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| broken spark plug | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Aug 16 2012, 01:58 PM (1,400 Views) | |
| HelterSkelter | Aug 16 2012, 01:58 PM Post #1 |
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#1 Pizza Driver
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since my engine was smoking like crazy after the engine rebuild, burning oil, i removed one of my spark plugs to examine the combustion chamber. it was full of smoke but looked okay. when i was putting the spark plug back in it sheared off. the threads and ground stayed in the cylinder head and the rest came out. is there any way to fix this? do i need to buy a whole new head? would a bolt extractor work? also why is my engine smoking so much now? i'm sure i did the rebuild right. is it possible the rebuilt head is leaking oil down? |
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| starscream5000 | Aug 16 2012, 02:13 PM Post #2 |
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Got 70 MPG?
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You may be able to fit an EZ-out in there and screw the remains back out. Did you do a bottom end rebuild as well? |
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| HelterSkelter | Aug 16 2012, 02:28 PM Post #3 |
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#1 Pizza Driver
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yeah i did the rings, cleaned the pistons off and inspected them for cracks or damage and there was none, checked the bearings for wear and there was none, replaced the crank and cam shaft seal, honed the cylinder walls til crosshatch-ish pattern and then reassembled everything. new gaskets for everything. a friend of mine said it's possible the seals on the valves are leaking oil into the combustion chambers, what do you guys think? |
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| starscream5000 | Aug 16 2012, 02:38 PM Post #4 |
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Got 70 MPG?
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How did you position the rings on the piston? What did they gap out to be in the piston bores? What brand did you use? |
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| metromizer | Aug 16 2012, 02:46 PM Post #5 |
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I guess you don't know your own strength! Yep, easy out. Or weld a nut to it, and turn the nut. Actually, if you look very close at most spark plugs, there is a pretty thin cross section where the thread undercut (that holds the crush washer) meets the spark plug body. Don't feel too bad, it's not the first time this has happened to anyone... ask me how I know Story to go along with this: Back in 2001 or so, I was a crew member on an NHRA Top Alcohol Dragster. As these things go, we were an all volunteer team, of mostly 4 pair of skilled hands, an owner, and a driver. Sometimes, the regulars couldn't make it, and the owner and driver dug up some guy to substitute. Enter "big Steve". 6'4", 325lbs (but not fat) hands like baseball gloves, fingers like sausages, big Steve was great at loading and unloading the car, putting up the awning, setting the trailer hitch on the truck ball, whatever heavy work needed doing. Steve had a keen automotive interest, but was no mechanic. He was the owner's shop's solvent guy. he worked for the local company who serviced the solvent tank. Not a complicated job, but he was reportedly very good at it. I should stop myself and add that Steve is a nice guy, as hard working as they come. Just didn't have a lot of finesse. My job was the right side of the engine, right side head service, blower, manifold, my head, help our 'bottom end diver' R&R my side's pistons and rods in and out of their bores. Steve was acting as a 'floater' and while I was doing something, he tightened my spark plugs this time It was the Winter Nationals at Pomona, we were all pretty keyed up, new team racing at a National event with the cameras rolling. The car sounded great during warm up in the pits, so we buttoned it up and towed to the staging lanes. At the 'hit', the car shook, popped, sputterd... and our relatively inexperienced (at that time) driver kept his foot in it waaaaay too long, shutting it off at the 330 cone. By then, it had launched two spark plugs into the crowd!!! Closer examination revealed they were both from my and big Steve's side, over tightened and broken off at the thread undercut Funny thing... I finally convinced the car owner to buy some tee handle spark plug wrenches, with built in clutch mechanisms (to keep from over tightening), like all the pro teams were using at the time. NHRA made a mid-season rules change for that class a few month later, requiring sheet metal covers over the spark plugs to prevent any further 'launching of plugs' during a run. |
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| HelterSkelter | Aug 16 2012, 02:48 PM Post #6 |
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#1 Pizza Driver
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i positioned the rings to have the gap on opposite sides, i have no idea what they gapped out to be, and i used eve as per geo glenn's recommendation in his thread. the gaps may have changed position while i was fiddling with them trying to get the ring compressor to work and them to get into the cylinder. i'll just assume the gaps were all wrong. i'm pretty sure my geo is dead. that leaves me with one car that's not suited for my job, no money to buy another car, and a ton of my time and money wasted. Edited by HelterSkelter, Aug 16 2012, 02:48 PM.
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| starscream5000 | Aug 16 2012, 02:51 PM Post #7 |
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Got 70 MPG?
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Did you oil down the cylinders when you put it back together? If you did, then there's your smoking problem. Drive the piss out of it. You bought the right rings, they gap really tight on fresh rebuilds, so they should be the tightest gap you can hope for on a hone job. If you didn't oil the cylinder walls down, then the rings are probably not seated yet. You still need to break in the engine, drive it hard, but not WOT for a good 20 miles. |
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| HelterSkelter | Aug 16 2012, 02:57 PM Post #8 |
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#1 Pizza Driver
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lets assume the rings are not positioned properly, how bad is that gonna be? i oiled the cylinders when i was sliding the pistons back in, is that what you mean? they were pretty dry when i was putting the head on, i guess i was supposed to slather them down? will that damage the rings? also drive it for 20 miles? it's smoking as bad if not worse than if i had seafoamed it. i'm almost certain to get pulled over. |
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| starscream5000 | Aug 16 2012, 03:07 PM Post #9 |
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Got 70 MPG?
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Your ring positions should be fine, if you put them 180 degrees apart that's actually further than what the manual calls for, so if they've moved some then that will make it even better. You problem is that you oiled the cylinder walls. You're supposed to install them bone dry. You're smoking like a freight train because you're burning off all of that oil on the cylinder walls. Drive it long and hard. At night if you can, until it stops smoking. |
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| HelterSkelter | Aug 16 2012, 03:35 PM Post #10 |
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#1 Pizza Driver
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damn. well i hope this car will eventually be working. i can't afford to lose it. literally i can't afford that loss. i might have to quit my job delivering or sell my miata.
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| starscream5000 | Aug 16 2012, 03:47 PM Post #11 |
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Got 70 MPG?
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Just take the EZ-out and remove the broken plug, then put new ones in and run it good and hard. |
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| Alpine | Aug 16 2012, 03:53 PM Post #12 |
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1020cc G10 GOML
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does it smoke constantly? high rpm? low rpm? all rpm? check oil valve installed? Edited by Alpine, Aug 16 2012, 03:54 PM.
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| HelterSkelter | Aug 16 2012, 04:16 PM Post #13 |
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#1 Pizza Driver
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GREAT NEWS. i was able to extract the broken spark plug (thank god for anti seize) and it stopped smoking after about 20 miles of highway speed driving shifting 10 mph after the light. looks like i did do it right. also would like to thank seafoam for cleaning out all the extra oil. looks like i won't be shooting myself after all
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| starscream5000 | Aug 16 2012, 04:20 PM Post #14 |
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Got 70 MPG?
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Told ya' so.
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| Johnny Mullet | Aug 16 2012, 06:02 PM Post #15 |
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Fear the Mullet
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9:35 AM Jul 11