Gas in engine coolant?

1999 TOYOTA CAMRY
340,000 MILES • 2.2L • 4 CYL • 2WD • AUTOMATIC
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DAVID THUNE
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  • 1 POST
Check oil/water several times a week.
Recently I noticed reservoir coolant was low with a funny discolored mixture on bottom. Took reservoir out and dumped contents. It had a very strong gas smell to it. Immediate thought was head gasket, but car doesn't smoke, has full power without a hesitation at all, nothing in oil (not milky) or transmission mission fluid and still maintains excellent gas MPG. Recently used Chevron fuel system cleaner in probably in a little over concentrated manner.
Any thoughts?
Jan 29, 2023 at 9:58 PM
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BORIS K
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  • 836 POSTS
Hello,

A fuel smell in coolant is a good indicator of a blown cylinder head gasket, a warped head, or a combination. With the engine running, remove the radiator cap (but only when the car is cool!) and see if you observe any gas bubbling in the coolant.

Best to carry out a carbon monoxide test for the cooling system using a chemical block tester.

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/head-gasket-blown-test

A good video:
https://youtu.be/x2f5qEhaFdk

Cheers, Boris
Jan 30, 2023 at 9:22 AM