over heating
 

hi, im new to this forum

i have a chrysler neon 2.0i W reg, resently it has been over heating i keep topping up the radiator with water, there seem to be water comin out of the exsorst pipe? could it be the head gasket? or something else you advise would be grateful!

many thanks
charlie.

Charlie, the water coming out of the exhaust pipe may simply be regular condensation. There are a couple ways to tell if you have a blown head gasket.
*One way is to look at the exhaust. If it is "smoking" and the color is nearly white, then smell it. If it smells sweet, (like coolant) then it's probably blown. This will only work if the gasket is blown out near a coolant passage. (since you say your coolant constantly runs low, this may be your issue.)
If the car is smoking and the smoke is blue-ish in color, and smells like burning oil, then it may be blown by an oil passage.


*The single best way, however, is to do a compression check. This is a compression gauge on the end of a hose that screws into a spark plug hole.
Check each cylinder, one at a time, cranking the engine until gauge reading stabilizes, (with spark disabled on other cylinders), record the reading.

All readings should be very close to each other. If one or two are significantly lower, then it's a good bet that you have a blown head gasket. If blown, it is most likely blown between two cylinders, as that is usually the gaskets weakest point. Then you will see a similar (and low) reading on two cylinders next to each other.

Best of luck with your car, and let us know what you find!!