Spark plug reading

[Reptoid Overlords]

 

F54/P79 with .080 removed from head w/approx 150 miles driven since put back in the road. Bottom end is probably stock, but untouched by myself(no new rings, bearings etc.)

 

I'm trying to determine if my car is running rich, or if I am experiencing ring or valve stem seal failure.

 

There exists an amount of oil consumption that to me, seems high, even for an engine with a fresh head and bottom end that's been sitting for a long time.

 

It will smoke if you rev it at idle. Not under load when driving it (I had someone follow me). It won't smoke at startup either hot or cold.

 

I am pretty well colorblind, it's hard to tell if it's blue or what. It's not black, it's not blue, and it's not white. I've seen extreme cases of rich conditions produce obvious black smoke, and as early as my N42 motor I just replaced, the obvious blue hue of smoke at startup due to failed valve stem seals. It's almost as if it's a mix of blue, blackish, and white. As messed up as that sounds.

 

The plugs are difficult for me to read as well. Again, I've seen oil fouled plugs with the old motor, but the ones in my new engine seem like their on the verge of both carbon fouling and oil fouling. To me at least. What do you guys think. This one picture represents the condition of all 6 plugs with roughly 150 miles of use.

 

Edit: my TVS has not been adjusted per the FSM since installation on the new engine.

Edit #2:  A quick 6 -8 flick of the wire brush over the spark plug removes almost all of the deposits, and I'm mostly seeing powdery residue, not so much oily residue.  I'm thinking I have one of those odd situations where a rich condition is thinning out oil, making it enter the combustion process, and give symptoms of both rich condition, and oil consumption.  Perhaps someone has seen this before, and can shed light on it. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited October 12, 2019 by Reptoid Overlords

[Zed Head]

32 minutes ago, Reptoid Overlords said:

Edit: my TVS has not been adjusted per the FSM since installation on the new engine.

Edit #2:  A quick 6 -8 flick of the wire brush over the spark plug removes almost all of the deposits, and I'm mostly seeing powdery residue, not so much oily residue.  I'm thinking I have one of those odd situations where a rich condition is thinning out oil, making it enter the combustion process, and give symptoms of both rich condition, and oil consumption. 

 

Does the exhaust smell gassy or oily?  There is a difference in odor between the two problems.  What are the oil consumption numbers?  If it's not leaking it's burning.

 

[Reptoid Overlords]

The exhaust smells like it is a result of gas being burned, as opposed to oil being burned. I dare say it smells like a normal engine with no emissions.

 

I've been looking for leaks. I've replaced the PCV valve with Sankei one from Japan. Just to be safe. With my own prior experiences I've been keepinga watchful eye over the rear main seal area. Nothing notable yet.

 

Oil consumption is 1 quart in 150 miles.

 

I could be confused as to wether or not I have actually disabled my BCDD and if that has any correlation to anything. If I plug it off with vacuum line plugs, it will smoke upon resuming acceleration after deceleration. If I run a line from the uppermost forward large port on the BCDD to the intake manifold, then it will not smoke under those circumstances. I wonder if my manifold pressure is all jacked up?

 

 

 

[madkaw]

So rich you are washing the cylinder walls down and causing oil consumption? Gas mileage bad? 

Looks like a bit of both fuel and oil, but mostly carbon if it brushes off that easy. 

Have you checked your TPS setting? 

Might need to take a cruise somewhere and shut it off at cruise and then pull the plugs . Don’t let it idle before shutting it down. 

Everyone should invest the 200$ for a complete wideband set up. Takes a lot of the guess work out.

 

[Captain Obvious]

3 hours ago, Reptoid Overlords said:

Oil consumption is 1 quart in 150 miles.

Woof. That amount of consumption ought to be pretty easy to find. Have you run a compression test?

We talked about it a little before and I mentioned that I'm getting a little oil burning and blue smoke on my broken cam engine, but it's at nuisance level... I've got a thousand miles on it and the smell is annoying, but the consumption rate isn't high enough for me to do anything about it. One quart in 150 miles would have more of my attention.

Stuck or broken ring?

[Reptoid Overlords]

The compression numbers are 178psi for cylinders 1 and 2, and 180psi for 3-6. The harbor freight checker I have is known to be about 10 or 15 psi low( I can't remember which one) when compared to a Snap On one, checked about 2 years ago. The important thing is that they are even, I guess.

Vacuum at idle is a steady 22hg with no odd fluctuation or decline at higher idle. I live 6 feet above sea level.




 

Edited October 13, 2019 by Reptoid Overlords

[Reptoid Overlords]

18 hours ago, madkaw said:

So rich you are washing the cylinder walls down and causing oil consumption? Gas mileage bad? 

 

 

I just filled up after it's maiden tank of gas after installing the engine.  131 miles took 7.5 gallons.  Which equals 17.4 MPG.  This tank of fuel has seen much idling, revving, and a lot of teething style driving, not necessarily normal operation.  Under normal circumstances I'd say 18MPG is on the low end of what I'd be getting. 

 

I'm going to go with the obvious path, and begin doing the research on how to properly set the TVS.  My copy of the FSM was wiped away when i had to erase this computer's memory due to a virus, and i can't remember what i did those many years ago.  My TVS has a riveted cover, and I believe it came off the engine that is currently in the car. 

[Dave WM]

I would think with 150 miles per qt you would be blowing big time blue smoke if its not leaking on the ground. Good compression could be too much oil getting past the oil control rings?

[Reptoid Overlords]

I set my TVS finally, like I should've done all along. Also, I had a poor connection at my temp gauge. Not sure if it is connected to enrichment but I fixed it anyway.

My tach wasn't connected when I put the dash back after replacing heater core hoses. I had to replace my heater core itself just two days ago, so I had to pull the dash again. Now I have the tach hooked up.

After a test drive, I believe I have the EFI in proper working order for the first time since I've had it back on the road.

Could it be that when I filled the bone dry engine with 4.7 quarts of oil and ran it, I had to add a quart to make up for areas that normally do not drain oil under normal circumstances? Maybe that's just silly.

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[Patcon]

Did you check oil level after the first early start up?

If not then I wouldn't be confidant your oil consumption is as high as you think. A quart every 150 miles is a little like fogging for mosquitos! Quite noticeable

Get the oil full and on the stick where it's easy to confirm, reset the odometer and put a few more miles on it.

[Zed Head]

1 hour ago, Reptoid Overlords said:

I set my TVS finally, like I should've done all along. Also, I had a poor connection at my temp gauge. 

Was it set incorrectly? Gauge or sensor?  They're not the same.

I'd recheck your oil level, go drive it for a few hundred miles, and see where you're at.

[Reptoid Overlords]

The TVS was showing no continuity at idle. I set it so that it shows continuity at idle and no continuity as soon as it senses moving the throttle away from idle.

The connection on the thermostat housing for the temperature gauge on the dashboard was not fully connected. It required some slight crimping to get a good fit. The temp gauge in the dash was giving inconsistent readings.

I have it topped up, and will drive it while monitoring oil level. It's been about 29 miles since I topoed it up today and I see no change on the dipstick. Seems like with a quart every 150 miles I'd start to see evidence of consumption pretty quick. I'll still be watching and hope I'm out of the clear in a few hundred miles.

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