probably already know the answer to

but

if the coolant in my coolant reservoir changes shades from a light translucent green to more of a dark murky green, in addition to the (fairly recent) presence of a noticable anti-freeze odor to the exhaust, does that indicate impending (or present) head gasket doom?

the oil seems to be fine, no change in color there (it's dark brown / black because I'm slightly overdue for an oil change)

it runs a little odd on its recommended 87 octane, clattering at certain combinations of throttle position and engine speed, but adding about as much 93 as is in the tank, or filling up on 89, makes it run pretty smooth, and I've been told that particular problem is probably spark knock... however, could this new evidence change that diagnosis?

I've put maybe 2000 miles on it in this condition and it hasn't really changed for better or worse ... actually the anti-freeze odor is kind of diminishing a little... final question: guesstimate how many miles I have left before I need to rebuild the engine or get a new car.

9/18/2005 6:22:16 PM

impossible to tell really

if it isnt overheating and you aren't losing coolant i wouldnt worry about it too much for now. at best do a compresion check or something to try and see if a head gasket is leaking

9/18/2005 6:38:07 PM