Whats next ??? Help please ... I bought a used 1998 ford windstar there is oil in the overflow .. We flushed the radiator wen we pulled the plug the coolant looked cleaned .. Did an oil change so oil is clean .. Today i drove a rural hi-way and it ran fine .. Once in town it lost power .. Emissions lite is on .. And that oily substance is back in the overflow... Could this be a blown head gasket and where is the black oil coming from if the oil is clean on the dipstick?...also noticed that the power steering reservoir is lower than it was

help please

 

Sounds like bad head gasket but also vehicle tends to overheat because loss of pressure in cooling system.

 

The pressure usually in the cooling system doesn't go over 15#.
Oil pressure on the other had goes in the area of 30-50 #
That would explain why there is oil in the cooling system. The question is how is it getting in there.
There are a number of ways some of which are; Poor sealing head gasket, intake manifold gaskets. cracked head , cracked block.
Don't know if your vehicle has an oil cooler, that could also be a problem area if equipped.
It will require some additional testing to pin down the exact cause. What you need to be concerned about is, when the engine is shut down and there is no oil pressure, the cooling system is still hot and has higher pressure now than the oil/ lubricating system and coolant can sometimes get into the oil and that's not good at all.
If the oil gets grey and soupy the coolant has found a path to the lube system. Not a good idea to drive it too long.

 

Since your oil is new and clean...and the oily substance you're seeing is black, I would supsect that you may be seeing residue from the factory installed BAR's LEAK STOP. Do you see any change in the coolant level in the coolant resevoir/overflow tank?

The power steering is an isolated system from the cooling system. The low P/S level could be caused by a small seal leak in the Rack & Pinion assembly.

 

Thank you very much ! , i do see a small change in the level in the over flow, however when i do each time , i have pulled rad cap and no oil anywhere around opening .. thinking thats because oil floats on top and when the overflow seeps back to radiator the oil floats to top and there is enough coolant going back the oil ends up on bottom of reservoir ....

Next quest .... i bought a bottle of bars leak that cost me 60.00 it says it is for sealing any leaks in head gasket, manifold block, and freeze plugs
what is your opinon on this product , especially if the factory already installs?

 

thank you very much for taking the time to answer ,

 

You're welcome.
Might I suggest you check your automatic trans fluid level.
We know trans fluid is supposed to have a red color, but with time it can become darkened. Just about all vehicles with an automatic trans have an oil cooler going through the radiator. Just trying to cover all the bases. If I keep coming up with all these bad suggestions you won't want to hear from me much, Huh

 

I to suspect the auto trans cooler in the radiater check trans fluid for signs of coolant in the trans. if you see signs of coolant you must replace radiater or install a seperate trans cooler. You must also drain and flush transmision including torque converter and replace trans. filter. Antifreeze is hell on bands,clutches and bearings

 

lol...not bad suggestions just have them covered ... i really appreciate the replies, if i knew everything i wouldnt be on here..lol, the trany has been checked as well and all that is clean , and no antifreeze in it either ...

keep em coming ...

 

thank you , the trans is clean with only tran fluid , and the substance in overflow is much darker, am still researching to pinpoint it i really appreciate all replies, am checking it all or have