TheGreatPunanski wrote:I remember before purchasing my 07 Liberty GT TBSTI, had the Mechanic go over everything under the car, inside engine bay and testing clutch and gearbox. Everything was ok.
It was until I dug deep in the forums and came across 'Head Gasket issues'.. checked my coolant overflow tank and what do you know.. frothing/bubbly and smell of exhaust fumes.. very expensive to repair.
Strange thing was my car ran normal, no signs of overheating and temp gauge was sitting halfway..
Just something to keep in mind before buying these cars..
The fact that a mechanic failed to find this is a worry. Checking the condition of fluids is an absolute basic check that must be done in any inspection (and you should be doing it every time you fill the car with fuel).
Not that unusual that you weren't seeing the symptoms - the problem starts small, and gets bigger over time (there's also the issue of stock temp guages basically having three readings - cold, normal and "too hot, damage already caused", with nothing worth speaking of in between. You mentioned that repairs were expensive - given the engine wasn't overheating, you shouldn't have done much damage, what exactly was done to fix the car (and please tell me the same mechanic who gave the car a good bill of health initially wasn't the one who did the work...)?