2E oil loss - low oil pressure and knocking (video)

[jmsheahan]

I've got pretty much the same problem but on a lower mileage engine, started off as stem seals (back off the throttle at high revs then back on =  big puff of smoke). Sold the car years ago, now bought it back and it's using oil like its going out of fashion. Comp test is fine, breathers all cleaned out, incl the metal gauze thingy. Smokes under hard acceleration. Tbh I'm not that fussed as I've just bought a 20vt to put in but it would be nice to get to the bottom of it! Good luck

  Wish I could just bosh a 20vt in too.

I guess I'm not going to know until I replace the stem seals. Only annoyance is I'll have to get a garage to do it (no access to compressed air) as I don't want to take the head off again.

[molegti]

There's a trick whereby you feed rope in via the spark plug holes to avoid taking the head off. Never done it myself but its documented on here somewhere.

[Wayne]

There's a trick whereby you feed rope in via the spark plug holes to avoid taking the head off. Never done it myself but its documented on here somewhere.

Compressed air is easier / safer

[jmsheahan]

Cheers chaps. Yeah I have read about the rope trick but don't fancy it too much. Thanks though. Bit of a gamble changing the seals but I don't really know what else to do.

Can anyone recommend a good garage who knows mk2's in the Southwest? (with the finest compressed air  )

[jmsheahan]

Little bit of an update and I have to say I'm proper baffled by it now 

Have redone the breather system as per the Mk3 setup (cheers RJ) just to rule that out as the current setup was a bit bodged. Looks much more tidy I have to say.

Went for a good blast around the countryside with a mate to check the smoking. I can confirm it is literally on gear changes at high revs, not all of the time having seen it from following behind. It doesn't smoke constantly on power, just a fairly large plume at higher rev gear changes when coming back onto the power which lingers for a few seconds and clears. Idle seems clean. It's definitely not down on power.

To be honest I'm leaning more towards it being a piston ring issue however I'm still hung up on this good compression result I haven't been able to see the head builder however after a discussion with him, he recalled everything going back together tightly during the rebuild and as it should.

I'm pretty stumped to be honest and I appreciate the help I've had. Not really sure on next steps. What do people think - is it worth stripping the whole thing down again and sourcing another block?

[danny_p]

those symptoms are classic valve stem seal.

if it was rings it'd be smokeing all the time and it'd be blowing oil up the breather ect and compression would be much lower

[jmsheahan]

The amount it's using though seems a little excessive for stem seals and it's clean at idle. None of the classic puff on start up etc.

Back off the throttle at high revs then back on causes the big puff of smoke (so on power which I was under the impression meant rings?). It smells oily if following behind but would it definitely be smoking all of the time if rings then?

Reading about leakdown tests to try and pinpoint the problem but the kits are very expensive - this something any garage can carry out?

[danny_p]

leackdown test kit is cheep i made mine 


take bit of steel tube  use die to put relivant thread on the end of it to suit  sparkplug,  attach to steel tube some rubber tube, to ths rubber tube add an airline fitting, 

fir to engine add 100 ish psi of compressed air and listen.

[danny_p]

if the oil controll rings had gone it would smoke LOTS more   it would smoke on idel and if you gave it some pedal you wouldn't see out the back window

if the compression rings had gone there would be less compression

[jmsheahan]

Cheers 

I can see the smoke out the rear window when it plumes but that's the only time. Sounds easy enough to mock up - I don't have access to an air compressor though. Is is something any garage can do or is it something that's kind of died out with modern motors?