98 Accord LX oil in water

I had overheated the car but not badly, I shut it down quickly.

I had the mechanic replace the radiator, had the cylinder head rebuilt
plus new head gasket, timing belt (84,000 miles) and water pump, new
hoses, new radiator fan, etc. I asked the mechanic if the bottom end
(block/pistons) could have been damaged before he started the job and
he said they never get damaged. He said they are strong. He
specializes in Honda and Toyota.

The engine is very smooth. The repair was about two months ago but I
noticed I have oil in my radiator with the milky coffee look. I
flushed it again and the "coffee" came back the same day.. I also
added oil because it was a little low. The mechanic is an honest guy
and a good mech. I am taking it back but I am wonder what it could be
beside even more money to shell out.

 

Bad head gasket? When it overheated, you may have warped the head...

 

Bad head gasket? When it overheated, you may have warped the head...

 

I suspect your new radiator has a defective transmission fluid cooling
loop - assuming the transmission is an automatic. All too often, the coolant
also gets into the transmission and can cause real trouble if allowed to go
on long, so check the tranny dipstick for signs of milkiness. This won't be
something the mechanic did wrong, if that is indeed the problem. The failure
will be inside the radiator rather than in the way it was put in.

It's also possible the oil was contamination inside the new radiator,
though, and now has floated to the surface.

My understanding is that it is unlikely head gasket trouble will mix oil and
coolant in Honda engines, but I haven't had a head off yet to see for
myself.

We've seen a couple reports of oil in the radiator recently, but I don't
think anybody has reported back what the cause was. You can look at threads
from the last few months and see if there is a clue for you.

Mike

 

I suspect your new radiator has a defective transmission fluid cooling
loop - assuming the transmission is an automatic. All too often, the coolant
also gets into the transmission and can cause real trouble if allowed to go
on long, so check the tranny dipstick for signs of milkiness. This won't be
something the mechanic did wrong, if that is indeed the problem. The failure
will be inside the radiator rather than in the way it was put in.

It's also possible the oil was contamination inside the new radiator,
though, and now has floated to the surface.

My understanding is that it is unlikely head gasket trouble will mix oil and
coolant in Honda engines, but I haven't had a head off yet to see for
myself.

We've seen a couple reports of oil in the radiator recently, but I don't
think anybody has reported back what the cause was. You can look at threads
from the last few months and see if there is a clue for you.

Mike

 

A good test for this is to check the crankcase oil for the presence of water -
if it's seeping one way, it will likely seep the other way as well. Check the
tranny fluid too, to see if water is getting in there.

 

A good test for this is to check the crankcase oil for the presence of water -
if it's seeping one way, it will likely seep the other way as well. Check the
tranny fluid too, to see if water is getting in there.