IH C200 Engine Problems: Advise Requested

[MossRoad]

I have a late 70's International Harvestor 2500B tractor loader. It has a C200 engine(4 cylinder gas). I bought it used about 15 years ago with the intention of beating it to death while spending as little as possible on repairs. If it died, we would just scrap it. We more than got our money's worth out of it.

It was in pretty bad shape when I garaged it almost 2 years ago with the intention of getting rid of it in the spring. So, one thing led to another and two springs have come and gone and it is still in the garage. I want it out so the wife can garage her car for the winter.

I haven't attempted to start it, because I wanted to check all the fluids and such. When I went to check the oil, uh-oh! The oil looks like chocolate milk or creamed coffee. I drained it and it all looks that way, top to bottom. It smells and feels like oil, but is a light brown and milky in appearance. Is this an indication of moisture in the oil from sitting too long or is it an indication of a cracked block? The dipstick was still right on the full line like I left it.

Any suggestions as to what I should check first? Any help would be appreciated.

 

[DavidJ]

Sounds like it went through some freeze/thaw cycles. I would drain it and fill it with clean oil, crank it and let it idle till warm then shut it down and drain/fill it again. I'd replace the filter both times.

 

[CarbyRepair]

sounds like antifreeze has leaked past the o rings at the bottom of the sleeves. Only way to fix this is to rebuild the engine (unless you tear the whole thing apart and just replace the rings and o rings). Anyway, you do have water or antifreeze in the oil.............

 

[normde2001]

If the oil is at the correct level, as you say, I would check the coolant level. I don't think you can leak very much coolant into the crankcase without raising the oil level and lowering the coolant level. I would change the oil, crank it, warm it up, change it again and move on to something else. It doesn't take very much condensation to change the color of your oil.

 

[art]

I thought off the top of my head they might be dry sleeved but not wet.

 

[RickB]

The C200 is not sleeved at all. The milky oil is most likely condensation. Antifreeze would more than likely collect at the bottom of the pan due to its larger difference in specific gravity to oil as compared to plain water. If the coolant level is as you left it and has adequate freeze protection, you should be good to go with an oil and filter change or two. PS your transmission/rear axle/hydraulics are probably just as bad.

 

[Taylortractornut]

Moss Road what do you want for the tractor . What type transmission and does it have any attachments. I need another tractor now that I can afford one lol.

 

[MossRoad]

The tractor is an International 2500B tractor loader. 4 cylinder IH C200 gas engine. It has an HST tranny with hi and low range. 3pt hitch with draft control. Full cab with broken windows. Bad rubber on all 4 corners, milky oil and low coolant level. Bearings for FEL lift arms are shot, too(goes by the name "LUCKY" /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif, remember that joke). I bought it very used around 1990 and have contributed to its neglected state. I have a beat up 5' brush hog and a 6' box blade. When it was running, it was very powerful. It has over-sized lift cylinders and I think the bucket is somewhere between 1/2 and 3/4 yards. It served its purpose of excavating a driveway and mowing our tree farm until it couldn't fit down the rows any more. It has been sitting in my garage for over two years. I would like to fix it up and keep it, but I have no real use for it since I got my Power Trac. If I could get it running well for under $1000.00, I'd keep it just for those rare occasions when you need a bigger hammer. It was very fun to drive. It is a low operator's platform. You have to step over the tunnel and you are sitting down between the rear tires pretty good. Nice and low, like I like it.

On suggestion of others, I have checked the coolant level and it is very low. This could suggest why the oil is milky /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif. Or it could just be a leaky hose. As it warms up this spring, I'll dig into it and see if it is economically repairable(to me at least). I have a full set of shop manuals for it, so all I have to do is get off my keister and get to it. Right now, my garage looks like Junkman's little brother. I'd take some pictures of the tractor if I could get in there. 4-5 weeks of ice fishing and then I should have the time to get in there and get it out.