Is this a head gasket problem?

[GLMadness]

Hello,

I am finally getting around to getting the '85

GL I bought a year ago running. The person I bought it from said that he was driving down the freeway when it started to blow a lot of black smoke and lost power. He got off on the next exit and by the time he came to a stop it wouldn't run. Now it will turn over fine, but not fire. 1 or two of the cylinders make different sounds when it is being turned over. I am trying to figure out if I should just put a JDM in it or if it is worth doing an in-frame repair. Thanks for the replies.

 

GLMadness

[Deltacam]

Hello,

I am finally getting around to getting the '85

GL I bought a year ago running. The person I bought it from said that he was driving down the freeway when it started to blow a lot of black smoke and lost power. He got off on the next exit and by the time he came to a stop it wouldn't run. Now it will turn over fine, but not fire. 1 or two of the cylinders make different sounds when it is being turned over. I am trying to figure out if I should just put a JDM in it or if it is worth doing an in-frame repair. Thanks for the replies.

 

GLMadness

 

easy way to check is to pull spark plugs and look for water or damage.

[ShawnW]

First, we need to know...85 GL what?

 

Youre going to find that owning that car is a PITA at parts store, dealer, etc until you tell them which perticular kind.

 

The GL Wagon or Sedan is an ea82 engine. The hatchback or Brat body car is an ea81 engine. If you have the hatchback that is 4wd with a 4 speed manual transmission its the ea81, if its a 5 speed 4wd its an ea82.

 

The possibilities are pretty long for this question, need more information and to know which model above you have.

 

Check the oil and coolant. Are they full?

 

Is there any sign of a belt that broke? If the Alternator belt broke the car would die pretty rapidly and might have black smoke. If the timing belt broke (ea82 only) it would do the same somewhat.

If the engine thru a rod or blew up it would have black smoked and died fast, ironically it still might turn over or even run in this condition (I drove a 3 cyl ea82 with a rod thru the top almost 3 miles before it finally bought it!).

 

Poke and prod your head around under the hood a little. The car wont bite.

[GeneralDisorder]

You can get a cheap compression tester at a discount store (harbor frieght is good). That will tell you a lot right there.

 

GD