Help needed: coolant fluid is creamy on top.

[Young_pong]

Hi this morning B4 going to work i decided to check my coolant level, when i open the cover it was low and on top the color was kind of cremy instead of the regular green.
Any one know what it is? I did a little search and it seems that everyone is talking about a leak somewhere and I have nothing on my garage floor...
My X is 3.0 2001.

Thanks.

[Estroil 4.8is]

Sound like slug to me. Might be time for a coolent change/flush. When was the last time you checked it or filled it.

[Young_pong]

I got the car 8 months ago, can you tell me what's a slug ?

[alpac]

When was the last time you checked your coolant? Have you been using your car for a lot of short trips recently? Short trips do not enable the engine to get warm enough to get rid of the water condensation and this may result in some creamy deposit in the coolant tank. This is particularly true when the weather is cold.
The worse case scenario would be a blown head gasket. In such a case the coolant level would get low quickly and you would see white smoke from the exhaust. In any case you need to flush and replace your coolant and then look for sign of head gasket after that.

[Estroil 4.8is]

Sorry I meant sludge. Its a gunk that build up if fluid aren't changed. I'm not sure exactly what causes it. Most likely corrosion in the coolant system. I'd just drain the coolant and refill it with some fresh fluids. Just keep an eye on it afterwards.

[Young_pong]

Thank you all, I'll have it done on monday.

[Zulu95]

Not so sure about this one: If I'm wrong, so be it.
If the sludge were in the oil/oil cap I would say short drives but this is in the coolant. Could it be oil getting into the coolant? Head gasket or the like?

[Young_pong]

What should I check for the "head gasket" ?

[vinuneuro]

My hunch is also that the headgasket is on it's way out. Do a leakdown test.

[Estroil 4.8is]

But wouldn't there be a smell of coolant and some white smoke out the tail pipe?