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Is it normal for air to flow out of the oil filler neck while the engine is running? That's what mine is doing right now.

I Finally got around to addressing the recurring leak at the base of the oil filler neck (o-ring had a huge chunk taken out of it), and began wondering why oil was coming out of there to begin with. That shouldn't be pressurized, should it?

I have been noticing that my coolant has been looking a little dark (though that is most likely my imagination), and it seems to sip a little bit of coolant along with spitting a bunch into the overflow tank.

Could this be HG related? If so, about how much would it be for all the gaskets and whatnot to fix it? Is it possible to fix with the engine still in the car? I don't have an engine hoist or stand, so removing the whole engine is out of the question.

yes, I believe it is normal for air to flow out of the oil filler neck. I can feel puffs of air when I put my hand over it. As for your coolant, it wouldnt be looking dark, I would have spots on it like oil and water, coolant and oil dont mix.

Headgaskets are about 30 dollars each.

You can also get test kits for headgasket related problems. I think they test for hydrocarbons in the coolant and ethylene glycol in the oil. You can also look at the oil and see if it's milky. Gorilla snot we call it.

-Michael

take it to a shop that has emissions sniffing equipment and have them sniff the radiator which probably means an exhaust leak into the coolant.

The point of the PCV system is to vent that air back into the intake.

As the engine moves, the pistons move, and they move air inside the case. In order to relieve pressure in the system, the pressure is vented into the intake manifold (effectively drawing a vacuum on the crank case).

So, to feel air puffing from the oil filler neck, totally fine. You shouldn't drive around without an oil cap though, that's why there is an o-ring there.

If you smell EXHAUST from the oil fill neck, THEN you have a piston problem (cracked ringland, broken ring, cracked piston head, etc.)

When you blow a headgasket, the coolant looks milky, and you'll see coolant in your oil too.

Your leak is probably just a leak. It happens in older cars. Inspect the engine bay for wetness from a potential leak.

Okay. Good.

Thanks a ton. Everything looks the correct color, and has for the last several oil changes.

The only this that I'm somewhat concerned about now is the coolant. It doesn't seem to leak any, but the system seems to love to push some into the overflow tank and not suck it back up. My overflow tank is already ~2 inches above the top line, and the coolant fill reservoir is ~1.5-2" below the cap.

Is the engine stone cold when you're checking the level?

Generally fully cold or close to it.

I take that warning about escaping steam very seriously (for some odd reason, I don't like faces full of steam).

Also, my idle is a bit high (~1250) and is only seems to pull ~8.5 inHg according to my Autometer boost/vac gauge.

Hm. I don't see how it could do that then... You're sure the cap is in good shape?

Do you trust your gauge?

I don't entirely trust the gauge. I was planning on switching to copper tubing and tapping in at a different spot.

I'll probably replace the cap, since they're cheap. It is fairly new (replaced a few months before I bought the car).

Can you run my scantool? Maybe its vacuum reading will help.

When you put the new cap on, lubricate the gaskets with coolant just before installing.

You may have a blockage that's causing the odd problem your having.