Technical Head Gasket Failed???

[07Ducato]

Hi All

Had my self converted camper a 2007 2.3 Fiat Ducato Maxi now for eighteen months and on Friday van started up as normal but was smoking excessively, checked all fluids and found the expansion bottle empty, refilled water bottle and took for a quick spin to get it up to temp to check for any water leaks but none found

Parked up and left for approx. an hour then rechecked water level and the expansion bottle was empty, checked oil level and the level on the dipstick had gone up So looks like the Head gasket has blown

So took it to a friends garage and started to strip it down, got the head off but can't see any damage to the gasket So looks like I've just wasted about six hours stripping everything out

So i'm after any ideas/your thoughts on how else the water has got to the oil sump?

Any help would be greatly appreciated

Thanks
Carl

 

[moodrater]

If theres water in the sump the oil will be emulsified. Oil level is always higher when parked up for a long period as the oil drains down into the sump.

If there is water in the sump I'd be looking at your oil cooler first as its a lot easier to check than a headgasket.

 

[07Ducato]

Looks like the problem is the EGR heat exchanger which is the culprit!!! Just going to pressure test it now with water. Looking at the part the date stamp on it is 2011 so its already been changed before!

Does anybody know if this is a common problem as it looks like its failed twice now on this van!!!