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Coolant in engine oil ????

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Old 01-05-11, 09:12 PM
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i got a 90 mazda turbo two and i have that coolant in the engine oil look on my dip stick. it also has a blown turbo. im kinda tight on cash right now so im trying to trouble shoot the problem. ive had to fill my coolant resavour once while it was running and last i checked my dip stick it had the " milkshake" content on the stick. oil fill cap smelt like gas. i also put some lucas oil leak stop in the oil to kind of help the leaking gaskets on the turbo. any ideas???

The guy i baught it from said that the turbo was the only problem.
drove it downt he road the other day and i had a trail of white smoke following me.
when i baught the car it lightly smoked at idel and at decelleration. ( turbo?)

im in wyoming and it got freezing cold while i was driving it. and with the turbo smoking and burning oil i wouldnt let it run and warm up before id drive it.

any suggestions will help.

baught this 1990 mazda rx7 turbo II and it looks like im getting coolant in my engine oil.

any ideas on what it could be i would like to know pretty quick because i love this car and it is really fun to drive

thanks

Last edited by mar3; 01-06-11 at 08:46 PM. Reason: Merged back-to-back posts...
Old 01-05-11, 11:55 PM
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Post more details about the car - mileage, mods, condition etc- and why you think you are getting coolant in your engine oil.

Have you read the FAQ threads yet? Might want to educate yourself about the car by reading the 2nd gen FAQ thread stickied in this forum.
Old 01-06-11, 10:18 AM
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You sure it isn't just condensation? It is very, very unlikely that coolant is finding it's way into the oil.

However, if you have to keep adding coolant then it probably is leaking somewhere. Big clouds of white smoke indicate it may be being burned. Search "coolant bubble test" to find some instructions to find out if this is the case.

Sounds like the car has a lot of problems and you're in for some work if you want it to decent.
Old 01-06-11, 11:34 AM
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BMX - In the future, do not open a new thread when you already have an open thread on the topic
Old 01-06-11, 11:42 AM
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Originally Posted by BMX-rotor
i got a 90 mazda turbo two and i have that coolant in the engine oil look on my dip stick. it also has a blown turbo.
Given that the previous owner doesn't sound like the sharpest pencil in the box, how do you know it has a blown turbo? what are the symptoms?


Originally Posted by BMX-rotor
im kinda tight on cash right now so im trying to trouble shoot the problem. ive had to fill my coolant resavour once while it was running and
It might have been low already or might have had air in the system. Keep an eye on it. Read the FAQ thread to learn more about how to troubleshoot that.


Originally Posted by BMX-rotor
last i checked my dip stick it had the " milkshake" content on the stick.
That is probably normal condensation as Aaron mentioned. Change the oil.


Originally Posted by BMX-rotor
oil fill cap smelt like gas. i also put some lucas oil leak stop in the oil to kind of help the leaking gaskets on the turbo. any ideas???
The oil always smells like gas if it has been in there too long. Rotaries are famous for fuel dilution of oil. Oil should be changed every 3k miles minimum b/c of fuel dilution.


Originally Posted by BMX-rotor
i also put some lucas oil leak stop in the oil to kind of help the leaking gaskets on the turbo. any ideas???
That was a bad idea IMO. Turbo gaskets on any car aren't the kind that will be sealed with an oil leak stop product. Hopefully that crap doesn't clog anything else. Change the oil quick.


Originally Posted by BMX-rotor
The guy i baught it from said that the turbo was the only problem.
drove it downt he road the other day and i had a trail of white smoke following me.
when i baught the car it lightly smoked at idel and at decelleration. ( turbo?)

im in wyoming and it got freezing cold while i was driving it. and with the turbo smoking and burning oil i wouldnt let it run and warm up before id drive it.

any suggestions will help.
Well, if the turbo is indeed blown, you will be trailing smoke until you fix or replace the turbo. However, if you didn't let the car warm up, then it could just likely be normal "smoke" or what looks like smoke from hot exhaust running through cold ambient temps from a cold car.

If the turbo is the problem, trying to "fix" everything but the turbo will probably have you chasing your tail...

Last edited by gracer7-rx7; 01-06-11 at 11:45 AM.
Old 01-06-11, 02:24 PM
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Aaron and gracer are both smarter than me but if you need a third opinion...I doubt you have coolant in your oil too. Condensation that's been emulsified with the oil is usually baby-poop brown and collects on the filler cap. Typical on the car during cold weather. It's aggravated if the car is only used for short trips and isn't kept at full operating temps for very long.
Old 01-06-11, 02:48 PM
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Ive been through this problem! It sucks. I thought I was the only person EVER to get coolant in the oil. Really there are very few ways for oil and coolant to mix in a rotary.

Some of the ways:

1. Outer coolant O-ring. Highly unlikely but if broken on the bottom of the engine, coolant could leak into the oil pan between the housings and irons.

2. Turbo? Coolant and oil are in close proximety but I'd have to say no.

3. Cracked iron / housing. Maybe - but to do this you likely have had some sort of catastrophic failure and you have bigger problems.

4. The WINNER: (for me at least) FREEZE PLUG. Seriously - I never would have guessed this but thats what it was on my motor. I know you're thinking that a leaky freeze plugs would either dump water in the bell housing (back of engine) or on the ground (front of engine) but there are TWO FREEZE PLUGS BEHIND THE FRONT COVER. If you get a leak here, the coolant runs into the oil pan. We rebuilt the motor below 2 times trying to find the cause of coolant in the oil before we saw a few bubbles when pressurizing the system with water and soap in it. The small plug I had problems with is removed but I'm pointing at it for you.

Name:  DSCN0166.jpg
Views: 8099
Size:  91.7 KB

If you really have any coolant in your oil - you will know. Symptoms for me were that the engine ran great! When the car reached operating temperature and the oil was hot enough to boil the coolant in the pan (and it only takes a little bit of coolant), the car would begin to steam out the oil filler neck and then PUKE coolant and oil! Think what happens if you get a little moisture or ice in a deep fryer.

You won't see any puffs of white smoke in the exhaust because coolant isn't being burned... its just polluting your oiling system and eventually boiling out any place it can be vented.

What came out was just nasty. Fresh oil and water form a chocolate milk looking slurry. I'm getting sad just thinking about it happening to me on my fresh rebuild (TWICE) before I figured out what it was.

If you coolant is mostly water or you have a lot of rust in the system - it could cause the thin steel freeze plugs to leak. The irons I used in my rebuild came from an engine that I dismantled for parts. It died of coolant seal failure and there was lots of corrosion in the galleries. I flushed the irons but freeze plug integrity is hard to check... Let this be a lesson to everyone else to keep antifreeze in your system!

Hope this helps.

Last edited by mar3; 01-06-11 at 08:47 PM. Reason: Merged back-to-back posts...
Old 01-06-11, 08:01 PM
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thanks guys

The mods that i know of is a To4 Turbo from XS power.com ($300 dollar turbo) header, 38mm wastgate on header, front mount intercooler, and mazda intake sensor, with no air filter.

as the condensation in the oil, im going to change it this weekend so ill let you know

symptoms of blown turbo...... oil burning on turbo. turbo has a high temp blanket and you can see oil seeping, also oil coming out of BOV. and inlet side of turbo seeping. running at idel, it will smoke and also at decel. when running 9 lbs of boost at full throttle a little smoke trails. after running at operating temp ( hour drive) and then stopping at a stop light it smokes like a BASTARD....

Car doesnt have a hard time starting and runns like a champ. havnt drove it for a month n a half due to turbo.

coolant loss could only be ratiator neck leaking. looks like the guy try fixing it with sylicone.. possibility....

thanks again guys..

im hoping that i aint getting coolant in oil. ill keep you guys posted.
Old 01-06-11, 11:16 PM
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Originally Posted by Sgtblue
Aaron and gracer are both smarter than me but if you need a third opinion...I doubt you have coolant in your oil too. Condensation that's been emulsified with the oil is usually baby-poop brown and collects on the filler cap. Typical on the car during cold weather. It's aggravated if the car is only used for short trips and isn't kept at full operating temps for very long.
Thanks Sgt but I've learned a lot from your posts so keep 'em coming.
Old 02-11-11, 10:43 AM
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Update on coolant in engine oil!

found out it was just condensation. checked the oil yesterday and looked like normal oil.

got a new turbo for it and installed it last night. got it all put it and started the engine. right off the bat it smoked. at first smelt like a normal cold cold engine. rich fuel. after letting it run the smoke started looking blue ( like burning oil). after shuting down the engine and checking the turbine side of turbo, my fingers had black oil like liquid.

any clues on what this is.

i havnt ran the car for quite a while( month n a half)

car ran like crap. ran at 200 rpm bouncing to 100 rpm.

is there any way that oil was settled in the headers and is just blowing it out while running?

if you need more info let me know ill be glad to help.
Old 02-11-11, 09:10 PM
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look up "lung butter"..that would give you an idea as to what the condensation may look like.Compare that to what you have!
Old 02-16-11, 11:15 PM
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i had the same issue. but i called a local mechanic whwo speciaizes in rotary, and he said that its most likely condensation. mine has been sitting since november. he said they dont like sitting at all. and that coolant leaks into engine are very unlikely unless been abused. has it been sitting without being driven?
Old 02-17-11, 12:12 AM
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no it happened when it was way cold (wyoming weather) and now that it has been sitting it went away. no my only problem i have is oil burning in my exhaust. i think its just oil from the blown turbo. but once i get my exhaust set up complete then we will see if it smokes like crazy when i drive it.
Old 03-08-12, 02:30 PM
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Hey guys im having a similar problem. But instead of coolant being in the oil i found oil in my coolant resavoire... 0.0 i need help please could someone tell me whats would be causing this and what i can do to fix it and prevent it from happening again
Old 03-16-12, 12:09 AM
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time to have the engine rebuilt
Old 03-16-12, 11:23 AM
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Awhh really? :/ i just bought the car.. Stored it for winter and was planning to drive it this summer... I heard that alumaseal might be able to fix it?
Old 03-16-12, 01:04 PM
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Originally Posted by Lawson80
Awhh really? :/ i just bought the car.. Stored it for winter and was planning to drive it this summer... I heard that alumaseal might be able to fix it?
If you're lucky then yes, but what i read about this stuff people have better results on 12a engines then 13b's.
Don't ask me why and i hope the experst will answer this. But oil in the coolant can't be good.
Old 03-17-12, 01:51 PM
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Some people told me that it might just be rust water, ill have to take a closer look, it was a brown gunky substance... To me looked like oil but i might be wrong..
Old 06-15-13, 02:35 PM
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hey i found this hole in my front engine cover could it be leading to coolant in my oil pan im not to sure? and the hole is by the metering oil pump

help plz
Attached Thumbnails Coolant in engine oil ????-dscn4670.jpg   Coolant in engine oil ????-dscn4669.jpg  
Old 03-04-19, 07:43 PM
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Just had this issue myself. I installed a used rebuilt 91 NA engine with about 30k miles.... Struggled to start at first (had engine spinning for 20 min before it actually started.... Tapping the gas helped) but when it did start and while it struggled there was a faint white smoke coming out.... Smoke lasted a minute.... After that it never smoked again.... Even when cold started. I noticed the dipstick had popped up a bit due to pressure. Opened filler cap and noticed the coolant/water sweat in it. I hope its just condensation engine runs great otherwise.... 60-110 oil pressure. Temp stays below half (in gauge) idles a bit rough due to emmision block offs its pretty much just running on fuel, spark, and air everything else has been deleted.... Regarding the issue on which i have to tap the gas for it to get enough fuel.... Could it be dirty inj, filter, or bad fuel pump? Never gave me that problem before. All that was changed was the block.
Old 03-16-21, 12:15 PM
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Size plugs?

Originally Posted by 7dust
Ive been through this problem! It sucks. I thought I was the only person EVER to get coolant in the oil. Really there are very few ways for oil and coolant to mix in a rotary.

Some of the ways:

1. Outer coolant O-ring. Highly unlikely but if broken on the bottom of the engine, coolant could leak into the oil pan between the housings and irons.

2. Turbo? Coolant and oil are in close proximety but I'd have to say no.

3. Cracked iron / housing. Maybe - but to do this you likely have had some sort of catastrophic failure and you have bigger problems.

4. The WINNER: (for me at least) FREEZE PLUG. Seriously - I never would have guessed this but thats what it was on my motor. I know you're thinking that a leaky freeze plugs would either dump water in the bell housing (back of engine) or on the ground (front of engine) but there are TWO FREEZE PLUGS BEHIND THE FRONT COVER. If you get a leak here, the coolant runs into the oil pan. We rebuilt the motor below 2 times trying to find the cause of coolant in the oil before we saw a few bubbles when pressurizing the system with water and soap in it. The small plug I had problems with is removed but I'm pointing at it for you.

Attachment 715918

If you really have any coolant in your oil - you will know. Symptoms for me were that the engine ran great! When the car reached operating temperature and the oil was hot enough to boil the coolant in the pan (and it only takes a little bit of coolant), the car would begin to steam out the oil filler neck and then PUKE coolant and oil! Think what happens if you get a little moisture or ice in a deep fryer.

You won't see any puffs of white smoke in the exhaust because coolant isn't being burned... its just polluting your oiling system and eventually boiling out any place it can be vented.

What came out was just nasty. Fresh oil and water form a chocolate milk looking slurry. I'm getting sad just thinking about it happening to me on my fresh rebuild (TWICE) before I figured out what it was.

If you coolant is mostly water or you have a lot of rust in the system - it could cause the thin steel freeze plugs to leak. The irons I used in my rebuild came from an engine that I dismantled for parts. It died of coolant seal failure and there was lots of corrosion in the galleries. I flushed the irons but freeze plug integrity is hard to check... Let this be a lesson to everyone else to keep antifreeze in your system!

Hope this helps.
Could you tell me what size freezer plug you used to replace? I'm in the same situation
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