chevy89camaro

engine runs... im leaking anti-freeze into oil and have major vacuum leak. idles at 1900rpm in park/neutral and 900 in gear. my water leak is slow. Only leaks in block. I have capped all vacuum hook-ups at carb to see that could posibly be my vacuum leak and its not..

moving on, i have put new intake gaskets in it 4 times and still have the same problem. pulling my hair out here.

could this be result of a blown head gasket or cracked head. car does not fumble. my plugs look great. no water coming out of exhaust. aside from idleing high in park and not being able to rev the car and it set back down to idle quickly it runs great.

need ideas guys. thanks ahead of time.

86camaro383

iTrader: (3)

do a leak down test. That will confirm if you have a blown head gasket. Check to see if the accelerater cable is binding, keeping the throttle open.

hotrod7687

The leak sounds like a head gasket. Do a compression check to see if any cylinders have low compression.

Have you checked the gasket under the carb or the the vaccum port on the back of the intake behind the carb?

305sbc

iTrader: (3)

Once you eliminate other possibilitites I would pull the intake and heads and inspect them for cracks and/or warpage. You might want to get it all resurfaced as well before sealing it up again.
Some shops can pressure test your heads for you. Leakes aren't always at the gasket mating surface. Sometimes it can be around a guide or near a valve seat.

Saculia

iTrader: (1)

Make sure that your intake manifold is not warped. Place it on a flat surface and use a filler gauge to check for warping. The compression test and leak down test should be done first.
How did you check for vacuum leaks at the intake manifold? A propane torch would perhaps be your best bet, but if I were you I will not run that engine for a second with coolant getting into the crank case.

chevy89camaro

i own a compression gauge so i will look for weak compression soon as i can. my grandfather has passed away so there is alot going on right now but i will be back soon to go over this problem. thank you guys

gregsz-28

iTrader: (1)

If the carburetor has been tightened down to the manifold WAY to tight, that could warp the intake or carb too. Before someone says that's a stupid idea, i've seen it happen before.
Could you describe what exactly the vacuum gauge does when it's hooked up? (try hooking it up to the brake booster vacuum line)
Is the engine stock, or modified?

chevy89camaro

im going to rule this out because.... where ever my problem is im leaking water into the oil.

i was wondering if anyone thought it would be a head gasket,... but... if it is a blown head gasket; it seems odd that i have a vacuum leak with no water getting in the cylinders.

1brd2brd3brd4

Sounds like intake gasket to me.Pretty cheap and eazy repair.

84Z28406

I'd guess on the intake gasket as well, so long as you don't have white exhaust.

gregsz-28

iTrader: (1)

My intent was to suggest that it could be separate causes,
but I agree, intake gasket seems like the most likely cause, or warped intake maybe if you change the gasket four times and it still does it.

84Z28406

When you take the intake off, just put the gasket surfaces against a straight edge to see if they're warped.

five7kid

iTrader: (14)

If you've replaced the intake gaskets 4 times, it isn't very likely that it's the intake gaskets.

Head gaskets don't leak water into the oil. Cracked heads rarely do.

Cracked blocks leak water into the oil. Was the engine ever exposed to freezing weather without sufficient antifreeze?

Go ahead and do the compression check, can't hurt anything. Look for wet spark plugs when you pull them. Pull the intake again, look carefully for cracks in the intake valley along the sides, underneath the pushrods.

Arizona IROC

iTrader: (4)

Time to upgrade to the 350. Sometimes you get a problem you just can't lick