# Oil is overfilled and coolant is low



## jasonm (Nov 30, 2009)

1995 5-speed KA24E. Checked the oil today and it shows on the dipstick as being overfull. Coolant is below the MIN line. Is this indicative of coolant leaking into the oil? Truck has been running rough.


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## carldmorseii (Jan 19, 2010)

Do you see any coolant in the oil, or vice versa?


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## jasonm (Nov 30, 2009)

Well I don't see any oil in the coolant but I don't really know what coolant in the oil would look like.


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## zanegrey (Dec 5, 2005)

milkish grey..
it may be running not right beacuse you have the oil overfilled and the coolant under filled...


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## CMax03 (Jan 17, 2009)

Blown headgasket!


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## jasonm (Nov 30, 2009)

Really didn't want to hear that. I was hopelessly in denial.

Fix it or scrap it? Truck has over 180,000mi on it.


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## zanegrey (Dec 5, 2005)

imo... if the frame is not rusted fix it..

my truck has over 500 k miles..

besides u do not even know what is wrong with it yet...


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## SPEEDO (Jun 9, 2003)

drain the oil, at least what is over filled... what color is it? do you have white smoke coming out the tailpipe? have you pulled any plugs? if so what do they look like?


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## Pat D. (Jan 12, 2010)

When the truck is cold and has sat for a while, overnight, preferably, without being started or cranked, you can drop the drain plug and any water in the pan should come out first. Pop the plug back in when oil starts flowing. Then decide what to do if you actually have water in there.
Pat D.


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## Grug (Aug 20, 2009)

What about the level of coolant when you remove the radiator cap (when the engine is cold, of course)? Start the truck up, remove the cap and look for bubbles in the radiator. I've been told that bubbles is one possible indicator of a headgasket.

180 000 miles? She's just gettin' broke in!


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## 96 nissan HB (Feb 4, 2010)

zanegrey said:


> imo... if the frame is not rusted fix it..
> 
> my truck has over 500 k miles..
> 
> besides u do not even know what is wrong with it yet...


Awsome! 500 k miles. That's insane. Original engine? Makes mine with 148 k miles sound brand new lol.


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## 96 nissan HB (Feb 4, 2010)

Grug said:


> What about the level of coolant when you remove the radiator cap (when the engine is cold, of course)? Start the truck up, remove the cap and look for bubbles in the radiator. I've been told that bubbles is one possible indicator of a headgasket.
> 
> 180 000 miles? She's just gettin' broke in!


Just broke in eh. I guess mine with 148 k miles has a lot of life left in her. At least I hope.


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## jasonm (Nov 30, 2009)

Truck started overheating. Added coolant, still overheating and the heater is blowing icy. Some sort of blockage?


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## CalHvyMetl (Dec 4, 2006)

jasonm said:


> Truck started overheating. Added coolant, still overheating and the heater is blowing icy. Some sort of blockage?


Thermostat


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## jasonm (Nov 30, 2009)

Well I let it idle a bit more, and the temp started dropping toward normal. Once that happened the heater started working again, but I revved it a bit and the temp started rising again. Heater is still working though.

When I added coolant I added enough to fill over the MIN line but did not completely fill it. Now it's over the MAX line. Will it being overfilled mess it up more?

I'm going to let it cool off for a few hours and then drive it a bit. There is definitely still something wrong with the truck but it looks like the overheating is starting to go away.


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## Pat D. (Jan 12, 2010)

jasonm said:


> Well I let it idle a bit more, and the temp started dropping toward normal. Once that happened the heater started working again, but I revved it a bit and the temp started rising again. Heater is still working though.
> 
> When I added coolant I added enough to fill over the MIN line but did not completely fill it. Now it's over the MAX line. Will it being overfilled mess it up more?
> 
> I'm going to let it cool off for a few hours and then drive it a bit. There is definitely still something wrong with the truck but it looks like the overheating is starting to go away.


Me, being from the old school, I don't worry too much about the overflow bottle. If you want to know if the coolant level is correct, look in the radiator itself. I just removed and replaced the radiator in my '94, and I had to top off the radiator several times while the truck was running to get coolant circulating fully. They get an air bubble in them, and you will see high temps and no heat from the heater until that bubble is purged. Best to do that thru the radiator fill rather than the overflow bottle. The bottle is there only to catch overflow coolant when it expands when heated. When it cools, (in theory)that overflow will be drawn back into the radiator thru the recovery style radiator cap. But the radiator needs to be full when cold to make this system work correctly. If there is a bubble in the system, the radiator will look full until the bubble works it's way back to the radiator. Then the level will drop, and you need to top off, or the level will be low regardless of how much fluid is in the overflow. Hope this makes sense ...
Pat D.


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## jasonm (Nov 30, 2009)

So should I just start filling directly into the radiator even though it appears there is already too much fluid?


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## Pat D. (Jan 12, 2010)

jasonm said:


> So should I just start filling directly into the radiator even though it appears there is already too much fluid?


What do you see when you look into the radiator? Are the fins/passages covered with coolant?
Pat D.


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## jasonm (Nov 30, 2009)

Added a little more directly into the radiator, drove around the city with no overheating. Looks like everything is now flowing properly.

One of these days I'm going to have to set aside time to do the timing chain...


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## Pat D. (Jan 12, 2010)

The fins/core of the radiator should always be covered with coolant when you take the cap off and look into the top radiator tank, regardless of what is in the catch can. That's the only way I know to determine if the level is full enough. The catch can/overflow bottle is a mixed blessing at best. Some german cars( I had a VW like this) made the "overflow" bottle a part of the pressurised cooling system, the pressure cap was on the bottle, and that is where you added fluid. AFAIK, these are the ONLY systems where the "overflow" level is critical, all the rest are basically "catch cans" to collect the coolant as it expands, rather than blow it out on the ground(like all cars up to about 1970). I once worked at a "quick lube" shop that made many, many dollars selling coolant to customers by telling them that the "coolant was low", when in fact the radiator was full and operating just as designed, but the overflow bottle was low. Never sat right with me. Now you know, and knowing is half the battle.
Pat D.


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## dentedsub (Oct 23, 2007)

you have a bad thermostat, its needing an extra push to open up like it should. replace it before it sticks closed.


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