I need advice before I move forward on a repair. I have a 1994 SL1 1.9L Automatic SOHC

Our water pump has been cracked for a long time before it was in need of immediate replacement. We have a leak in our valve cover gasket for just as long. A mechanic said we needed a new head gasket. Before the water pump, there would always be oil in the coolant. But I noticed after over a year of a new water pump, there was no trace of fresh oil on the coolant.

Oil would flow down the engine onto everything below including the water pump. One of my questions is this: Can the crack in the water pump be the reason for oil in the coolant because it could suck oil in that leaks from the valve cover down the outside of the engine?

Or can the coolant have been from a bad head gasket that has eventually got clogged up with gunk which stopped the oil from entering the coolant?

Note: There is no trace of coolant in the oil thank God.

Now my other question is this: if it was from a bad head gasket that got plugged from sludge, can replacing the valve cover gasket cause the head gasket to fail again from an increase in oil pressure?

I have no place to replace the head gasket and I am not going to spend the estimated $600 or $800 to replace it with a low quality gasket that the mechanic quoted us. I can replace the valve cover gasket as soon as I get a response to my questions.

 

If there's no water in your oil, then don't worry about the head gasket. Does it look like a milkshake inside the radiator? If so, I'd be concerned with a blown head gasket. Stand behind the car with it running and smell the exhaust. Does it have a sweet smell to it and white smoke coming out? If so, you have a blown head gasket or a cracked head. If neither symptom is present, then I'd go ahead and just replace the valve cover gasket and keep on motoring. Check those things out and then get to work. Replacing a head gasket isn't that difficult as long as you take your time and pay attention to what you're doing. The key to success is making sure everything is clean and torquing everything to spec. I don't know if the Saturns use torque to yield head bolts, but if they do, you'd need a new set if you have to replace the head gasket. NEVER reuse tty head bolts. I don't care what anyone else may tell you. It's just not worth the risk.

 

Oil would not seep INTO the cooling system through a crack/leak in the water pump. The internals of the cooling system are at about 14 ? psi with no leaks. So the coolant would be pushing outwards through the leaky area at all times due to the pressure difference.

 

So then what could that mean for my Saturn? Before the water pump replacement there was always a small amount of oil in the recovery tank for the coolant. But now there is none at all. Can it still be a bad head gasket and the sludge is what is sealing the leaks?

There is no white smoke, there is no sweet smell in the exhaust. The smell is not normal but that is a different topic. There is no oil in the recover tank and we have no radiator cap on my Saturn. There is no coolant in The oil in my Saturn either.

 

Well, it's possible that a TINY amount might of oil MIGHT get wicked in between the seal and the block, I suppose....otherwise DUNNO.

 

I don't know either. I seriously doubt that old oil and grease will prevent things from leaking.

 

maybe the oil was leaking from the water pump bearing.....

 

I have come to realize that I experience the one in a million problems that no one else has ever had. There are other off topic stories of the most unusual issues I've come across with stuff.

As for this, it appears the only way to get the answer is to remove the engine head and check then replace the gasket. Then while I'm in there I can do a little cleaning.

I still would like more possible answers should there be any.

 

dunno what you mean. The bad pump is gone, a new one was installed, and I would hope they used a new gasket

 

The main question here is that because oil got in to the coolant, can a new valve cover gasket cause the bad head gasket to fail critically and harm the engine?