When A Half Gallon Of Coolant Comes Out The Right Side Exhaust....

...that’s a blown head gasket?

 

Or the head or block.

Sure it wasn't just some water in the muffler?

 

How well does the engine run (if at all)? It could be an intake manifold leaking into the combustion chamber, then out the exhaust valve.
-Donny

 

I’ve been struggling for a couple days to get it to run decent. I got it running well in the garage today but as soon as I drove it it kept getting worse. I last time I got it started was when it puked coolant. Got towed a mile home.

 

Green death.
Pretty sure you'll have to at least pull the intake to know for sure.
If not obvious you'll have to dig deeper.
I had an f-head that ran fine till the t-stat opened, then it steamed out the tailpipe. Crack in block between #2&3 cylinders.
How do the plugs look on that side?

 

Probably a blown head gasket, especially since it seems to have occurred suddenly.

Always check the least possible problems first. Pull the heads and take a look. A new gasket set is not expensive and that may be all your problem is.

 

I changed the plugs today. They were all dark but not fouled.
Looks like rain. for the next few days here so I’ll be ripping into it.

 

I have a head gasket set on the shelf but I think it’s for my ‘83 Buick 231. Y’all think they’re the same as the Dauntless’?

 

I would look up part numbers. The 225's have a pressurized oil passage to the rocker shafts the 231 don't.

 

Rock lists them as the same. I'm not warm and fuzzy about it.
STD bore 231 is .050 over the dauntless. There's discussion about modern head gaskets being thicker, leading to pushrod length issues.

 

Interesting. Online discussion? Here?

 

You can always compare the old gasket to the new in terms of passages. The thickness might be more of a challenge but keep the old one obviously and compare it to whatever you are replacing with.

 

I'm not sure about the gasket thickness issue being discussed on this site but have read it elsewhere. The FelPro gaskets are notably thicker than originals ( not really a FelPro fan here of late with my rear main issues)
Comp cams have a smaller base circle compounding the issue. You'll just have to check the preload, address the pushrod length if it's an issue.

 

You mean like blast the end of my pushrods with the MIG? Build up a little extra steel thickness.

 

humm I see a miss

 

Hopefully it's just a bad intake gasket where the exhaust is near the coolant passages.

 

Intake gasket that side was in tact.



Moving photos and such to my build thread. I ordered gaskets and cam/lifters. Creep. Thanks everyone for the input.

 

you know . working on a jeep engine . is so much easier with the fenders off
carry on

 

Yep, I remove the fender on my Jeeps for a lot of things, such as when I need to to change fuel pumps, master cylinders, or steering boxes. Beats heck out of trying to be a contorsionist, I just don't bend as well as I used to.