gstguy97
Probationary Member
- 3
- 0
- Sep 6, 2003
-
San Antonio,
Texas
First off, I don't post here because I typically do not need to. I have 3 DSM's (have owned a total of 7, and do ALL my own work, typically without the need for books, internet help, etc.) But! today, we finished a head gasket install on a friends car, and now, things appear worse than they were before. If a moderator reads this, could you please move this to advanced engine tech, this is definitely not a newbie type post.
First off, car mods are all basic bolt ons: 97 GS-T Spyder, stock 7 bolt, PTE 50 trim, Dejon Tool FMIC, DSMlink, 650cc injectors, HKS 272's, full exhaust, yada yada yada, ya know, the basics... car made just over 350 whp with my tuning on the dyno (safe tune, no knock, etc)
Car was running and driving fine - but the DSMLink tune was lost when installing some electrical stuff (I think we put the sub/amp back in the car) Anyways, the good tune I did for the car was lost, so it had reverted back to basic dsmlink settings for the injectors he has. I had pulled a little timing for the amount of boost that he was running (21-22 psi), so the car was probably knocking a little... under a full boost/full throttle condition, the car started blowing white smoke from the exhaust... definitely a head gasket/steam issue...
We tear it down, and find the cheapie head gasket has "eroded" away between the water jacket ports and the cylinder... No biggie, we take the head to a machine shop, they pressure test it, deck it, hot tank it, etc. get a new cometic head gasket, and reassemble... Everything's going perfect until we start the car... Me, I'm always worried about the timing belt - but everything is good... fix a small vacuum leak, and the engine is running smoothly... But, white smoke is pouring out the exhaust - even moreso than before... let it run a while thinking we got some degreaser and stuff in the exhaust, and it just needed to burn off... it never burns off...
So, here we are with a huge dilemma... Thoughts that go through my mind - is the surface of the block warped or cracked, did I torque everything down right (of course I did, I've done this a million times), is the head cracked?... So I start with some trouble shooting...
Turn the car off, and immediately pull the spark plugs... 1, 2, and 3 are fine, but when I pull #4, white steam/smoke comes POURING out the spark plug hole... OUCH! so, it's definitely a problem with number four... Alright, but, the cylinder doesn't look like it has any water in it, and the spark plug looks the same as the other three - typically it will be discolored, or "cleaner" than the others when this happens.... So, I try something else... Pull the injector clip for number 4, and of course the spark plug wire, and start the car - it clearly runs like ass, but it's running, and it's still smoking out the exhaust just as bad as it was with the 4th cylinder running... Ok, now, to me, this is weird, as in my eyes, there should be no reason for water to be running into the number 4 cylinder without the spark plug there, at least not the amount that would have to be present to produce the huge smoke screen we've created here... I look inside the cylinder, and the piston is moving up and down quite nicely, but there is NO SMOKE coming from the spark plug hole... Ok, now this is REALLY weird to me - in my eyes, if the number 4 is the only one that smokes when the spark plug is pulled, then there would almost have to be smoke coming out of it whilst it was running, but there isn't. It gets weirder... As SOON as we turn the car off, smoke comes pouring out of that cylinder again...
Now, for my theories... And I really just want to know how possible these are, as I've never run into a head gasket replacement issue like this:
My true theory is that there is a crack in the head, potentially in the 4th cylinder's exhaust port, or possibly even in the EGR tube... to me, this makes sense, as when the cars running, the coolant is being pushed / pulled out the exhaust, but when the car is off, it can revert back into the cylinder, thus giving the smoke at the times it is... At the same time, this seems to me to be something a machine shop could have missed, as I don't think they pressure test anything other than the piston dome area...
What are your alls thoughts???
thanks for your time in advance!
First off, car mods are all basic bolt ons: 97 GS-T Spyder, stock 7 bolt, PTE 50 trim, Dejon Tool FMIC, DSMlink, 650cc injectors, HKS 272's, full exhaust, yada yada yada, ya know, the basics... car made just over 350 whp with my tuning on the dyno (safe tune, no knock, etc)
Car was running and driving fine - but the DSMLink tune was lost when installing some electrical stuff (I think we put the sub/amp back in the car) Anyways, the good tune I did for the car was lost, so it had reverted back to basic dsmlink settings for the injectors he has. I had pulled a little timing for the amount of boost that he was running (21-22 psi), so the car was probably knocking a little... under a full boost/full throttle condition, the car started blowing white smoke from the exhaust... definitely a head gasket/steam issue...
We tear it down, and find the cheapie head gasket has "eroded" away between the water jacket ports and the cylinder... No biggie, we take the head to a machine shop, they pressure test it, deck it, hot tank it, etc. get a new cometic head gasket, and reassemble... Everything's going perfect until we start the car... Me, I'm always worried about the timing belt - but everything is good... fix a small vacuum leak, and the engine is running smoothly... But, white smoke is pouring out the exhaust - even moreso than before... let it run a while thinking we got some degreaser and stuff in the exhaust, and it just needed to burn off... it never burns off...
So, here we are with a huge dilemma... Thoughts that go through my mind - is the surface of the block warped or cracked, did I torque everything down right (of course I did, I've done this a million times), is the head cracked?... So I start with some trouble shooting...
Turn the car off, and immediately pull the spark plugs... 1, 2, and 3 are fine, but when I pull #4, white steam/smoke comes POURING out the spark plug hole... OUCH! so, it's definitely a problem with number four... Alright, but, the cylinder doesn't look like it has any water in it, and the spark plug looks the same as the other three - typically it will be discolored, or "cleaner" than the others when this happens.... So, I try something else... Pull the injector clip for number 4, and of course the spark plug wire, and start the car - it clearly runs like ass, but it's running, and it's still smoking out the exhaust just as bad as it was with the 4th cylinder running... Ok, now, to me, this is weird, as in my eyes, there should be no reason for water to be running into the number 4 cylinder without the spark plug there, at least not the amount that would have to be present to produce the huge smoke screen we've created here... I look inside the cylinder, and the piston is moving up and down quite nicely, but there is NO SMOKE coming from the spark plug hole... Ok, now this is REALLY weird to me - in my eyes, if the number 4 is the only one that smokes when the spark plug is pulled, then there would almost have to be smoke coming out of it whilst it was running, but there isn't. It gets weirder... As SOON as we turn the car off, smoke comes pouring out of that cylinder again...
Now, for my theories... And I really just want to know how possible these are, as I've never run into a head gasket replacement issue like this:
My true theory is that there is a crack in the head, potentially in the 4th cylinder's exhaust port, or possibly even in the EGR tube... to me, this makes sense, as when the cars running, the coolant is being pushed / pulled out the exhaust, but when the car is off, it can revert back into the cylinder, thus giving the smoke at the times it is... At the same time, this seems to me to be something a machine shop could have missed, as I don't think they pressure test anything other than the piston dome area...
What are your alls thoughts???
thanks for your time in advance!
