Zetec Drama, Head Gasket?

[Guest Hammy360]

Hi all,

Whilst doing a few 'final' jobs on the zero today I had her running and noticed that on the exhaust side of the engine it seemed 'wet' fuel, oil or water I cant tell but am naturally concerned. The area in question is below the exhaust manifold and mainly on the crank case breather box. The engine seems to run fine but after wiping it up it seemed that within 5-10 mins it was the same again. The engine ran for 20 -25 mins and there were no overheating issues and the fan kicked in just fine. I took off the oil filler cap and there was the tiniest and I mean tiniest amount of white residue.

 

Am I looking at a new head gasket here and if so is this an easy enough job with the engine in and all ancills fitted?

 

 

Also come to think of it exhaust smoke is pretty much white so I think I know the answer, comments welcome though please.

Edited March 27, 2012 by Hammy

[Guest sandy77uk]

is it a new engine from GBS? i also had a blown gasket and GBS told me to go *bleep* myself because I removed the head to check

 

my advice, report it straight to them and ask them to get involved right now

 

obviously if it isn't a new engine, get a compression check done, but it does look like head off time

[David S]

That s a real bummer John. Also for you too, James, and on a new engine as well.

[Guest doddy]

i had this on mine turned out it was runig very rich and the exhaust gasket was leaking blowing a fuel like mix out

[knights_templar]

Hi

 

before we start removing major components, like a head, which, as the gasket is likely to be destroyed during removal, will not prove anything. lets look for a simple answer

 

Firstly the engine is in a different orientation to its design, it means that the engine does breath slightly differently, the breather box you refer to is normally removed and the connection to the crankcase sealed with a plate. if you don't there is a tendency for oil vapor to come out, which I think is your problem. the engine will breath fine through a filter fitted to the cam cover breather pipe.

 

you mention the engine is running OK and the fan is cutting in, if it cuts in and out, it is likely everything is fine. yes you could still have a leak but at this stage just make sure you have bleed the cooling system, they ALWAYS need topping up after first and even second run up. fill the system run it to temp, allow it to cool completely and recheck the level, top up and do the same again.

 

if, after that the cooling level keeps falling then you can safely say you have a leak somewhere.

 

a small amount of white residue is normal, caused by condensation in the crank case mixing with the oil. remember the engine has probably been stood in a cold warehouse/garage for quite a while, before you ran it, and this is a known problem on vehicles that are used for short trips.

 

The white smoke can be an indicator of doom but that would mean you have water leaking internally as well as externally, it is less likely the engine would run happily or the cooling system work correctly. more likely it's in need the right map and tuning.

 

which throttles and ECU do you have?

 

Regards

Edited March 27, 2012 by knights_templar

[sj-bradley]

Also a by product of the burning gases is a large amount of water vapour which will condense inside the engine when it cools. Hence the tiny amount of white froth on the oil cap. I had a similar apperance and it eventually went away.

 

If the engine seems to run fine, it doesn't sound like a blown head gasket. Does the coolant seem oily ? I would try taking a sample out of the coolant and leaving in a clean glass jar to see if any oil separates out - it will take some time to do this - overnight at least.

 

Knights_templar's advice about topping up coolant has put my mind at ease as I was beginning to wonder at mine.

 

What would be the right level for a zetec with raceline water rail? I had numerous little leaks around the filler cap area which I hope I have now sealed.

 

Also, I know that the expansion tank will capture the coolant which has expanded and should "suck" it back in when it cools. Mine doesn't seem to want to do this and I am taking the coolant out the tank and putting it back by hand. Is there an easy way to fix this so it does it automatically?

 

Thanks,

Simon.

[knights_templar]

system has to be sealed fully.

 

there is no seal on the cap where it meats the race-line filler neck, just a metal washer. the rough casting of the filler neck often means that it does not seal.

 

regards

[Guest Hammy360]

i had this on mine turned out it was runig very rich and the exhaust gasket was leaking blowing a fuel like mix out

 

That sounds like a possibility as the car is still on a start up map and not been set up yet

[Guest Hammy360]

Hi

 

before we start removing major components, like a head, which, as the gasket is likely to be destroyed during removal, will not prove anything. lets look for a simple answer

 

Firstly the engine is in a different orientation to its design, it means that the engine does breath slightly differently, the breather box you refer to is normally removed and the connection to the crankcase sealed with a plate. if you don't there is a tendency for oil vapor to come out, which I think is your problem. the engine will breath fine through a filter fitted to the cam cover breather pipe.

 

you mention the engine is running OK and the fan is cutting in, if it cuts in and out, it is likely everything is fine. yes you could still have a leak but at this stage just make sure you have bleed the cooling system, they ALWAYS need topping up after first and even second run up. fill the system run it to temp, allow it to cool completely and recheck the level, top up and do the same again.

 

if, after that the cooling level keeps falling then you can safely say you have a leak somewhere.

 

a small amount of white residue is normal, caused by condensation in the crank case mixing with the oil. remember the engine has probably been stood in a cold warehouse/garage for quite a while, before you ran it, and this is a known problem on vehicles that are used for short trips.

 

The white smoke can be an indicator of doom but that would mean you have water leaking internally as well as externally, it is less likely the engine would run happily or the cooling system work correctly. more likely it's in need the right map and tuning.

 

which throttles and ECU do you have?

 

Regards

 

Sounds good. I am running GSXR 1000 TB's and Omex 600

[Guest Hammy360]

Thanks for all the responses, that has laid my mind to rest and will make a couple of checks then set up on the r/road.