<VV> ring job - looking for running engine

[J R Read_HML]

Dave,

I'm a bit confused by your descriptions.  There is one head on each side of 
the engine (assuming a Corvair engine).  You meant to say that some of the 
head nuts had lost their torque?

The oil pump was stuck open.... means that the by-pass was by-passing?  Oil 
was leaking from the top or side of the filter?  The pump cannot STICK open. 
Well, it is always pumping when the engine is turning.  That is what is 
supposed to do.  Do you have a crack in the housing around the pump area 
which let oil leak out?  Does the oil filter look normal?  Not expanded at 
all?  No slit in the side from the harmonic balancer?

Is there oil laying in either of the lower shrouds?

Do you hear a chirp-chirp sound when the engine is running - even just at 
idle?

When you noticed the oil trail, did you also notice a loss of power?  Was 
the engine smoking (generally almost everywhere) when you pulled over and 
opened the lid.  Was the dip stick too hot to touch?

Right now I'm thinking that you have a blown head gasket (or maybe even a 
base gasket) and oil leaks onto the manifold.  That might give someone the 
impression that the smoke came from the exhaust - and, indeed, some of it 
could be coming from there.  The car most likely did not suddenly start 
BURNING a quart in 350 miles.  A goodly portion of it most likely went 
somewhere else.  If that somewhere else was a leak onto the manifold it will 
look like you are part of the mosquito abatement team.  I could be WAY off 
on this, but what I've read (and interpreted) so far has me thinking in this 
direction.  If I happen to have guessed right, the fix is a half a day for a 
newbie with a mechanical mind.

Answers to some of the above question might make me change that current 
guess.

Later, JR

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Dave Smith" <gornzilla at gmail.com>
To: "Harry Yarnell" <hyarnell1 at earthlink.net>
Cc: <virtualvairs at corvair.org>
Sent: Friday, January 02, 2009 6:16 PM
Subject: Re: <VV> ring job - looking for running engine


>I put about 50 miles on it in LA in stop and go traffic, then drove up
> to Sacramento the next.  About 350 miles on I-5 doing 70.  I was
> keeping an eye on the gauges and a ton of smoke started coming out the
> exhaust.  I killed the key and stopped.  Stuck in Lodi again. Lost a
> quart of oil.  The oil pump was stuck open and was dumping a lot of
> oil.  I had it towed 20 miles.
>
> Some of the heads on the right side of the engine were loose, so they
> were retorqued.  There was an exhaust leak from one of them.  The
> smoke comes from the exhaust pipe.  The engine was supposed to have be
> about 2,500 miles on a rebuild.  The mechanic said it might've been
> rebuilt and there wasn't any sounds from the bottom end.
>
> I like my NSU being a project car, not the Corvair.
>
> -Dave
>
>
> On Fri, Jan 2, 2009 at 2:17 PM, Harry  Yarnell <hyarnell1 at earthlink.net> 
> wrote:
>> I assume the smoke is coming out the exhaust pipe, not from under or out 
>> of
>> the engine bay. Makes a big difference.
>>
>> Harry Yarnell
>> Perryman garage and orphanage
>> Perryman, MD
>> hyarnell1 at earthlink.net
>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Dave Smith" <gornzilla at gmail.com>
>> To: <virtualvairs at corvair.org>
>> Sent: Friday, January 02, 2009 4:28 PM
>> Subject: Re: <VV> ring job - looking for running engine
>>
>>
>>> Thanks, all.  I plan on showing up at the local meeting and I joined
>>> CORSA.
>>>
>>> The description of the car is what got me to buy it.  I figured
>>> correctly it wouldn't sell for much since it's a Texas car and the
>>> body is a bit rough.  Plus December is a bad time to sell a vehicle.
>>>
>>> It started right up and didn't smoke until 20 miles from home. I had
>>> it towed after it died.  I put about 350 miles on it.  I can try some
>>> Marvel Mystery Oil but it's undriveable as it is.  Way more than any
>>> 2-stroke motorcycles or scooter I've seen.
>>>
>>> -Dave
>>>
>>>
>>
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