Hey ya'll,

So been round pulling plugs to check if the revs drop etc and cylinder 4 doesn't seem to drop.

 

What do I need to go round checking?

I put the timing light pick up on that cylinder and its flashing.

 

Spark plug?

Hi mate, there's a couple of videos on the first past if that helps for the amount of smoke

cause smoke like what? i cant see anywhere on this post what quantities of smoke there was.

being down 2 cylinders will be even less likely to make smoke due to the dilution of the remaining cylinders. 10:1 AFRs and richer do smoke, especially those with no cats. i agreed a compression test is a good idea. if one wasnt to hand, there are other things to check.

 

im just saying its important not to jump to conclusions is all...

 

There are videos.....

 

10:1 AFRs do not smoke like that in the video. It is completely different. If I run my car at 10:1, there is no smoke on idle. It will be different on boost. I've dealt with many a car that is down a cylinder due to either no spark or no fuel, and they have not smoked like the car in the video.

where was the drops of antifreeze you saw?

That plug looks wet... was it covered in petrol?

Yeah it was a little wet mate.

 

The water/antifreeze looked like it was on the plenum next to the where the coilpacks go. I'm notompletely sure it it came out of the cylinder tho

 

 

leaking washer jet pipe from bonnet???

No as it wasn't wet when I started, that water would be blue too

Not much more to suggest other than a comp test I'm afraid. If it's spat coolant out of the plug hole, is producing smoke out the back with what appears to be coolant, then coolant is getting into the combustion chamber.

 

It's still very difficult to diagnose over the internet without knowing exactly what is going on. Honestly, it would have been quicker to do a compression test. The results will then tell you what to look into next. If you don't want to, then turn it over again and keep an eye on the plug hole to see if coolant is definitely being expelled from the combustion chamber so you are 100% sure. If it spits coolant out and you see it happening, you know there are serious issues.

Ill do the test when I get the time. It wouldn't have been quicker because I haven't been at home apart from the 20 minutes it took.

 

I would try it again but the top rad pipe is pissing all over with the engine on and it's gonna take at least 4 days to get a new one.

 

Mikey the rad didn't have the cap off

Am I right in thinking I need to do the test when the engine is warm/up to temp? As that's gonna be hard wi the rad hose pissing out

Definitely the cylinder spitting:

 

Well it looks like a slightly red colour. Would a similar thing happen on another cylinder without any problems and would it just be fuel?

that is NOT a good sign.

 

this may sound stupid, but taste it. If its sweet - its coolant.

I'm not that thirsty lol. So is it possibly head gasket then? I will be doing a compression test but think the battery might need charging a bit first

Can one of you confirm the correct way to do the compression test too? Obviously I take off the coil packs and the plugs, remove the balance bar. Throttle fully open.

 

Electrics wise, is it the CaS I need to unplug? Also anything else I need to unplug and remove etc or am I pretty much where I need to be on this

That last vid to me mate looks conclusive evidence of head gasket gone across a water gallery....its pissin coolant out and it will be this water thats shorting the plug out and making it a plug down.

Here you go Lee:

 

http://www.twinturbo.net/net/viewmsg.aspx?forum=technical&msg_id=868155

 

http://www.twinturbo.net/ttnetfaq/FAQpages/compression.html

i dont see what advantage removing the balance line would be. if both TBs are wide open the VE is going to be as good as its going to get anyway.

 

unplugging the CAS will stop the ECU 'firing' both fuel and spark. if all plugs are removed there isnt a great need for this, you only need to spin the engine over on the starter for a 5 seconds or so anyway. so yes, you're doing it right.

pull the fuel pump fuse, remove all plugs. Turn over several times with the throttle open until the gauge settles. take readings when the engine is cold to see how everything is sealing before thermal expansion. Published figures are taken from a warm engine.

 

The minimum is 128psi, factory is 171 psi, no more than 14psi difference between cylinders. If one cyl is low, drop some oil down the bore and retake. If compression increases, it's usually worn rings. If the result is the same, issue is in the head or head gasket. 2 adjacent cylinders low can point to the head gasket. All cylinders low can be a incorrect timing (eg a tooth out) or an engine that badly needs a rebuild.

 

Generally-speaking, if you've got all 6 cylinders at 150+psi, you're looking at a healthy engine

Was it you that was also struggling to seal a water pipe? I wonder if these two are connected ie the cylinder is pressurising the coolant beyond the norm so it leaks....

If your burning coolant...that's bad news.

What a bummer. I'm interested to see how these compression results turn out as my headgasket was blown, smoking an exhaust like that but the results came back perfect

..Head Gasket ...

 

Fuel wouldn't be that much liquid coming out ..

and its pointless doing comp test with that happening

Compression test done (on a cold engine), I've put it in order that I did the test and I've taken a picture of each result

 

Cylinder followed by the result:

 

4 - 9 bar

 

2 - 9.5 bar

 

6 - 9.5 bar

 

1 - 11 bar

 

3 - 12 bar

 

5 - 11 bar

I also had a lick and found it very very sweet

Was it you that was also struggling to seal a water pipe? I wonder if these two are connected ie the cylinder is pressurising the coolant beyond the norm so it leaks....

If your burning coolant...that's bad news.

 

I still have a coolant leak mate and need a new top rad pipe (ordered one today but it'll take about a week)