Hey guys. I posted a topic like this in general engine, but I'm not getting a good answer. I have an L03 TBI with 113k miles. I've done some mods too it but nothing too serious. Lately my car has been really acting up. It's burning oil and antifreeze (white and bluish smoke coming out my exhaust) my rpm's are at about 2000 when at idle and that's after my car has warmed up (open loop I think). Also, when I have been driving and sit still at a red light my rpm's will drop slowly from about 1500 to about 800 rpm, and my engine seems to want to backfire. My timing is fine, but the engine tech people, keep trying to tell me it's a sensor. I don't think this could be it. Any advice would be nice.

-Matt

 

Only time an engine would burn oil AND antifreeze is if you've got either a cracked block, cracked head, or broken head gasket. From the sounds of it I'm guessing it's a head gasket but it could be any of those conditions. You've got a mess on your hands so clean it up or take it off the street. Antifreeze burning is not a good sign. The oil could be from a lot of places. Either way it sounds like you need to rip into the block and take a look at everything. No sensor would cause burning of oil. Now if the burning is just smoke then you're running too rich or not enough timing. Black smoke also looks like dark blue but if it's rich you'll notice the smell and if you've got a cat converter, it'll probably burn a hole in your carpet like it did mine.

 

Thanks Jon. I'm kinda scared tho, because I think it's a cracked piston, due to the high rpms, and the funny banging noise coming from my engine. Thanks

 

cracked piston or piston ring wouldn't account for your burning coolant, that's something else

 

he is right, it most likely sounds like a head gasket, i just had a similar problem, but only my oil was squirting out between the head and the block on the 8th cylinder , once your A/C is out of the way and your front pulleys and ACC are off, the heads are not to hard to take off, if this is your problem i suggest you take your heads to a machine shop have them hot tanked, magnafluxed, have them regrind the valves, and mill the head to block surface of the head,to assure proper sealing when reinstalled, i had NAPA machine mine, they did a great job, i payed $178.00 for both heads good luck, i feel your pain


mike

 

Wow, that's actually a great price. I"ve been hearing quotes of 400 plus. Did you pull the A/C out of the way yourself? My only real problem with pulling the heads myself, is I have the stock exhaust manifolds, and one of my bolts has seemed to almost melt making it nearly impossible to pull, also I want it to be done right. Thanks for all the info though, it will really help me.

 

yeah i was surprised when i was quoted at such a low price, and i was even more surprised when i saw the professional quality work they performed, fortunatly my stock exhaust manifold bolts came out easy, i sprayed them down real good with PB blaster penetrent spray and let them soak overnight i believe this helped me greatly, the only things is the manifold studs to Y pipe i can garuntee will bust off, best fix is to drill the broken ones out, go to a hardware store and find long enough bolts to fit , and when you pull your A/C double check your system is totally evacuated cause it will spary everything everywhere i learned that the hard way, (but i was in a hurry and i didnt think) if you bust a bolt in the head, the machine shop can drill it out and retap the threads for you i was not charged extra, but of course your quote may vary from mine, so the only concern you should have is the bolts that bolt the Y pipe to the bottom of the exhaust manifold


mike

 

wicked,
if you have concerns over breaking an exhaust maniford bolt, there is an old trick. you torch off the heads of the bolts. this takes the tension off the bolts and gets rid of the rust at the bolt heads. from there you slide the manifolds off and use penetrating oil and visegrips to take the studs out. but i highly suggest that you try to use tons of penetrating oil and time to let it work, unless you really think they will break off.
as for the y-pipe, again with the torch. you heat up the manifold where the stud goes into the manifold till it's glowing red and then screw the entire stud and rusted nut out. from there, go to your favorite parts store and get some new exhaust manifold studs and slap it all back together.
this would also be a good time to step up to headers if you can afford it.
luck,
jess

 

if you can afford it you outta look into getting a set of world products torquer 305 heads...would run you about 800$ but im sure it would make a HUGE difference

 

TBI engines are notorious for blown head gaskets on the back holes due to coolant jackets that are about 1/4" away from the combustion chamber. My truck just did it and it kept blowing up heater cores. You can run a Leakdown test on the cylinders and check for bubbles or air rushing out of the radiator. That will also tell you if you have bad valve guides, valve seats, or rings.

 

Do a compresion test to narrow it down before you tear it appart.Should be abile to find a low cylinder.If there are two low cylinders next to each other the gasket is leaking between them.