Just wondering if the above is a warning sign on possible head gasket issues? No overheating or loss of power, just what looks like water mixed in around the oil on the filler. Not used to the 1.4 engine, so opinions welcome please.

Cheers

I had this on my old 1.4mpi silverline

Turned out it was the thermostat housing that had disintegrated and was letting small amounts of coolant into the oil, hence the grunge on the oil filler cap

I had this on my old 1.4mpi silverline

Turned out it was the thermostat housing that had disintegrated and was letting small amounts of coolant into the oil, hence the grunge on the oil filler cap

I have just replaced the housing, thermostat and temperature sensor on my MPI because it had disintegrated and the thermostat was stuck open so the car rarely got up to working temperature unless in traffic. Coolant flushed, new expansion tank and thermostat housing etc.. and all seems fine now so if you aren't noticing any other signs of head gasket trouble such as water coming out the exhaust which is most common with these more so than contaminated coolant, check your thermostat housing first. My car now gets up to working temperature within 5 minutes and stays there which is nice!

Also, if you are doing shorter journeys, say 10 to 15 minutes, than condensation under the oil cap is common and nothing to worry about especially with the colder weather.

Edited 9 February, 201214 yr by scooter1556

It is common on these engines yes. Just as it was on the Felicia 1.3 (which the 1.4 is based on). Especially when doing just short journeys. Wipe off the mayo and go for a really really good run. Should sort it out.

However it is still worth checking for dropping coolant levels and other possible places for water to leak into the engine/oil.

Phil

They will do it and it might not mean a new head gasket.....but Tech1e did an info post to a reply and to check if you have the newer gasket you have to look at where it is exposed...it should say Tremac????......not 100%....but ask him??......

Turned out it was the thermostat housing that had disintegrated and was letting small amounts of coolant into the oil, hence the grunge on the oil filler cap

A knackered thermostat will mean the engine will take ages to get up to temperature, especially in cold conditions, and this can lead to an increase in condensation in the engine as it never boils it off. The knackered thermostat is so common it is something to look out for though.

Another potential cause I have seen mentioned is lack of an adequate seal between plastic engine cover and rocker cover, for which it's probably best to bin the plastic cover (10mm nuts hidden under the badge and another small cover then pull off) and use the oil cap stored under the cover instead.

As I understand the state of play, there is a part of the headgasket visible front right of the engine (as you face it). If it says "temac" or "t" you have an improved headgasket. You may need to clean up accumulation of muck and oil to read this. Even if it is a temac one, from Tech1e's posts, I understand a bulletin was put out stating to replace non-temac hg's, and for temac ones to tighten the head bolts up further.

Mine has the same issue and seems to be a case of topping up the coolant a little every few hundred miles. I suspect I need to get round to replacing the HG at some point in the future.

Edited 9 February, 201214 yr by anewman