An Alfa's head gasket has a tough job. It keeps oil, coolant, and the combustion chambers separate under a broad range of conditions. It has a relatively small contact area, consisting of several pieces of different materials, and is held in place by relatively long, flexible head studs. The surprise is that it works at all!

A head gasket can fail in any one of several ways. External loss of fluid, while messy and annoying, is rarely so bad as to threaten major engine damage so long as the fluid in question is kept topped up. Contamination of either coolant or oil, however, will compromise engine cooling or lubrication and will result in catastrophic engine failure.Oil in the coolant usually shows up as an oily film, gradually blending into cloudy goo that degenerates into thick brown sludge. Coolant in the oil can show up on the dipstick or in the bottom of the sump when you first pull the drain plug. When heated and blended with oil it will appear as chocolate milk-shake gunk in the valve cover and crankcase breather, or on the bottom of the oil cap.

Meanwhile, the oil itself will be thicker, cloudier, and creamier than usual. Combustion leaking into the cooling system may show up as bubbling in the radiator, sometimes smelling of exhaust gas and causing high radiator pressure. Coolant leaking into a combustion chamber can show up as cloudy white exhaust smoke (more than normal for current weather conditions) which is actually steam from "burning" coolant. Antifreeze has a peculiar odor when burnt and may sting the eyes and nose. In extreme cases, coolant may actually puddle in the exhaust system. Persistent loss of coolant with no apparent external leak is another clue. Sometimes pulling the spark plugs will allow you to see coolant in the cylinders. Pressurizing the radiator may dramatize the leak.

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