Condensation or head gasket?

Eagle

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 3, 2008
Location
Stokesdale
Have a 89 jeep 4.2. Have only been driving it to and from the gym which is 2 miles away for the last month. Checked the oil today and there was just a slight bit of milky ness at the very end of the stick. The antifreeze was full and looked fine. Could it be driving it the short distance in the colder weather? Or do I have bigger issues starting to show? Thank you for any thoughts and replies.
 
Eagle said:
Have a 89 jeep 4.2. Have only been driving it to and from the gym which is 2 miles away for the last month. Checked the oil today and there was just a slight bit of milky ness at the very end of the stick. The antifreeze was full and looked fine. Could it be driving it the short distance in the colder weather? Or do I have bigger issues starting to show? Thank you for any thoughts and replies.
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Probably condensation. Go get some cheap Wal-Mart oil and change it. Drive it more then a couple miles to get to full temperature for a week or so and the check the oil and report back.
 
I Agree with condensation. Guess you know that 2 mile trip is filling your crankcase with water! It's Not just getting engine temp up to operating range, But driving 10 miles or so, for the temp to dry out the condensation from cold start up. Notice How much water will drip out the tail pipe? I had a Cherokee once & drove it to work & back every day, 1 mile each way. I did drive After work enough to keep it cleaned out, but my muffler rusted out in 20K miles.
 
how does the oil cap look? Condensation can also accumulate on/under the oil cap. it often looks like a light brown milky "goo" or puddy.
 
So I changed the oil and probably put 1000 miles on the jeep. Checked the oil every couple days no signs of water in it. Then tonight I check it and it is milky again. Wipe the stick a few times and the water is gone. Antifreeze is not low at all and looks perfectly fine. So would I be correct to assume at this point its a head gasket or cracked head even if the antifreeze is good? Hasn't over heated and has good oil pressure even when warm. Thanks for any replies
 
it's condensation.
 
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