Greetings to all. I've got a 1993 Honda Civic LX D15B7 5 speed. The car ran hot a few times. It was low on water. I could not find the leak or evidence of one. The car started fine and ran good. Before I could perform some tests, I noticed a new symptom. A 10 to 20 second cylinder miss on warm start-ups. I was pretty sure it was a leaky head gasket. I left home and bought a gasket set. I turnd into my driveway and the engine started missing on multiple cylinders. A hugh cloud of water vapor blew out of the tailpipe with a loud whoosh! The engine stopped. I'm replacing the blown headgasket and doing a valve job. I've found what looks like aluminum dust mixed with the coolant. I'm financially scared. Does anyone know whats disintergrating to make this dust? Don't hestate to tell me horrible news. Please, any and all ideas are welcome. Thanks all.

 

Has "stop-leak" ever been used in it? Some stop-leak is aluminum based.

 

D15B7 heads are made from aluminum (I'm pretty sure)
Also, head gaskets are made from metal. Might also be aluminum.

 

I did use a copper based stop leak product 7 or 8 years ago. It didn't fix the leak. The radiator had to be replaced. The coolant has been flushed several times since with no stop leak added. I plan to perform a complete system flush when I finish engine reassembly. I should use a magnet on the dust to determine alum. or steel. Knowing my luck, its from the oil & water pumps, piston skirts, or main bearings. Today I'm finishing head bolt hole and cylinder clean out. I'll add the magnet test to the agenda. Thanks for your patience to a cornfused, old, legless, domestic engine mechanic.

 

Maybe if the oil or water pump grenaded somehow....otherwise, nothing would make metal bits large enough to see. Cylinder lining or piston ring wear would make shavings so small they would be impossible to see.