possible lifted head?

[92laserplayer]

hey guys, This thread should probably be in the shortblock forum but unfortunately i don't have the required posts... My first question is what are the signs and symptoms of pushing coolant? I've never firsthand experienced this and every search i tried just came up with threads on people refering to it but not actualy explaining it. I understand its caused from the hg or studs giving way and allowing coolant to be forced out but what i would like to know is the signs to look for when you suspect this be the problem...

A good and knowledgeable friend and i were out tuning my car today in rwd... (yea i know... it was a vce and removed the front shafts... believe it or not that was easier than pullin the t case and driveshaft) anyway... i was running 105 octane (our special blend) and tuning the crap out of my car for a dyno scheduled tuesday. We managed 19lbs and 28* out of her... scary as hell in rwd on a 3rd gear pull. so the last log of the day after everything is squared off my car started acting realy wierd. As soon as i rolled into any throttle passed my 25% KS cut-off i would instantly get 14 degrees of knock, and my car was running a little warm.. i didn't think anything of it because we had just made alot of passes to tune. As i'm driving the car continues to knock with the slightest tip in so i pull over and check underhood.

everything was fine except my overflow was a little higher than usual. i let it cool down and popped the cap. to my suprise there wasn't any coolant showing. i filled it back up (almost a full quart of water) and emptied the overflow on a hunch. On the way home on the highway i made a couple of WOT pulls to check over the final tune we had settled with and everything was good. No more knock or running warm. after the WOT pulls i pulled off to get a pack of reds and checked my overflow off of that hunch. It was about 1/4 full now...

idk if this is coolant thats getting pushed out or just natural heat expansion. I'll add that my little spool happy e316g was spiking to 24psi before settling at 19psi on stock studs and gasket.

any insight or help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks guys




*edit* heres a log of my final tune and when my car started actin wierd

 

[Red97Eclipseboy]

Dude, 28* of timing is ridiculous on a DSM. It's not doing you any good. That's a lot of cylinder-pressure. That much timing can easliy lift the head. And yes, seeing coolant in an otherwise empty over-flow bottle is a sign. What are your AFRs?

 

[92laserplayer]

11.0 spot on... so yea? toasted hg? it was pullin like crazy with no knock. it loved it

 

[Red97Eclipseboy]

11.0 spot on... so yea? toasted hg? it was pullin like crazy with no knock. it loved it

Yeah, man. That's too much timing, no matter what. Try a compression and a leak-down test before we jump to conclusions. Most cars rip like hell when they're running ragged like that before something goes. Let us know, sir.

 

[EagleTSIawd]

the coolant on the bottle should rise a little, its normal. Worry if you see it rise with bubbles, then you most definitely pushing air into the coolant which is a sign of a bad HG. Its most noticeable after a WOT, pull over and check the bottle.

 

[92laserplayer]

yeah it's gotta be toasted, i can fill up the collant, let it warm up, boost once and let it cool. when i pop the cap its down to the thermostat and the overflow's a little higher... i'm just gonna redo the hg with some arps and take the chance to get a set of 272's while i'm at it. it sucks but its a dsm... can't live with it, can't live without it