 Report Share Posted June 2, 2007 02WhiteSTS, I was not saying that YOU acted like the glass was half empty at all. I am surprised how fast some members on this board immediately conclude that problems like yours are related to the head gasket.... We are suppose to be knowledgable about this engine, its important to eliminate all potential causes before running out and buying time-serts Pre-1995 - DTC codes OBD1 >> 1996 and newer - DTC codes OBD2 >> https://www.obd-codes.com/trouble_codes/gm/obd_codes.htm How to check for codes Caddyinfo How To Technical Archive >> http://www.caddyinfo.com/wordpress/cadillac-how-to-faq/ Cadillac History & Specifications Year by Year http://www.motorera.com/cadillac/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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