The joys of discovering your new motor's gonna cost
Discussion
Using a Litre in 500 miles oil with blue smoke when warm after a lively run. Several pints of coolant required in same time. Yet no evidence of heater matrix burst or steam from exhaust whatsoever. And I was putting in for full service....
What rings do I order if I get them changed at same time as replacing head gasket and that exhaust? Anything else I should change to be on the safe side? (Dont say "the Car!" - I tried to sell it back but he wasnt having any of it)
Looking at over £2K easy I reckon. Happy days
What rings do I order if I get them changed at same time as replacing head gasket and that exhaust? Anything else I should change to be on the safe side? (Dont say "the Car!" - I tried to sell it back but he wasnt having any of it)
Looking at over £2K easy I reckon. Happy days
If you restrict yourself to the head gaskets then it'll only be a couple of hundred quid....
There are other reasons for that sort of oil consumption though - check the breather gauze is clean and that the breather port into the plenum isn't obstructed. Or else crank case pressurisation might blow the oil out of various seals.
Similarly the V8 will chuck out water if there are any leaks in the cooling system, so check it can keep pressure.
There are other reasons for that sort of oil consumption though - check the breather gauze is clean and that the breather port into the plenum isn't obstructed. Or else crank case pressurisation might blow the oil out of various seals.
Similarly the V8 will chuck out water if there are any leaks in the cooling system, so check it can keep pressure.
I started off with a stripped thread in the l/h cylinder head.
Ended up with a full rebore, crank grind, all new shells, new pistons, rings, all gaskets and oil seals, new conrod and main bearing bolts, new engine mounts, bought all the parts from Rimmers, did all the spannering myself and had change from £1000.
So needn't be as bad as you think
Needless to say there was a lot of other work done at the same time
Ended up with a full rebore, crank grind, all new shells, new pistons, rings, all gaskets and oil seals, new conrod and main bearing bolts, new engine mounts, bought all the parts from Rimmers, did all the spannering myself and had change from £1000.
So needn't be as bad as you think
Needless to say there was a lot of other work done at the same time
Agree with going for head gaskets first only (composite is good), and make sure the full cooling system is in good nick.
Later pistons and rings can be looked at by dropping them from the block with the engine in the car. And as wedg1e mentioned, you probably then end up replacing all the bearings and have the crank checked etc. Resulting in additional stuff, but in parts it should not break the bank.
No engine out job (head gasket, etc.) should be able to save you a lot of money. You can check for this when they provide you with a quote.
Rob
Later pistons and rings can be looked at by dropping them from the block with the engine in the car. And as wedg1e mentioned, you probably then end up replacing all the bearings and have the crank checked etc. Resulting in additional stuff, but in parts it should not break the bank.
No engine out job (head gasket, etc.) should be able to save you a lot of money. You can check for this when they provide you with a quote.
Rob
Edited by 350zwelgje on Sunday 1st April 21:02
shadowfax said:
Well, I wont be trying any of those jobs myself. RPI for a full 4.6 job maybe 
Cheers Dicky! See ya'll at the Fest
Cheers Dicky! See ya'll at the Fest
Edited by shadowfax on Sunday 1st April 21:46
Whay not? What's the problem? Handful of spanners and sockets, bit of space, few rags, endless cups of char...
Get the lads round with beer and crisps to lend a hand. Not too much beer mind, and watch where you drop the crumbs... 
I can see the garage mechanic rubbing his hands together!
Be calm, don't panic!
The two things might not be connected - you can test the coolant for exhaust fumes, it is a very simple and quick test to see if your gaskets / liners are toast. It Shouldn't take a reputable mechanic more than about 10 minutes to do.
Blue smoke might indicate the oil is too thin - for example lots of short trips will put fuel into the sump oil and it will get used up quick - a nice long run will usually boil the fuel out, but it might take hours [like Adam said - if the crank ventilation isn't working the fuel will build up in the sump oil, and maybe blow a seal (oo-er)]. Over heating can be any number of things, as simple as a dodgy rotor arm, or fouled spark plugs.
If it were me I would...
Put in some thick oil - these engines like 20W50 non-detergent stuff. Check the crank ventilation system. Change the coolant to the correct mixture (5 litres antifreeze into 11 litres of water is what the TVR mixture ratio works out at). Back flush the radiator. Check the rotor arm and spark plugs, maybe put a new set in if the heat range is obviously wrong. I'd drive around for a few hundred miles, maybe get the coolant checked out if the problem persists. Only then would I consider a head gasket job because it took me 16 hours last time - arghh!
Be calm, don't panic!
The two things might not be connected - you can test the coolant for exhaust fumes, it is a very simple and quick test to see if your gaskets / liners are toast. It Shouldn't take a reputable mechanic more than about 10 minutes to do.
Blue smoke might indicate the oil is too thin - for example lots of short trips will put fuel into the sump oil and it will get used up quick - a nice long run will usually boil the fuel out, but it might take hours [like Adam said - if the crank ventilation isn't working the fuel will build up in the sump oil, and maybe blow a seal (oo-er)]. Over heating can be any number of things, as simple as a dodgy rotor arm, or fouled spark plugs.
If it were me I would...
Put in some thick oil - these engines like 20W50 non-detergent stuff. Check the crank ventilation system. Change the coolant to the correct mixture (5 litres antifreeze into 11 litres of water is what the TVR mixture ratio works out at). Back flush the radiator. Check the rotor arm and spark plugs, maybe put a new set in if the heat range is obviously wrong. I'd drive around for a few hundred miles, maybe get the coolant checked out if the problem persists. Only then would I consider a head gasket job because it took me 16 hours last time - arghh!
Edited by jchase on Monday 2nd April 01:49
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