had a coolant leak develope at timing chain cover on my oldsmobile v-6 3.4 litre.the engine was a rebuilt with about 8000 miles on it.the local garage I took it to did a hydrocarbon test on it and it failed.they said it would blow gaskets all the time because of high presure due to a defect in the engine someplace and it would be costly to tear the engine down to find the problem. What do I do now ? The last owner had the rebuild done so there is no warranty. How can they tell this from a hydrocarbon test.
it sounds like your explanation is a little vague. have you summarized it?
the hydrocarbon test checks for the presence of exhaust gas in the antifreeze.
if there is exhaust in the antifreeze it most probably almost definitely indicates a blown head gasket.
With an engine this new, if it has hydrocarbons in the engine coolant, it may fix it if the cylinder heads, and intake manifold bolts were re-torqued. On some engines, this is recommended after a number of miles. Even if not recommended, it couldn’t hurt, could it?
I would get a second opinion, from another shop, regardless.
to hellokit from seedyman…thanks for the info. I,ll give it a try.