sirtokesalot

ok a friend of mine has a scion xa. yesterday the serpentine belt let go on it and he did not realize it happened until the car began to blow clouds of steam out the back. i went out to go see what i could do and give him a ride. we had it towed to my house. i drained the oil to check and see if coolant had got into the oil. no coolant in the oil. i also pulled each spark plug and looked in the cylinders for coolant. plugs and cylinders were dry no signs of coolant. so it appears the coolant just pukes itself out the overflow. it got so hot the radiator cap melted to the top of the radiator. so we topped off the coolant and added new oil put a new belt on and started it up. it runs still I'm amazed at this point. we took it for a drive and it has a hesitation now. what could have been damaged from overheating this engine? it seems like it has the power it only hesitates when your taking off from a stop otherwise it drives normally. there is no steam coming from the exhaust though it did look like it might have been burning a slight bit of oil now. there was a slight hint of blue smoke when u rev it but not much.

sirtokesalot

well he's been driving the car since this happened now he says its been getting better but the hesitation is still there. on saturday he's gonna stop by again and were gonna do a compression check. reason for not doing it yesterday is i dont own a compression tester i had to borrow one from another friend.

sirtokesalot

i tihnk its kinda funny i got answers quicker form a computer tech support forum than from a forum meant for this car.

LSBoogie

Hot enough to melt the cap could equal head gasket damage. Recheck for oil in the coolant. When the engine is cold, only when cold, take the rafiator cap off and start the car. Look for bubbles in the radiator. Pick up a cheap carbon detector tool (tests for exhaust gas in the coolant). Or..compression test.lol. based on description, I would expect one cylinder bleeding down. Good luck.

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donc043

I overheated my old Celica a few years back & thought I blew the motor it ran so rough. 4 New Plugs & I got another 60,000 before the frame broke. It was a 74. I thought my brother was kidding when he said new plugs, but for a couple of bucks it is worth a try?

Don

Jan06xB

normally the radiator cap never comes off, keep checking the overflow bottle as it heats up and cools down it will draw in more coolant and expel more air trapped in the engine cooling system. You should not be seeing blue smoke in the exhaust ever. You probably cooked the engine rings and probably the valves seals.

didn't he see any warning lights go on the dash like the high temperature or the alternator light?

sirtokesalot

he's not the brightest bulb in the box but hey not everyone is. his words when i got there was i thoght i could make it to your house. he saw the lights and took it as a sign to have me look at it.

jpfxB

My vote is blown head gasket. Have it professionally checked