Argh. I just bought a 2002 Land Rover Discovery II and I love it. I got it from a dealer auction (my brother's a dealer) for 2,700 (so cheap). Turns out the previous owner is actually my old neighbor. Found that out from the title. I talked to him and he had no issues other than the "three amigos" lights. My brother reset the computer and lights never went back on.

The car had 116K miles on it when purchased.

I've been driving for a month and now there's a problem.

I'm putting coolant in it every other day (doesn't go empty, but consumes a lot) and there are oil spots on the ground. My engine oil is not going down in the least bit, but it's leaking a lot by the drips.

I have since purchase moved over 1,000 miles away from brother, or I would take it there. I'm a total girl. I'm afraid I might have a cracked block or blown head gasket. Anyone have info? is it even worth it to fix it? The car is otherwise immaculate and I absolutely love driving it.

 

Don't let this scare you, but it sounds like it could be a blown head gasket/s. What color is your oil? Does it look like a chocolate/vanilla swirl milkshake?

Hopefully, the coolant is leaking externally from the block. Have a trusted mechanic take a look. Have them perform a pressure test to confirm.

FYI Head gasket repairs range anywhere from 1500-2000. Even w/ the repair bill you would still come out on top.

 

Coolant leaks can be sneaky, and happen from a variety of gaskets, as well as loose hose clamps, etc. Sometime the leaks blow away while truck is driving. Certainly have shop check it out, they can do a coolant pressure test and the external leak will reveal itself. Hopefully you don't have white smoke from the exhaust that continues after warm up.

Most Rovers leak oil, it is just their nature. But when at the shop have them do an oil change and that will show the milkshake.

During this time before repairs be vigilant and check coolant level each time truck is cold, like in the morning before leaving for the day and in the afternoon if engine is cooled off from being parked all afternoon after lunch. Buy a couple of jugs of distilled water and keep in the back in case you have to top up the water. Watch that heat gauge frequently, if above 50% that is getting too warm. One of the big problems with new owners is that they allow a small leak problem to get rid of too much coolant, engine overheats, and repair bill skyrockets. Do not try to drive if heat gauge is high, unless it is a life or death situation. It usually results in high dollar repairs or a new engine.

A pack of blue nitrile disposable gloves helps. Being independent you should establish a weekly routine of checking all fluids under the hood, like every Saturday morning, etc. Don't wait for oil light to stay on before you check oil level, etc.

 

You have a blown head gasket minimum, end of story.

 

So, now what are you going to do, do you have any local Rover type mechanics around you?

 

My suggestion is to drive the truck around for a good drive to get it up to temp and then take a flashlight and look for wet spots on hoses, that plastic pan under the engine, and the frame rails. There are a lot of hoses to look at, don't be afraid to feel around for moisture.

Also check the oil after the drive. If it's clear you're ok, if it's milky or frothy, it's a head gasket leak.

If you're using that much coolant and the engine isn't bellowing white smoke I'd bet its a hose on it's way out.

If it is a hose you don't need anything more than a pan to catch old antifreeze, a jug of new antifreeze, some pliers and maybe a screwdriver.


EDIT: I suggest you buy the 50/50 ready mixed antifreeze instead of distilled water to keep the coolant topped off, don't want to get the AF/water mix out of whack.

EDIT 2: Also, coolant mixed with some oil from separate leak that has dried on the ground will look a lot like a really big oil leak. You need to look at the drip when it's fresh.

 

Replace the head gaskets NOW.
Don't drive it.

Coolant in the OIL will destroy the main bearings.
When you drain your oil - you will see COPPER flakes or bright gold flakes
in the oil if you take the oil drain pan to the sunlight.

You keep driving it - you keep ruining it.

REPLACE head gaskets now.

 

Before you jump to conclusions, it could be two simple things that are happening:

Re: Loosing coolant level - Could just be loosing coolant via the throttle body heater gasket: https://landroverforums.com/forum/di...57/#post153954

Re: Oil on floor - The oil drip could simply be the valve cover needs tightening: https://landroverforums.com/forum/di...e2/#post176865

I'm just saying that it could be much simpler than we might, at first, imagine with the information provided.

-Anthony

 

It is a "BLOWN HEAD GASKET", time to get real, it is too bad it has happened but the time has come to quit driving it and get it fixed before it turns into a boat anchor.

 

my daily get to worker is a 2005 chevy avalanche which at 150,000 developed a coolant leak into the engine (white foam under filler cap and milky on end of dipstick). also, much antifreeze was comming out of tailpipe. seems the 4.7s were prone to cracks in the heads. not having the money at the time for major repairs, i dumped a can of Barsleak into the
coolant figured what the heck bottoms up, amazingly, water stopped coming out of the tailpipe and after an oil change or two no more foam under filler cap. Its not the right way, but the truck turned 225,000 and running perfect with no side effects. i would do a Barsleah commercial and feel good about it.