K Series Head Problems

[hcmini1989 16]

Right im just after some advice see if any one has had any similar problems. I had a rover 400 petrol come into work .Wouldnt start so i checked it over timing belt in tact a tense in the end the starter turned out to be duff.So i replaced cranked over and it locked up.so i checked the timing its was all spot on but wouldnt make a full revolution .So i removed the head and it had snapped 8 valves .Got a new recond head replaced belt ,head gasket etc .But i was pushing off the ramp for the day whilst waiting for a head and it locked up ,like it was in gear but it wasnt and the liners never moved.

 

So i come to the conclusion the gearbox was fooked ,anyhows i put it back together all new bits and tried it by hand dint lock up started on the button ,ran ok untill it started to mix oil water.And white smoke out the back .So i stripped it down had the head indapendently tested and come back ok.

 

So i got another gasket an orignal one this time done it all back up .And started it up and its knocking its brain out now sounds like a bent valve or a valve touching the head it cranked over ok by hand

 

what the worrying thing is if i fill with water and pressure test it it sounds like a running tap from the spark plug holes .and there is oil and water mix on one of the plugs

 

any one had any similar problems or any pointers the liners look visualy ok

Edited June 6, 2010 by hcmini1989

[welshpug 1,657]

have you checked liner protrusion? I'm not sure if these use seals for the bottom of the liners either.

[hcmini1989 16]

have you checked liner protrusion? I'm not sure if these use seals for the bottom of the liners either.

i will check they are petruding tommrow ,If they dont pretrude what next new liners or is the seals that push them out so they petrude .Im unsure to weather these have seals but i would have thougth so .

[Matt Holley 11]

Cracked liner possibly?

 

I do alot of these in landrovers and not had anything like you describe.

 

Going back, when it had snapped valves but the timing looked right had it broken the dowle in the end on the cam shaft, Ive had one do that.

[welshpug 1,657]

if liner protrusion wasn't correct then I would imagine another set of liners would help a little, as matt said a cracked liner is quite common, I don't know if corroded liner seats are common, this might cause another issue.

 

though with the increasing costs I would be sorely tempted to just find another complete K series lump to drop in, would be a lot less work and expense in the long run, stick most of the good bits you've already got onto the replacement lump like the water pump, thermostat etc.

 

 

then advise the owner to get shot asap

[hcmini1989 16]

Cracked liner possibly?

 

I do alot of these in landrovers and not had anything like you describe.

 

Going back, when it had snapped valves but the timing looked right had it broken the dowle in the end on the cam shaft, Ive had one do that.

no mate all was ok.Thats why i couldnt understand why they had snapped until the gearbox locked up .But it drove ok when i did it the first time gearbox ok diff ok,very strange.

 

All i can think off is a hairline crack in the liner causing it to hydrualic ,and i think its bent a valve now with the racket its making

[hcmini1989 16]

if liner protrusion wasn't correct then I would imagine another set of liners would help a little, as matt said a cracked liner is quite common, I don't know if corroded liner seats are common, this might cause another issue.

 

though with the increasing costs I would be sorely tempted to just find another complete K series lump to drop in, would be a lot less work and expense in the long run, stick most of the good bits you've already got onto the replacement lump like the water pump, thermostat etc.

 

 

then advise the owner to get shot asap

sounds good mate.Just gotta talk my supervisor into it he said just change the gasket again he wont have it that the engine is f***ed, idiot

[hothatch 2]

sounds good mate.Just gotta talk my supervisor into it he said just change the gasket again he wont have it that the engine is f***ed, idiot

 

Lol that's a good technical way to put it to him. Its f***ed ! No like welshpug said where do you stop ? No what I mean, it sounds like its needed some serious attention before now and a new engine would be half the cost and so more efficient with technitions time. Just seems like the right thing to do. Not saying it can't be fixed but its in a bad way lol. How deep are the customers pockets is what you have to think.

[JonnyGee 0]

no mate all was ok.Thats why i couldnt understand why they had snapped until the gearbox locked up .But it drove ok when i did it the first time gearbox ok diff ok,very strange.

 

All i can think off is a hairline crack in the liner causing it to hydrualic ,and i think its bent a valve now with the racket its making

 

i know it sounds an odd one but when u are setting the timing are u setting it to the safe mark on the crank and crank cover and setting the cams with the exhaust cam on exhaust dowel and inlet on inlet dowel, with the teeth set to the level marks?

it will still run even if it is set to tdc so just a possibility to check.

also the blocks do warp on them to so could possibly be that.

just a quick thing to is that the main cause for gasket failure on these is the expansion bottle cap so pressure check the cap individually even if its genuine and new.

i started out at rover so have done silly amounts of these.

and as said if it gets any more silly its much much cheaper to drop a complete block in

[hcmini1989 16]

the timing has been set to autodata specs mate so the two dots on the crank pulley lined up with the line on the block/oil pump .and the two top ones lined up with each other with inlet pointing to inlet and the same for the exhaust.The first thing i checked after the second time when it was running like a bag of spanners was that the dowels were on the right ones and they are ok.

 

Ill tell them to get an engine if the customer wants it and swap the bits over like welsh pug said .Im not messing about changing liners