Soaked spark plug

[james333]

Hey all, im a bit of an outsider as i have an audi s3 but i view this forum a lot and get so much good info from it, i was wondering if anyone could verify my suspision of a blown head gasket, the car ('51 s3 with amk engine) has been stuttering when it comes on boost for a while so i decided to change the plugs, when i got round to doing it, the plug in cylinder #1 was soaked, i had a quick sniff and am pretty sure it was antifreeze and definitley not petrol. Im guessing, but want to check that its my head gasket, surely that or a crack in the head? is there any other gaskets on a 20v head that would allow water into either the cylinder or valve throats which in turn would run into the cylinder???

My coolant level light has come on twice now too so i have had to top it up a bit each time. The car will now only run on 3 and is therefore un driveable. Any input would be hugely apreciated as i cant seem to get any info on the audi forums

thanks for your time to read this, james

 

[Ricardo_Smooth]

get a full leakdown test done mate, will tell you if there is a Hg problem for sure then

 

[james333]

thanks for the quick reply but please excuse my ignorance, what is that? is it somthing to do with pressurising the coolant system?? thanks

 

[Ricardo_Smooth]

check this link out, it reveals all http://www.geocities.com/dsmgrrrl/FAQs/leakdown.htm#WhatIs

 

[Adam R]

thanks for the quick reply but please excuse my ignorance, what is that? is it somthing to do with pressurising the coolant system?? thanks

a compression test will also see if its the HG
basically its a device that screws in to where the spark plug sits, then you crank the engine manually. the pressure should rise to a certain level (when at the top of its stroke) then fall (as its going down).

ignore exhaust and intake strokes as valves are open.

a leak down test is where the cylinder chambers are pressurised with air then the pressure should be held. if this is not the case and 1 cyl leaks you will know about it as the readings will drop off.

 

[dave-20vt]

u sure its water n not oil lol. nasty then.

 

[Importcupra]

any white stuff on the oil cap or oil in the coolant?

 

[Black TDI Turbo]

Go and by a head gasket tester, there about £15 and all you do is put some of the solution into the clear plastic tube, push it into the top of the coolant bottle, then suck the air out with the sucker on the top, if it turns green then it means there is exhaust fumes present in the coolant, hence head gasket gone. Compression test is also the other easiest one and cylinder leakage test. Check make sure you dont have and leaks under the car aswell. If the car only runs on 3 cylinders, start it up and disconnect each coil pack. This will determine exactly which cylinder is at fault. You'll know which one it is because the engine will run the same as it is now and if not it will run even worse lol.