282K miles - Blown HG, what other PM? (1 Viewer)

[JDUBinCO]

Well it finally happened - Stopped for gas, checked the oil (like I do every fill up) and there's a little foam on the dipstick, foam on the oil cap, and a little wisp of steam escaping the oil fill hole. I think 282K is a pretty good run but its not done and I'm going to fix it and get it back on the road. 4,000 miles ago I did a complete oil seal job and tune up and it wasn't leaking a drop. I ran a scope down the cylinders when I did spark plugs and the pictures are a bit fuzzy, but the cylinders look pretty good. It never overheated.
Its always consumed oil, with the blue puff on start up, so I know I'll be doing valve seals while I have the head off. What else should I replace proactively or upgrade while I'm in there? Head studs? Timing chain?
I don't mind spending the money on quality parts but the garage is pretty cold and I want to be efficient while I'm in there. Any advice is appreciated!

 

[bhsdriller]

whatever your budget allows

 

[effjay80]

I can relate to the frozen garage. My annual maintenance program is waiting for non-arctic air to arrive in CO.

Good luck with the project.

 

[ZackR]

If this is not your only vehicle I'd really think hard about just pulling the engine to do the HG and other PM. All of the things that leak will be a lot easier to get to with it out. You'll also be able to access every cooling hose and vacuum line, even the rear heater lines if the transmission comes out at the same time.

I haven't pulled an engine before but others who have can chime in.

 

[JDUBinCO]

I don't have space in my garage for the engine hoist to maneuver. Temps are going to be below 0 and this needs to get fixed. Pulling the engine is pretty much a no-go. I have a loaner for a little while, and while I'd love to refresh the whole thing, I'm not going after pistons and crank unless the head removal reveals a problem. I might block off those rear heater lines. It doesn't get used much and I have other fish to fry.

What other PM does engine removal facilitate? Rear main is not leaking. Transmission is good.

 

[JDUBinCO]

whatever your budget allows

I'd like this to be under $2k. What do you recommend?
Every oil seal is basically new except I didn't touch the oil cooler. It already has new belts, big hoses, vacuum lines, radiator, distributor, plugs, plug seals, crank seal, oil pump seal, distributor o-ring, probably a few others I don't remember. The only place I get a drop of oil from is the power steering reservoir outlet pipe seeps a little.

 

[JDUBinCO]

This is what the inside of the cylinder looked like 4,000 miles ago. This cylinder had the brown hue. The rest were silver with similar cross hatching. I don't know if the brown was from the camera or actually reflected the condition in there. I guess we'll see!

 

[JDUBinCO]

Top of the piston. Not bad. I suspected some hot spots for poor burn. It needed new spark plugs when I took this picture. I think this was the #6 cylinder.

Edit: This picture is from 6 months ago.

 

[CharlieS]

Any chance you are just seeing condensation and it isn't a head gasket? Might be worth a couple more diagnostics before pulling it apart in 0 degree weather?

Might get away with just a head gasket and valve seals (and a few other things like throttle body, plenum, valve cover and manifold gaskets) and fluids? Should be possible to do it economically as long as the head and block don't need machine work. We did my son's disco v8 head gaskets recently for well under $1k.

 

[manofthewoods]

If this is not your only vehicle I'd really think hard about just pulling the engine to do the HG and other PM. All of the things that leak will be a lot easier to get to with it out. You'll also be able to access every cooling hose and vacuum line, even the rear heater lines if the transmission comes out at the same time.

I haven't pulled an engine before but others who have can chime in.

I thought exactly the same thing.
I have done it.
To be fair, the future anticipated use must be considered. If planning to sell soon, then no way..
My use case is/was basically having a new old beast.
I did my project while everything was working fine except a PHH that was leaking.
I loved the project, but it was summer!

 

[Saito]

Your #6 piston will be steam cleaned and look like this w/ a HG blowy:

 

[JDUBinCO]

I thought exactly the same thing.
I have done it.
To be fair, the future anticipated use must be considered. If planning to sell soon, then no way..
My use case is/was basically having a new old beast.
I did my project while everything was working fine except a PHH that was leaking.
I loved the project, but it was summer!

PHH was bypassed long ago with a long stretch of Gates in a Gates sleeve.
Its a keeper. I have teenage kids and I don't really care that much for most new cars. As long as one of the kids doesn't wad it up, the LX stays.

 

[JDUBinCO]

Your #6 piston will be steam cleaned and look like this w/ a HG blowy:
View attachment 3529727

View attachment 3529728

I'll check it out before I dig too far. The posted pic was from 6 months ago.

 

[TXMeatball]

Oil cap can get milky from condensation when driving a lot of short distances (engine not getting up to temp). What you're saying doesn't really scream blown HG. Losing any coolant? Easiest is to just change the oil and check that for now.

 

[JDUBinCO]

Oil cap can get milky from condensation when driving a lot of short distances (engine not getting up to temp). What you're saying doesn't really scream blown HG. Losing any coolant? Easiest is to just change the oil and check that for now.

I'll check it out. You could be right, and I hope you are!

 

[bhsdriller]

I'd like this to be under $2k. What do you recommend?
Every oil seal is basically new except I didn't touch the oil cooler. It already has new belts, big hoses, vacuum lines, radiator, distributor, plugs, plug seals, crank seal, oil pump seal, distributor o-ring, probably a few others I don't remember. The only place I get a drop of oil from is the power steering reservoir outlet pipe seeps a little.

I'd recommend as least as possible. Head Gasket, valve job and continue on your way

 

[Marvelicious]

I'll check it out. You could be right, and I hope you are!

Yeah, you might be fine. It's easy to get the "head gasket fear" around here. Mine has some fairly incomplete records, so for all I know it's been done, but I'm right in the same ballpark for mileage. If I were you, I'd definitely want to confirm suspicions before I tore into it.

 

[JDUBinCO]

Yeah, you might be fine. It's easy to get the "head gasket fear" around here. Mine has some fairly incomplete records, so for all I know it's been done, but I'm right in the same ballpark for mileage. If I were you, I'd definitely want to confirm suspicions before I tore into it.

I keep a close eye on the oil and its pretty fresh, however, I've never seen foam on the dip stick or cap. I think I filled up this tank of gas over the Thanksgiving weekend and trips have been of varying length, from 10 to 30 minutes and all in the cold. I'd think that a 30 minute drive would cook all the water out of the oil.

 

[TXMeatball]

I keep a close eye on the oil and its pretty fresh, however, I've never seen foam on the dip stick or cap. I think I filled up this tank of gas over the Thanksgiving weekend and trips have been of varying length, from 10 to 30 minutes and all in the cold. I'd think that a 30 minute drive would cook all the water out of the oil.

Yeah those short trips will definitely cause condensation in the engine. Can't speak for 80s but on my GSF (with an oil temp gauge) the last time I drove it in the cold (mid 40s) it didn't fully get up to temp on a 20 min drive. South Texas so no idea how colder places are with short stuff. Also depends if you're solely doing short trips around town or take it on longer stuff in-between.

 

[JDUBinCO]

I checked the radiator and the fluid is lower than the fins, so yes, I'm missing a lot of coolant.
This is what the underside of the oil cap looks like: