Hi guys. Sorry to bother again, but you helped out last time & it's worth a shot. I'll try and be as detailed as I can.

Vehicle: 1998 Freelander 2.0TD (L-Series Rover engine)

A few months back I mashed the Oil Cooler, which resulted in coolant/oil mixing up.

See thread:
http://www.landyzone.co.uk/lz/f9/massive-oil-coolant-mix-after-replacing-thermostat-109336.html

Problem was solved by getting a new Oil Cooler from a friendly scrap yard in Birmingham.

Since then, I've been running the Freelander on plain water as bits of oil run through the cooling system & I clean out the expansion tank of gobs of oil. My plan was to flush & replace with coolant during Autumn.

Wife set off in the Freelander yesterday. I checked the levels before she went. Power steering fluid needed topping up (there's been a leak for months) and the water reservoir was dry. I topped up. Didn't seem to be going down.

The coolant cap had a spring in it, which pinged off. I tried to jam it all together without the spring & hoped for the best.

Anyway, Charlotte reports that she had to stop due to smoke coming from the engine bay. Turns out there was no water again. A passing Van Man topped up from his drinks bottle & she limped off to her mate's house (was nearest)

When she got to the house, she said she heard a "nasty noise" from the engine. There was very little power she said.

She waited for the engine to cool & started her up again. Sounded normal but she didn't want to drive it.

I went up to see her.

I topped up the water (empty again) and ran the engine. The expansion tank emptied. I topped up again, figuring the system was bone dry & needed a top up. This happened twice more. Could not see anything leaking on the floor.

On a hunch I checked the oil level. The oil was 3 times over full on the dipstick & looked like the water was in the sump. :doh:

After swearing a lot & turned the engine off before it got a chance to get any warmer.

Some friends have offered the following suggestions:

1) Cracked cylinder head
or
2) Head Gasket failure

I've had the following suggested:

1) Compression Test to check
or
2) Remove cylinder head & have it pressure tested
or
3) Torch it (not keen on this one...)

Before going any further I thought I'd turn to you guys first.

Could it be anything other that Head/Head Gasket? I'd rather step through this as I have a few days off before work.

If it is the Head, can this be removed while the engine is in the car? I have only standard DIY tools available.

Sounds like HGF to me.
L series head gasket can fail after time if the coolant is not upto the correct spec. It corrodes the gasket away, admittedly the usual failure is coolant/bore mixing resulting in coolant in the bores and a pressurised cooling system. If you plan on doing it yourself get the head tested for cracks while its off.

Another random possibility is that your new oil cooler has failed but that is unlikely.

Head removal is an easy job to do in the car, the head cannot be skimmed but this engine doesnt usually require it. The head bolts can also be re-used if they have not exceeded a stretched length (recorded in haynes and RAVE).

I have a RAVE manual & it does cover the steps well. Just reads like brain surgery when all I'm used to is simple unbolt/replace jobs.

Thanks for the encouraging words about Head removel in situ. Might take this opportunity to give the engine a sort out.

Any suggestions of anything else to be looking for while replacing Head Gasket? I read about removing timing belt, so I might as well replace stuff like that. It's done over 100,000 miles with a largely unknown service history.

I'm going to tow it back home from Whitstable tomorrow. I should be able to start working on it by Sunday.

Stupid question here: What's a bore? I'm rubbish at technical terms.

Timing belt, fuel pump belts and tensioners replacement would be ideal. Clean inlet manifold and EGR, after assembly flush cooling system and refill with correct OAT coolant only. 5ont forget new oil and filter, I would be tempted to put cheap oil in for 20 miles then replace it, to help clean out the crap.
A bore is a machined void manufactured into the engine cylinder block within which the piston moves.