Greetings,fellow 944 owners!

Guest · Aug 21, 2006

I'm new to the PCGB forums,so just getting the formalities out of the way first.

I'm on my second 944 now (S2) after owning an early dash pastel beige Lux .( a part of me wishes I'd never sold it...)

Now the bad news... I bought an S2 in October last year which has developed a coolant weep between the cylinder head and the block,towards the rear of the engine,on the manifold side. Fortunately,the oil and coolant are not mixing. Am I right in assuming this is potential head gasket failure?

If anyone has had experience of this or similiar issues, advice would be much appreciated. Cheers!

Edited to Add : Head gasket had not actually failed,but was suffering corrosion at the bottom left corner (looking at engine from above) which was causing the coolant leak from the water jacket.
Hopefully this might help other people searching the forum for mysterious 944 coolant leaks. (with no puddles!)[

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Guest · Aug 21, 2006

Welcome to the board. Good luck with the coolant leak and do make sure it isn't something minor, like a the hose that takes warm coolant to the heater isn't split and spraying onto the block (wild guess not really familiar with S2's but its worth checking all posibilities).

944turboS · Aug 21, 2006

Welcome to the forum, there are a lot of knowledgable people here that will gladly help in most situations.
Your symptoms do sound like a head gasket to me but as Steve says check all the hoses etc. first before you resort to a head gasket replacement..

John Sims · Aug 21, 2006

Hi and welcome to the forum.

I would think about getting a pressure test done on your coolant system. This is the best way to find water leaks and may well demonstrate a dodgy hose.

Andy Duncan · Aug 21, 2006

There is an oil/water heat exchanger in the 944's on the engine block under the exhaust manifold. This unit is a universal housing (called cooler unit) that supports the oil filter, oil pressure sender, oil pressure relief valve and feed and return oil pipes to the oil cooler. It has a steel and rubber main gasket and two O Rings inside the unit. These are prone to leaking, either water or oil or both. They can also fail mixing oil and water giving the symptoms of a head gasket failure. Its at the front end of the engine but any leak and in particular on 944, can travel.

Have a look at this first before you embark on a head gasket replacement (compression check also). How is the cars performance!

The cooler unit housing is protected by two heat shields so its hard to see from above. Take the nearside wheel off and have a look from under the wheel arch.

andy duncan

sawood12 · Aug 21, 2006

The oil filter actually screws into the water/oil heat exchanger so you can trace it from there. You can also see it from the drivers side wheelarch. I had an oil leak from this unit which dripped oil down the block and off the lower balance shaft housing making it look like the oil leak was coming from the balance shaft housing seal. So it's worth bearing this in mind if you suspect an oil leak from the balance shaft housing gasket.

Guest · Aug 21, 2006

Thanks for the prompt replies,much appreciated everyone.

Unfortunately, the leak is definately from the head gasket area,at the very back of the head,near the bulkhead..
I checked the car after a run,and the green coolant was visibly leaking from this area and had run down the block , leaving a white residue where it dried

It drips off the block straight onto the hot exhaust, hence no puddle! [

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Not a huge leak,but I was having to top up coolant regularly (once a fortnight) or it would drop below the minimum mark. I was also keeping a close eye on the dipstick for oil/coolant mixing.
There is no loss of performance at all,and the car does not overheat,and has used not a drop of oil in the 6k I've owned it, but it surely is only a matter of time before the gasket blows properly.

The car was pressure tested at my indy,and all hoses were watertight, no leaks.
I was completely baffled by the coolant loss after this,until I discovered it was leaking from the head and evaporating on the exhaust

Anyway,it's going back into Brian Miller's in Edinburgh in September,good excuse to inspect & refurbish the head at the same time if needed.

Any ideas as to typical head gasket cost on an S2 from a Porsche indy?

First major issue in 7 yrs of 944 ownership,so can't really complain![

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Cheers J

Diver944 · Aug 22, 2006

Welcome to the forum Hab - I like your philosophical approach after 7 trouble free years [

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According to their websites, Hartech charge £665 for an S2 head gasket and JZmachtech charge £1000 so I think you'll be somewhere in there.

Guest · Aug 23, 2006

Thanks Diver, good to find a decent UK 944 board.
To the costs,Ouch! Though thankfully I'd budgeted for about £1k

Think our paths have crossed before on the PH board,maybe?

Cheers J