valve seals bad i think, pic inside

[1990boost]

i have been getting oil build up along the waterpipe and around the exhaust manifold, pulled out the 2 studs on the end put some sealant high temp red rtv on and the and problem is still there, now the middle stud is dry where the oil galley hole is so i want to rule out that hole as leaking, my guess is the valve seals are dropping oil into the manifold which is causing it to leak out around those 2 studs on the end, the head was replaced about 5 yrs ago, it was a complete ready to bolt on remanufactured head with cams and all, so i assume they use lesser quality valve stem seals on a re-man head. does this sound like a valve seal problem? i also get a puff of white smoke on start up in the morning, but not smoking while driving.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

 

[Tim_I]

interested in this. I also have oil in the same spot. My dip stick blows out if i run the car hard tho so im hoping its just from that.

 

[JusMX141]

There is no way that oil would bypass the manifold gasket without an exhaust leak being there too.

i also get a puff of white smoke on start up in the morning, but not smoking while driving.

THAT is more evident of valve seal leakage than anything you've said thus far. Make sure you're using at least 10W30 oil; try switching to 15W40 and seeing if the smoke at startup goes away.

Who knows what valve seals were used, but they definitely should have lasted longer than that. Even the shittiest gasket kits on eBay come with viton valve seals....I recently removed a head that I rebuilt in 2007 with a shitty eBay gasket kit and there was zero evidence of valve seal leakage.

I'm assuming whoever built the head didn't check/replace the guides and that likely ruined the new valve seals in a short period of time.

 

[Rico turbo 420a]

1990 boost. That puff of white smoke your getting, shows a leak into the cylinders due to valve stem seals not working properly. Your probably leaking enough oil out of the valve stem seals, that it goes out of the the exhaust port to your exhaust system

 

[96awd16g]

I agree with justin, theres no way a fluid (especially one as thick as 10/30) is going to leak through a gasketed barrier unless high pressure exhausts gases are as well. Now if the manifold has an exhaust leak there then its 100% possible its valve seals.

Also your valve cover does not appear to be leaking, but you verified no cracks and checked cam seals(imo the most likely culprit)?

Also a blt could help determine the condition of at least your intake valve seals.

 

[Rico turbo 420a]

interested in this. I also have oil in the same spot. My dip stick blows out if i run the car hard tho so im hoping its just from that.

It looks like your having a PCV system problem, blowby gases are not being rerouted to the intake to get reburned. Check your pcv valve, see if its stuck closed

 

[1990boost]

I agree with justin, theres no way a fluid (especially one as thick as 10/30) is going to leak through a gasketed barrier unless high pressure exhausts gases are as well. Now if the manifold has an exhaust leak there then its 100% possible its valve seals.

Also your valve cover does not appear to be leaking, but you verified no cracks and checked cam seals(imo the most likely culprit)?

Also a blt could help determine the condition of at least your intake valve seals.

i have not had the heat shield off in a few years, took it off yesterday to get a closer look and the manifold bolts were loose, and one of them had backed out a few turns, so after the RTV in the stud holes on the end, i did not do the middle oil galley stud as it was dry, and got all the bolts snugged down nice and tight i degreased and powerwashed that area and will monitor it over the next few days to see where im at, so maybe with the loose manifold bolts oil from the valve seals did seep past the manifold gasket, i will monitor this over the next day or so.

There is no way that oil would bypass the manifold gasket without an exhaust leak being there too.


THAT is more evident of valve seal leakage than anything you've said thus far. Make sure you're using at least 10W30 oil; try switching to 15W40 and seeing if the smoke at startup goes away.

Who knows what valve seals were used, but they definitely should have lasted longer than that. Even the shittiest gasket kits on eBay come with viton valve seals....I recently removed a head that I rebuilt in 2007 with a shitty eBay gasket kit and there was zero evidence of valve seal leakage.

I'm assuming whoever built the head didn't check/replace the guides and that likely ruined the new valve seals in a short period of time.

i have switched to a 15-40 and i still get that same puff of white smoke every morning, i dont know who rebuilt the head, it was a complete ready to go head, so maybe the seals were just crap to begin with. on a side note i don't think it's a piston ring problem, i did a compression test last year and got 160-165-160-165 across the board .

 

[Tim_I]

It looks like your having a PCV system problem, blowby gases are not being rerouted to the intake to get reburned. Check your pcv valve, see if its stuck closed

im going to buy a new pcv valve and i'm getting a catch can setup soon. to hopefully fix that.. just weird how much oil sits on that side of my head now after i did a head gasket.

 

[StarFawkes]

It looks like your having a PCV system problem, blowby gases are not being rerouted to the intake to get reburned. Check your pcv valve, see if its stuck closed

A PCV valve being stuck closed would actually be ideal during boost. It would be more likely that it is stuck open, letting pressure into his crankcase, if it is blowing his dipstick. Either that or there isn't enough ventilation from the other port on the valve cover. Check PCV valve and compression.