My DSM welcoming me back with open arms!!!

[cburke23]

The reason I say this is I got rid go my 98 Eclipse about 2 years ago, just got sick of working on them. Well now I have a 1990 Plymouth Laser 4G63 turbo, Big 16G, 255 fuel pump and it's all coming back to me as of why I got rid of the other one.
I drove is to work last Thursday, and I was having problems getting it up to the 15 psi that I wanted (found out it was my boost controller). After fixing this I got it up to 15. On my way home I start smelling oil and seeing smoke in front of my head lights. I get it home to see that the dip stick had popped up and there was oil everywhere. 2 days go by and I decided to go out and clean it all off, I needed to fix the throttle screw anyway with a new o-ring so I did that. I also put in new plugs and washed the motor. I go and start the car to now get a loud ticking coming from the head, and I mean loud. It also hesitates when you start it and now will not stay running. I pulled the plugs and they are gaped fine and they are the right ones. I was told to change the oil with some Mobile 1 and let is run for a min to see if the lifters are dry. I did this with my foot on the gas because it does not want to say running. Let it run for a little and nothing, it still ticks. It also feels like it is missing really bad. The vac will not go pass the 10 psi mark, I know it should be at like the 20 mark when your at idol, but it will not drop.

So this is what I have come up with. It is either 1. timing jumped, 2. head is shot, or 3. I just have do idea!!!

If any of you guys have had this problum LMK thanks.

 

[JayRolla]

Sounds like you have some bent valves. Is the timing belt ok, does it look like some teeth are missing. Also the dip stick popping out can be excessive crank case pressure(dont know why) because mine pops out but oil barely comes out.

 

[cburke23]

Sounds like you have some bent valves. Is the timing belt ok, does it look like some teeth are missing. Also the dip stick popping out can be excessive crank case pressure(dont know why) because mine pops out but oil barely comes out.

That is what I was told too, but the stick comes out really easy. The belt looks fine, I was just thinking that maybe with all that oil it may have jumped.

 

[Gromit]

A healthy motor will pop out an old dipstick - the rubber seals get hard with age & no longer seal well. Easy to get a new dipstick from the dealer. A bad motor - 1 with lots of blowby - will pop out a good dipstick. Check valve stem seals & the valves themselves. Also, check your PCV valve to make sure it isn't clogged, as this will cause excess crankcase pressure. It also goes without saying that if you haven't done it yet, do a compression test & a boost leak test.

 

[cburke23]

A healthy motor will pop out an old dipstick - the rubber seals get hard with age & no longer seal well. Easy to get a new dipstick from the dealer. A bad motor - 1 with lots of blowby - will pop out a good dipstick. Check valve stem seals & the valves themselves. Also, check your PCV valve to make sure it isn't clogged, as this will cause excess crankcase pressure. It also goes without saying that if you haven't done it yet, do a compression test & a boost leak test.

I did do a compression test and well goes something like this:

1=180 2=180 3=120 4=150

I know that 180 is way to high for a stock motor, but this is not going to cause the problums I have.
And I did replace the PCV a week ago.

 

[cburke23]

Anyone eals?

 

[GSX93DSM]

3rd cylinder is not that good. 1g's should be around 160 to 165.

 

[Splitpi]

I did do a compression test and well goes something like this:

1=180 2=180 3=120 4=150

I know that 180 is way to high for a stock motor, but this is not going to cause the problums I have.
And I did replace the PCV a week ago.

That is out of spec on 3 and 4. Do a wet test (put oil in cylinder prior to compression test). If compression raises up ( more than 5-10%) then its very likely your rings are shot.

 

[cburke23]

WIll do, so this could be the problum even when it was running ok before the dip stick blew out?

 

[Stainbox12]

Yes. And you probably blew something if you ran out of oil, even if you didn't run it for a long time. Those compression numbers are wrong on the 3rd and 4th cylinder. and the ones that are 180 are too high. has the engine been rebuilt? because probably they used some N/A pistons. 1g compression is 7.8:1 (turbo) and that gives a result of 165 PSI across the board on a very very healthy or freshly rebuilt engine. Do a wet test on the 3rd and 4th cylinder, if it raises to 180, you would probably need to tear down that engine down, to check what pistons it has. Running that kind of compression on a turbo motor is harmful, unless they are forged. Good luck.

 

[cburke23]

Thanks, really not something I wanted to do but it looks like I may have to.

What could cause the 180 if there stock?

 

[Stainbox12]

Thanks, really not something I wanted to do but it looks like I may have to.

What could cause the 180 if there stock?

Most likely wrong pistons from my experience.

 

[boosted86]

Thanks, really not something I wanted to do but it looks like I may have to.

What could cause the 180 if there stock?

it can be a number of things; you have carbon build up on the top of the dish wich is causing higher compresion,your leaking oil into you chambers threw bad seals, but that would mean you would be having smoke out of your tail pipe, or as stated above 420a pistons witch have a stock compression around 180, 185(what your getting)

 

[90 GSX]

Do the compression test again. Make sure that you crack the throttle blade and duplicate the test exactly the same way on each cylinder, ie use the exact same number of cranks (about 8).

As for the ticking and not running, you probably have something scrwed up in the head... broken spring, blown lifter, something like that. It could be on cylinder 3 or 4 or both judging by those compression numbers you gave. If you had a bent valve you would not get any compression at all on that cylinder so you can relax about that. However, it doesn't mean that your timing did not skip. Something has to explain the 180 psi per cylinder, that's why I told you to do the test again. If it is carbon buildup, seafoam or mccc will do the trick. By the way, how much vacuum did your car make at idle before this happened?

If I were you, and if you have the time/means, pulls the timing cover off and verify that its tensioned properly and lined up correctly. Also pull off the valve cover and turn the motor and see if you see anything that doesn't look right.

Also, check the turbo to make sure it spins and does not have excessive shaft play. It's possible that your problem has something to do with you turning up the boost.

A lot of cars with miles on them blow the dipstick out. A temporary fix is the crimp the end of the dipstick tube very slightly to put more tension on the seal. If you have shitloads of blowby that is obviously not going to help. Make sure your crank breather is plugged into the intake as well.

I've found that DSM's treat you good if you treat them good. I've seen many cars come and go, but I haven't had a single major problem with mine - ever. You take your time, give the car some attention, and it won't fail you. If you try to buy a DSM and go 15 psi full throttle right out the gate without giving it the runaround first, it ain't flying. Chances are it was neglected and has plenty of problems like bad/wrong plugs, base timing off, boost leaks, etc. etc. I don't know how much you know about DSMs but it's crucial for a turbo car for everything to be running smoothly the way it should be - little problems often lead to big problems. When you get the car running, take some time out to dial it in and it won't break on you again.

 

[talontd92tsi]

It sounds EXACTLY like what happened to me when my balance shaft belt broke and the car jumped time, compression was wacky, wouldnt hold vaccuum, and sounded like someone threw a bucket of bolts into the head, I would seriously pull the timing covers and check it before it does bend the valves.

 

[cburke23]

90 GSX: thanks for the replay. I will do all you said. I was told about the carb build up that may be why the compression is so high. The vacuum was at 20psi before all this. I had to re-build my 98 about 2 years ago. It had got crank walk, so I put in a 6 bolt. That was my first build and I did it my self. I am a Honda guy as well and that is what I have been doing for the last 2 yrs after getting rid of the other one. I only turned up the boost because the guy that owned it before me said that is was he always had it at, and the car has a 255 fuel pump to support it. I am going to go through it, and I would love to just pull it, but I work to much and don't really have time. This car is really just for fun, but I have had none yet.

My 98 had:
1mm stainless steel values.
Crower springs and retainers.
Greddy hard pipes.
Balance shaft eliminator.
ACT clutch
fidanza flywheel.
New stock pistons and rings
ARP studs, mains, rods, flywheel, head.
The car ran a 14 flat on a 14b at 14psi.
I think the car could have done better with a few more passes and it not being so HOT out that day. So I do no a little about them, but there not a Honda, .

The things I have done to this car when I got it.
Put on a 2G t-body elbow.
Made some hard pipes for the stock intercooler.
Had to get a new v-cover, the one on the car was cracked.
Replaced the PCV.

The dip stick is old and easy to pop out. I put an o-ring on it and now it's snug. I will look at the timing tonight and see if it jumped. Witch I think may be the problem. There is not timing cover so it should be a little easier.

I am going to try all you said, I have a friend coming over tonight to help me out. He is a big Misu guy so this will make it easier.

So to sum it up,
My timing may be off, witch could make me have some bad compression, vac, and the noise I am getting from the head?

REP POINTS FOR EVERYONE THAT HELPED

 

[cburke23]

Well, turns out the timing jumped due to the mass amout of oil that got on the timing belt. I re-set the timing and she fired right up. Thanks again for everyones help.

 

[nightspeed87]

3rd cylinder is not that good. 1g's should be around 160 to 165.

unless he has 2g pistons.

As far as the crankcase pressure on www.vfaq.com it will tell you of some solutions.
A good leakdown test, and full maintance should at least get it running better.
makes sense that timing was off. Id change out the lifters and any further tapping should go away unless all your tapping was valves
which most likely are bent now.

Yes. And you probably blew something if you ran out of oil, even if you didn't run it for a long time. Those compression numbers are wrong on the 3rd and 4th cylinder. and the ones that are 180 are too high. has the engine been rebuilt? because probably they used some N/A pistons. 1g compression is 7.8:1 (turbo) and that gives a result of 165 PSI across the board on a very very healthy or freshly rebuilt engine. Do a wet test on the 3rd and 4th cylinder, if it raises to 180, you would probably need to tear down that engine down, to check what pistons it has. Running that kind of compression on a turbo motor is harmful, unless they are forged. Good luck.

not true, just matters how your tune is. I run 2g pistons, and my friend runs wiseco 8:8.1's and gets 180 across the board. Not too heathly for stock 1g timing, but still ok. N/a pistons will put him more like 190 something across.

 

[cburke23]

Everythings seems to be ok now, but I am still going to go through it and make sure she is healthy. There is a little oil leak on the side some where and I hate that.

 

[shiner6n]

glad to hear you fixed your problem and for that leak which side is it leaking from because with the two eclipses i have owned both had a small leak from the camshaft cap

 

[cburke23]

I can't really tell. I see it dripping from my alt and the oil filter braket.

 

[talontd92tsi]

Sounds like a pretty nasty oil leak, make sure your filter housing isnt coming loose or anything of that sort.

 

[olmytsi]

High compression is usually due to carbon build up. Running some seafoam/mopar combustion chamber cleaner should even it out.

 

[nightspeed87]

High compression is usually due to carbon build up. Running some seafoam/mopar combustion chamber cleaner should even it out.

might not completely be a bad thing, this is where ive heard that perfectly operational cars with older engines gain a little hp. Not me saying it though, he needs to just check out those two low cylinders do a leak down test perhaps.

 

[Spoolin4Ever]

If it's mass carbon buildup on 2 pistons then woiuld cause knock and make it run poorly. I mean 180 is quite a bit higher then stock, isn't like 165 a brand new engine with a 1G? And the big varience between cylinders sounds bad too.