Hey guys. Here's the background. My 7m-ge had a bhg that I suspect happened shortly after I got it. I drove through the winter without problems and when it warmer up in the spring I had overheating problems. Replaced everything I thought could be a cause and ended up doing the hg. Used a fel-pro gasket with ARP bolts torqued to 90 ft. Lbs. I ran it for a minute and changed the oil when I was done. That was in August I've been on it ever since and it has ran perfect! Under my oil cap a few weeks ago I noticed just a little bit of milkshake. Nothing on the cam though. Today I checked and there's enough so you can't miss it. I'm fearing a bhg but its cunning perfect. Thermostat stays put, doesn't miss. Blows a decent amour of white smoke on these cold mornings but its completely gone when up to temp. Im due for the first oil change since the job and I'm thinking ill just see what happens with fresh oil. Is it just condensation? Or am I about to have a repeat of that nightmare repair?
Milkshake: BHG or winter?
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Btw there is still no milkshake on the cam. Strictly up under the oil cap. P.s. sorry for the typos. Its hard to type on here from a phone because the zoom is messed up
Could be from the cold and if there was left over water on the inside of the engine. If the oil comes out brown then id start to worry.
Happen to have a crack in the breather tube on the side of the valve cover or any other possible sources for a vacuum leak that could allow cool, moist air into the crankcase/valve cover? Check those first, then look for signs of milkshake on the dipstick or oil in the coolant. If you have the latter two... BHG.
This happens if you don't let the car thoroughly warm up, and to some degree it's just the winter. You will get condensation in the engine if there's any humidity around, particularly if the temperature has just dropped. Making sure that the car always warms up fully will reduce this, as will ensuring that your PCV system is properly functioning.
Be more aware of potential BHG symptoms, but this alone isn't enough to worry that much about.
Be more aware of potential BHG symptoms, but this alone isn't enough to worry that much about.
Glad to hear this. Well, there wasn't any water in the oil even when I did the hg. It was just overheating. So that shouldn't be it. However, it has dropped like 30 degrees since I did it and although I warm it up, its certainly not. Complete warm up. I usually run it until the idle drops minimum or sometimes till the gauge starts moving. Now and then I'm inside or whatever and it gets pretty warm. I did the first oil change since the job yesterday and the oil looked totally normal compared to any other change I've done. I had valvaline conventional 10w30 in it for summer and just switch to valvaline conventional 5w30 for winter. I did my valve cover seals with the hg, but I did notice that the breather or whatever it is (that metal pipe with rubber sleeves on the ends the goes to both valve covers and the throttle body) is almost loose. Runs perfect but might be the moisture leak. Ill have to check for oil in the coolant.
Thanks for all the input guys. I've feeling better and better about this now. Haha. That bhg repair is something I only really want to do once.
Thanks for all the input guys. I've feeling better and better about this now. Haha. That bhg repair is something I only really want to do once.
Wipe off any goo under the oil cap and take it for a good 30 - 45 minute drive and see if it is there after that. If you're really concerned, you can crack the drain plug after it's been sitting for a few hours and see if you get water or oil out first (coolant/water will sink to the bottom of the oil pan). If you're not seeing any milkshake on the dipstick or engine temp problems, it's likely just the condensation from the combination of cold winter and warming engine (but not enough to burn it all off 
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)That's a good idea. I think what I'm going to do is drive it until summer if it keeps running like it does. Then if all seems well ill know its fine and probably even throw some $ into it. If not, mhg I guess. Or at least a victor. Last time I didn't notice temp problems until spring so I think I should be fine. At least until then.
As long as you don't see any evidence of it at all in the crank case you should be ok to drive it. Just be sure because it doesn't take much at all to etch the bearings and then you need to refresh the bottom end instead of just doing a head gasket.