Possible seized engine? *updated

[Allstarsrd12]

There are a lot of different factors to this situation, so I'll try to explain them the best I can. Not all bits are certain to be related, but all information helps.


Situation as it stands now: Car is a 2001 3.0i
Indie said I needed to have the radiator r/r due to a coolant leak and tempermental overheating. Repair was done, followed by a call from him saying they took it around the block and it overheated again, and was now blowing white smoke, which he says is coolant, from the exhaust. (Car ran fine the morning of when I drove it on to the flat bed). Also now has mustard-goop under the oil cap. Coolant is still leaking.
His ruling: Block is more than likely cracked, going to need a new engine.


All the stuff in between:
12/15/11 - water pump replaced, but for some reason, thermostat was not.....

12/18/11 - Drive from Miami, FL to NYC (CT Line). just to not the change of climates. not overheating, all fine. however the yellow oil light comes on intermittently for a couple seconds then goes away.

Spent a month in the area. ALWAYS made sure to do long trips tro burn off any condensation possible, as to avoid all the dreaded CCV stories I've read. Also this is the trucks first winter in about 4 years.

1/15/12 - drove back to Miami. Car drove absolutely amazing, no overheating what so ever. averaging about 90-110 most of the time (2 scanners monitoring all trunked and open freq., V1, CB Radio, 2 Gps', and Waze running on ipad (honestly one of the best hidden driving tools from the iOS world and free for the ipad)

Stopped in NC (he just had gotten to the median from a previous traffic stop and had just turned his radar on - v1 caught it but was too late. bad break)
Could clearly smell coolant. turned car off. ended up getting off the next exit at South of the Border, which is where I first noticed I had a coolant leak. NOTE this is also just about exactly where the climate changed from about 15-20 degrees and shot up to around 45-55.
Coolant left traces clearly showing that there was leak from somewhere around the upper expansion tank/upper rad. hose area. sprayed outward toward air filter box area, very small puddle on ground beneath. Again, no signs of overheating. Left as is, added a little bit of oil, continued on.

NC - to Miami- car driving perfectly, no overheating what so ever, avg. 90-110 (late at night, didnt see anyone for miles).

Once in Miami, did my little drives around town, etc etc, for about two days, no overheating.
Went to star-bucks drive thru. I also turned the A/C on for the first time (since NYC, had been on 83 degrees, lowest fan setting, heat. first time climate control temp had been changed in about 2 weeks). This was followed by my first overheating/steaming issue. Luckily was able to get out of the way and shut car off immediately. went inside to get coffee, came back, turned car on, temp gauge right in the middle where it should be, no smoking/steaming, idling fine. Indie was just down the road, decided to take it to him right away (about a mile or two).
Brings everything up to where he said I need a new rad. but could get around for a couple days by adding water when engine was 100% cold, as needed.
couple days later, had flat bed come (just to be safe), and take it in for the new rad. Again, the morning of the new rad. repair, truck drove 100% fine up the flat-bed.

After the whole situation, when I got there finally I asked to see the old radiator (Something just isn't sitting right with me about their work and integrity). Asked if it was cracked, and he said yes, towards the bottom on drivers side. Note that the original leak clearly appeared to be coming from upper rad hose connecting area, right near rad cap. I do not yet know if the heater unit sealing rings were replaced when new rad was installed, as instructed in the TIS .
So, new rad, coolant still leaking near top area where I beleived original leak was coming from, still over heating, yellow goop under oil cap, white smoke out of exhaust. he said its toast.
I have a gut feeling saying the termostat is stuck, as well as the little valve possibly in the lower rad hose. Also bad fitting on upper rad hose. R/R those, wipe up any good I can, oil change (maybe sea-foam too), re-bleed, followed by a long smooth highway run to get oil up to temp to burn off any condensation.


SO! lol, any input on what could possibly be going on here. Is the block really toast, or could my hunch be correct?


Thanks so much for any help what-so-ever. Feel like theres a lot of little stuff to keep in mind with this sort of thing, so I definitely need some outside opinions.

[diyanich]

I remember reading here that a stuck thermostat throws a code.
Goo is a common thing for 4 and 6 cylinders while it's cold outside,I don't know if it's your case.

Originally Posted by Allstarsrd12

There are a lot of different factors to this situation, so I'll try to explain them the best I can. Not all bits are certain to be related, but all information helps.


Situation as it stands now: Car is a 2001 3.0i
Indie said I needed to have the radiator r/r due to a coolant leak and tempermental overheating. Repair was done, followed by a call from him saying they took it around the block and it overheated again, and was now blowing white smoke, which he says is coolant, from the exhaust. (Car ran fine the morning of when I drove it on to the flat bed). Also now has mustard-goop under the oil cap. Coolant is still leaking.
His ruling: Block is more than likely cracked, going to need a new engine.


All the stuff in between:
12/15/11 - water pump replaced, but for some reason, thermostat was not.....

12/18/11 - Drive from Miami, FL to NYC (CT Line). just to not the change of climates. not overheating, all fine. however the yellow oil light comes on intermittently for a couple seconds then goes away.

Spent a month in the area. ALWAYS made sure to do long trips tro burn off any condensation possible, as to avoid all the dreaded CCV stories I've read. Also this is the trucks first winter in about 4 years.

1/15/12 - drove back to Miami. Car drove absolutely amazing, no overheating what so ever. averaging about 90-110 most of the time (2 scanners monitoring all trunked and open freq., V1, CB Radio, 2 Gps', and Waze running on ipad (honestly one of the best hidden driving tools from the iOS world and free for the ipad)

Stopped in NC (he just had gotten to the median from a previous traffic stop and had just turned his radar on - v1 caught it but was too late. bad break)
Could clearly smell coolant. turned car off. ended up getting off the next exit at South of the Border, which is where I first noticed I had a coolant leak. NOTE this is also just about exactly where the climate changed from about 15-20 degrees and shot up to around 45-55.
Coolant left traces clearly showing that there was leak from somewhere around the upper expansion tank/upper rad. hose area. sprayed outward toward air filter box area, very small puddle on ground beneath. Again, no signs of overheating. Left as is, added a little bit of oil, continued on.

NC - to Miami- car driving perfectly, no overheating what so ever, avg. 90-110 (late at night, didnt see anyone for miles).

Once in Miami, did my little drives around town, etc etc, for about two days, no overheating.
Went to star-bucks drive thru. I also turned the A/C on for the first time (since NYC, had been on 83 degrees, lowest fan setting, heat. first time climate control temp had been changed in about 2 weeks). This was followed by my first overheating/steaming issue. Luckily was able to get out of the way and shut car off immediately. went inside to get coffee, came back, turned car on, temp gauge right in the middle where it should be, no smoking/steaming, idling fine. Indie was just down the road, decided to take it to him right away (about a mile or two).
Brings everything up to where he said I need a new rad. but could get around for a couple days by adding water when engine was 100% cold, as needed.
couple days later, had flat bed come (just to be safe), and take it in for the new rad. Again, the morning of the new rad. repair, truck drove 100% fine up the flat-bed.

After the whole situation, when I got there finally I asked to see the old radiator (Something just isn't sitting right with me about their work and integrity). Asked if it was cracked, and he said yes, towards the bottom on drivers side. Note that the original leak clearly appeared to be coming from upper rad hose connecting area, right near rad cap. I do not yet know if the heater unit sealing rings were replaced when new rad was installed, as instructed in the TIS .
So, new rad, coolant still leaking near top area where I beleived original leak was coming from, still over heating, yellow goop under oil cap, white smoke out of exhaust. he said its toast.
I have a gut feeling saying the termostat is stuck, as well as the little valve possibly in the lower rad hose. Also bad fitting on upper rad hose. R/R those, wipe up any good I can, oil change (maybe sea-foam too), re-bleed, followed by a long smooth highway run to get oil up to temp to burn off any condensation.


SO! lol, any input on what could possibly be going on here. Is the block really toast, or could my hunch be correct?


Thanks so much for any help what-so-ever. Feel like theres a lot of little stuff to keep in mind with this sort of thing, so I definitely need some outside opinions.

[JCL]

Go to a shop you trust for a second opinion. Have the cooling system pressure tested to see where the leak is. Go from there

[Allstarsrd12]

I just fear driving it or even running it without figuring the problem out because although Im certain everything is fine now, car runs fine, they said it drove fine, actually had CEL on pre new rad, now CEL is off. Oil on dipstick is clean too. I do have the ABS/traction control/random. other light on as well, which seem to either come on out of no where and stay on, or come on when car is started. don't know if that has to do with anything or not.

Also, no goo under cap as of my arrival back to Miami.

Ran BMW scanner 1.4 before I did the drive back down, saw AUC sensor, another code related to short circuit, possibly IKE as well in another. Any relation?

I know is seems like I'm over looking this, but I basically just had the engine rebuilt as of last summer, so nothing will be overlooked.

I know it sounds farfetched, but could fuses have any possibly play? maybe electrical connectors for heater control valves/related parts? Don't know if coolant spraying around could possibly cause a bas connection somewhere.
Also, climate control fan (I believe) weather l put it on cold or hot, would make that horrible squeal/whining noise that would go away if I put on full blast. Heat was sub-optimal at best, a/c kinda sucked too.Heat would come and go. Noticed that when I got back down here tho, the month long whining noise suddenly disappeared....

Thanks again. JCL - planning on getting to a second opinion tomorrow, just need to find a place first. Finding a mechanic you trust is one thing, but when you have to balance the fact the 80% or so chance that the guy won't speak english, sort of makes things a bit tougher.

[JCL]

Too much information. Focus down on what the problem is.

You have been told you have a coolant leak, either head gasket or block. Rule those out first. See if you are losing coolant. Then go from there.

[Allstarsrd12]

Yes, initially a leak from the upper drivers side, around where upper rad hose connects. Can see trace marks dried up on air filter housing and MAF housing. Also, I guess radiator had crack in plastic near the bottom, but thats erroneous since new radiator installed. When he ran the car for me, I could see the coolant not spraying out, but collecting along the rim on what I assume is the expansion tank. Again, would be the area where upper rad. hose connects.


Only reason I brought up so much info is because of 1, the overheating seemed to react to different climate temps, and surrounding temps, which just leads me to think thermostat or similar temp. regulated valve.
Second reason is or the other thermostat/valve located near the bottom of the expansion tank, as explained here: BMW Expansion Tank Diagnosis Part 2 of 2 - YouTube

[Allstarsrd12]

I just drove the X home, like nothing had ever happened. No CEL, no more smoke. Temp needle hovers around middle. When starting to go past half way, I turn the climate control on, 90 degrees, lowest fan setting. When needle starts to go below half way point, I kill climate control.

Went to mechanic, (which will absolutely and forever be the last time I ever step foot in there again). He's still convinced engine is done, block is cracked, blah blah blah. Not buying it. When something doesn't sit right, its for a reason. Told him I want a pressure test on cooling system. done, guy said no leaks. Mind you a little after this, I see coolant on the ground, and still around the expansion tank. Seemed to ignore me telling him about the initial leak trace splatter from upper section. Before being done with it all, I get the bill for $550 for the radiator, which apparently was already discounted. Said he should just keep the radiator, and put my old one back in, since obviously the situation wasn't solved. So did that, bill was waived, leaving me still thinking that the car is kaput.

Left to return my zip car, walked back to the shop, got in car, bringing me to the start of this post.

guy also had the balls to tell me I "watch too many cartoons". Yes, thats why I just drove the thing home.

So hey, least I can rule out the worst now.

[Allstarsrd12]

No more smoke from exhaust too.
go figure

[SlickGT1]

Wow, seems like a shady ass mechanic. I would post up his address here to make sure no one else goes there.

The coolant came from somewhere. Go to a diff mech, and get a coolant test.

[Allstarsrd12]

Agreed. will be doing that asap.
Shop is Mikes Beemer in Miami, FL, next to the University of Miami campus basically.
Then again, its Miami. Can't get a damn thing done correctly around here.

Anyways, it seems as though I have to toggle the thermostat open and closed, basically using the climate control as the on/off switch. Is there a unit that controls that section of the cooling system?

thanks again for all the help folks.