My 88 GL, with an engine from a 85 GL has water coming out the tailpipe, and lots of smoke after it gets to operating tempture. The engine from the 85 was running a year ago with no problens. The car starts easy and has 125 lbs. of compression, so I don't think the head gasket is bad, or a head, but I have to keep putting in water in the radiator. How can I be sure? I read in here a leak down test. Can you buy this gizmo pretty cheap,I don't have much money, but I need to get this car running to be street reliable. I read a thread from mickytrus who had 3 pages but didn't state if he ever fixed the problem, so if he or anyone has had this ever happened, any help would be appreciated. thanks

Sounds like it might be an intake manifold gasket leaking coolant into the intake airstream.

 

How much water are you going through?

 

Worse possibility is a cracked head leaking through the usual cracks that form between the valves.

 

Either one of these problems would use coolant and still have decent compression readings.

the car goes throw a about a cup of water for about ten minutes of running time at an idle of 700 rpms. I haven't really let it run for much longer than that. What bothers me is it didn't do it the last time it ran about a year ago. The person who gave it to me stopped driving it because the carb was messed up and flooding the engine so bad it wouldn't run. I figured it wouldn't floodout in this car because it's in afuel inj. car,and it doesn't. It runs great except for this water problem.

Is a manifold from a 88 fuel inj. single port going to fit a 85 carb, or is that why water might be getting in the cylinder causing all this trouble?

really sounds like intake gaskets to me, or a partially blown headgasket