Forums Forums Enthusiast Forums A - Z Autowirral Valve oil stem seals - rope trick

Threads like this make me wish I didn't have to reply on mechanics etc - I'd love to know how to work on my cars.

The rope trick? I wouldn't even be able to work a tow rope!

While its enjoyable doing stuff that goes right - when you do repairs and the job starts going wrong it is very stressful. The amount of tools you need is ridiculous and expensive. And you are always learning, new tips and tricks such as the above.

The internet is a godsend to find discussions on what other people have done or come across. Also you can find parts quite a bit cheaper - I'm saving well over 50% on average for tools and parts through the internet.

If you want to do it, just make a start on simple jobs and gradually build up your tool stock and experience. You could get a scrapper and do it up - there are plenty of people on Wiki willing to advise and even help.

I've been pratting around with cars for over 30 years, still learning, still buying more tools all the time. Sometimes I do it for enjoyment (or at least some form of masochism) and sometimes out of need.

Whats actually wrong with the car - blue smoke on start up?

Thick white smoke when you pump the accelerator (when everything nice and hot), oil (not petrol) dripping out of exhaust, spark plugs oil-logged.

On idle there is a little bit of smoke, but when you hit the accelerator there is a new brighton sea-mist.

The breather pipes are getting more than their fair share of oil as well.

Just hoping to get it down to a level where it can be MOT'd and then will look into it and sort it out better afterwards. Need it on the road asap.

I'm not stick my colortune or compression tester near one of those cylinders until there is a lot less oil floating around.

Its going to cost me a tenner for a set of seals - its worth a go.

Not too sure it will be the stem seals - could be the guides.

Stem seals only tend to give a puff of blue smoke when cold; when the car has been stood, the oil runs down past the guides and burns - when the car is hot so little oil can pass the guides it isnt noticable plus the compression tends to keep the oil out.

I actually ran the Silvia race car without stem seals to help keep the guides lubricated, and it just gave a puff of blue smoke on start up - nothing at any other time.

Could also be rings, or headgasket if the smoke is more noticable when revved.

Shhhhhhhhhh! - I didn't hear that - As I said earlier, I'm in denial.

Actually, an advantage of using the rope method over compressed air is that you will be able to rattle the valves a bit and see how much play there is in the guides.

I know if I remove the head, I'll probably find out it will need a skim - in which case I need the alternative gasket. Also mega worried about wet liners moving, needing new seals for them and the job escalating at the least convenient moment in financial and practical terms.

I might just shred some PTFE tape and throw it in the oil and see what happens

tbh it sounds like a piston sealing problem ie rings as the crankcase is pressurised more than it should be

Certainly when turning the engine over by hand, there seemed to be one cylinder a bit weaker than the others, next time i'm on it I'll find out which cylinder it is. There is no great blowback from the dip-stick ( don't know if on this engine the oil clears the dipstick tube when running or not), quite a bit of blowback from the oil cap, felt worse though.

Can't run these engines without the rocker cover on which used to be a good way of "learning" what's going on, the rockers are splash fed with a baffle plate above them.

I'll put the compression tester on when I get the chance.

Valve timing was a little out, just one notch - they've designed the cam belt area so its easy enough to change but difficult to position the belt. Some of the rocker gaps were a bit wide, it seems to be a lot worse for smoke since I set them. I double checked them all after I did it - they aren't perfect but close enough. I assumed they were to be set cold - haynes doesn't say cold but doesn't say to get the engine hot either - so I just assumed cold.

Well I've been well and truly snookered on this through my own lack of observation.

The rocker shaft is held down by the head bolts, the risk of undoing the head bolts and not replacing the head gasket on this mileage is too big. So I will have to take the head off anyway.

I might use a blind-fold, I want to stay totally ignorant of any problems I see when the head comes off

Make sure you unwind the nuts off in the correct order, not that you prob need telling

Andy - go help DD, your a bit of an expert when it comes to pulling the head off it

As followup to this, took the head off, changed the headgasket and valve stem seal.

The old stem seals were completely perished, with bits broken off them. Cylinder walls are near-perfect and stem guides have no noticeable play. Head gasket had signs of a weakness but no signs of oil/water crossover so either caught it in time or its had some additive treatment that repaired it.

Longest part of the job was getting the remains of the old headgasket off the head and cleaning up the surfaces - will do it on a bench next time, pratting around on the ground didn't make it any easier. And just to punish myself, I changed the exhaust manifold gaskets as well and had an equally hard time cleaning those surfaces.

I've got the head and rocker shaft back on, just have to wire and plumb it back up again.

i reckon the head gaskets been done in the past and the lazy barstard didn't replace the valve stem oil seals (perished/gone hard due to engine overheating)?

Yes, it has had a major water explosion at sometime so probably overheated. Did a quick check, the head was flat, not too thorough, as I had no intentions of getting it skimmed, the car is already into negative equity.

I think it has had a fairly recent headgasket change - too many things undid too easily. The exhaust manifold nuts were only just above hand tight, I took the trouble to remove the heat shield first expecting the usual agro.

Head bolts were supposed to be 20 ft-lbs + 240 degrees, just two steps, I did three steps up to 20 ft-lbs and 3 steps up to 225ish degrees (90 + 90 + 45ish)..

Any idea what torque is normal for chunky copper manifold nuts, with thickish gaskets (3mm?), I put them up to 20 ft-lbs as haynes didn't specify.

Give it up man! Buy my celica instead
Full Mot and brand new clutch, bargain at £750 and your 205