[SHOtimes] oil usage and finding a leak
Donald Mallinson
dmall@mwonline.net
Tue, 06 Apr 2004 10:47:08 -0500
DAve,
Now that you mention it, I think that was brought up one
time before. I learn (or relearn!) something every day from
this great group!
Don Mallinson
DAVE wrote:
> Actually FelPro has the snout repair sleeve for the SHO. I'll dig up the part number out of my FelPro book.
> Dave
>
> Donald Mallinson <dmall@mwonline.net> wrote:
> David,
>
> I and many others have had good results with the high mile
> oils. I and Bill STaib both use Valvoline MaxLife to cut
> down on leaks in our gen I SHO's.
>
> I don't know how well they will work on valve seals, and it
> won't work at all if the problem is rings, but since the oil
> is not that much more than regular oil, why not give it a
> try. Let it work over at least two or three oil changes,
> and keep good track of your miles and oil use.
>
> I am guessing your comment about rod bearings was about as
> long as you have the oil pan down, might as well do
> bearings? I guess that would work, but at 120,000 miles
> (second 60k?), your rod bearings should still be in good shape.
>
> When you do the 60k, might as well plan on replacing the
> front crank seal, that might stop or slow one leak. But
> usually a new front or rear crank seal will NOT stop leaks
> at that point....why? because the soft rubber seal along
> with dirt at the outside edge have combined to put a tiny
> groove in the surface of the crank. Impossible to seal that
> groove. GM used to sell a steel sleeve that went over the
> nose of their cranks to solve this problem, worked pretty
> good, but I would guess nothing like that would be available
> for the low production SHO motor.
>
> Don Mallinson
>
> David Niemiec wrote:
>
>>I topped it off for now. Seems it was about a quart low, maybe a little
>>less. Fresh oil seems to be much much harder to see on the dipstick than
>>used oil. I'll try the 3rd gear trick sometime, but probably not here in
>>South Dakota---wind is basically nonstop here!
>>
>>Would you recommend switching to high mileage oil, or would that be a
>>futile attempt at reconditioning the seals? I'm also about due for the
>>second 60k, but not until the summer rolls around. The first 60k
>>included a valve lash, according to the records. Supposing I find a leak
>>on the pan seal, I guess I will be replacing rod bearings.
>>
>>Dave
>>
>>
>>
>>>From: Donald Mallinson
>>>To: David Niemiec
>>>CC: Shotimes@autox.team.net
>>>Subject: Re: [SHOtimes] oil usage and finding a leak
>>>Date: Mon, 05 Apr 2004 18:32:24 -0500
>>>
>>>Any leak that would get rid of a quart in 1000 miles is going to be
>>>big enough that you won't have trouble finding it. Believe it or not,
>>>spots under a car are so slow a leak, that they usually won't effect
>>>oil level for WAY beyond the normal change interval.
>>>
>>>Take a quart of oil and just pour it on your garage floor some day
>>>(NOT!) and see just how much oil a quart is when spilled!
>>>
>>>Chances are it is going out through the combustion chamber through the
>>>valve seals. You won't notice this much because of the catalytic
>>>converters. Best way to tell is if there is a puff upon cold
>>>startup. Not a white puff, but a nice blue/black puff.
>>>
>>>Also, get the car in say, third gear at 50-60 mph. Accellerate for 2-3
>>>seconds at full throttle then back off and let the car slow down to
>>>maybe 45 and then get back on full throttle. Do this on a day when
>>>then wind is calm. You probably will see a nice big puff from the
>>>exhaust. A small white or grey puff is normal, but darker bigger puff
>>>is usually valve seals or rings.
>>>
>>>Since the rings tend to last a long time, suspect the valve seals.
>>>
>>>Another truth, you can afford to buy oil a quart at a time for a LONG
>>>time before you will come close to spending a tiny percent of what it
>>>will take to fix the heads.
>>>
>>>New valve guides and seals aren't cheap and that is not counting the
>>>labor to get it apart and back together.
>>>
>>>Don Mallinson
>>>
>>>David Niemiec wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>>>Okay, here's a problem for a car I actually own.
>>>>
>>>>My 1991 is using oil, sometimes in excess of a quart within 1000
>>>>miles of each oil change. I can only afford to fill the oil at that
>>>>rate for a short period of time. There is oil dripping slowly from
>>>>underneath the pan, but I can't seem to locate its source yet because
>>>>the drips are coming from scattered locations. There is no oil
>>>>anywhere under the chassis, and I don't smell anything burning. There
>>>>does seem to be some buildup where the hoses connect to the power
>>>>steering reservoir, but not where they connect to the pump.
>>>>
>>>>How should I go about finding the leak? Should I degrease the
>>>>underside and then run the car for a few minutes? Would the oil pan
>>>>seal replacement be a very hard job? Help.
>>>>
>>>>Dave
>>>>
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>>>>
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>>>>
>>>
>>>
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