K-engine project - A possible low cost rebuild? - Page 13

MG Tom · 19th May 2014, 10:25

Do stick with it, once fixed properly it will last a very long time indeed!

corneliusfield · 20th May 2014, 18:43

Hi,
Yep, I will. Just been working on it now.
Cheers.

planenut · 10th April 2016, 04:32

I'm on night shift so had a bit of time, now read this entire thread and what an outstanding one it is.

Many thanks for your work here Einar, absolutely brilliant.

Fred (planenut)

bl52krz · 11th April 2016, 20:51

Just read this project from start to finish. Absolutely brilliant. To be honest, it brings back when I completely stripped the engine down out of my Daimler v8 250 saloon. The joy of turning the key for the first time, and it fires up and runs perfectly. Sold that car during the fuel rises in the late 70s.

beinet1 · 12th April 2016, 05:36

Hi all,

Thanks a lot for the feedback

It was a fun project to do

This engine has been in daily use for two years now and covered nearly 30000miles without causing any serious trouble.

The sad thing is that this project has not had the happy ending I wished it should have. The engine developed a coolant loss over the first year which was around 0,5 litre / tank of fuel. Traces of coolant was found in the oil so I decided to replace the HG. I used the same type of gasket together with the shim and this one has been completely watertight since changed. The other issue is that it is burning to much oil. Around 0.5l/tank of fuel. Compression test is fine and engine runs like a dream. I still wonder where the oil goes. Is it past the piston rings or valve seals? What went wrong? I could swap the cylinder head with a known good one I have to see if it cures the problem but at this point i do not bother to do anything so I just monitor the oil level and tops it up with the cheapest oil I can find when necessary. A bit disappointing, but thats life

beinet1 · 13th October 2016, 04:50

Hi all,

The story continues...
Lately I have got tired of this car and its niggles and was seriously thinking of let it go to the scrapper and replace it with a Jag X-type estate. The engine drinks oil now, the DMF does not feels good and there has been a whine/rattle from the release bearing since it was installed. There is also an oil leak coming from the flywheel side of the engine. I do not know if this is from the bell housing or between the engine layers. Fixing these things would require some cash and man hours. After a 400 mile trip this weekend I have had some time to think and decided that I would try to do the best out of what I have and try to source an used DMF and get things up to a working standard.

The old engine was mainly replaced due to a misfire under load, high RPM which I could not get sorted when it was installed. The old engine did not use any water and oil after it got it last HG change, so this one is mechanically good. The misfire is still there with the "new" engine and the cause lies somewhere else.

The plan now is to put the old engine back, together with a good used DMF and a new slave cylinder. Clutch has only done 32k miles so I do not bother to replace this. A new timing belt and WP will be put on the old engine together with a few other service items and gaskets.

Doing this would keep the cost down to a minimum and hopefully make this car mechanically acceptable again and I will investigate the misfire further after all these bits are in place.
I also see this as this as the best solution economically as spending a £300-400£ on the required parts to keep the car running for a few more years than spending £6000 on a Jag....

More to come....

beinet1 · 14th December 2016, 08:07

Hi all,

The old engine is now back into the car: http://forums.mg-rover.org/mg-zt-rov...4/index11.html

So, the project engine after 60000km`s:

This engine is now back in the engine stand. Turning the engine by hand shows me that there is a badly leaking valve on the inlet of cyl.3.
I removed the cylinder head and discovered a large amount of carbon deposits, evenly in all cylinders. This is probably due to the large amount of oil burned through this engine:

Based on my observation, I have made the following assumption: A badly leaking inlet valve on no.3 has caused the misfire under load condition. This leak has also created excessive pressure in the inlet manifold and crankcase which has pressed the oil past the piston rings and out other seals. If the oil consumption was caused by bad piston rings or valve seals, the carbon deposits would only be showing in the actual cylinder and not evenly as in this case. The fault code reader also address the misfire to cyl.3.

Does anyone follow my assumptions?

I think I will investigate the affected valves closer. The focus should also be put on the tappets for the actual valve.

minimutly · 15th December 2016, 20:16

Is that piston no4 burnt? And yes its possible ecxessive crankase pressure caused your leaks. Job to say if it was valve seals or rings, but I would remove each one and check them in a liner. Its unlikely that all the stem seals are faulty?

kaiser · 16th December 2016, 05:34

I don't think there is much chance of an inlet valve leaking, unless there is something seriously amiss somewhere else. Normally it is the exhaust valves that are highly stressed and they can get burned and leak.
Also the whole engine looks stressed. I think you have general wear problems, and rings and guides would stand up as possibles.

As mentioned it looks as if pieces of piston are missing and also as if there are marks on the deck of at least one, how can that be??.
The engine in one word looks "tired, and I think it was a good idea to pull it.

Let's see when you have stripped it. Parts are easy to replace, and not that expensive. I wonder if any of this is caused by lower compression owing to the saver shim? Not that I can see how that should have happened, but the engine does not look right to me. Even the colours of the valves are off. It looks as if it has run cool, fat and rich.

beinet1 · 16th December 2016, 07:44

Hi,

One inlet valve was leaking badly, no doubt about that. I will check this one closer on next opportunity. Except for the excessive carbon build up, the piston crowns are fine.
As already mentioned, it surprises me that the carbon buildup is evenly on all cylinders. If there was faulty rings or valve seals on one cylinder, the carbon buildup would only show on that one. One other possibility is that the overall quality of the piston/liners fitted is bad. I do not bother to put to much effort in this engine now, but finding the answer for the issue would be nice to have in my experience pool

19th May 2014, 10:25	#121
MG Tom Posted a thing or two ex. MG ZT+ Join Date: May 2013 Location: Northampton-ish Posts: 1,484 Thanks: 156 Thanked 98 Times in 95 Posts	Do stick with it, once fixed properly it will last a very long time indeed! __________________ '03 MG ZT+ 1.8T X-Power Grey with Monogram 'WTD' black alcantara trim. [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC] My project thread HERE

11th April 2016, 20:51	#124
bl52krz This is my second home Rover 75 cdt club + Rover 2.5 KV6 Conni SE Join Date: May 2008 Location: Birmingham Posts: 11,393 Thanks: 6,587 Thanked 2,262 Times in 1,729 Posts	Just read this project from start to finish. Absolutely brilliant. To be honest, it brings back when I completely stripped the engine down out of my Daimler v8 250 saloon. The joy of turning the key for the first time, and it fires up and runs perfectly. Sold that car during the fuel rises in the late 70s. __________________ Great Barr, Birmingham.

13th October 2016, 04:50	#126
beinet1 Posted a thing or two Rover 75 2.0 V6 Auto Join Date: May 2011 Location: Sandnes - Norway Posts: 1,560 Thanks: 64 Thanked 283 Times in 174 Posts	Hi all, The story continues... Lately I have got tired of this car and its niggles and was seriously thinking of let it go to the scrapper and replace it with a Jag X-type estate. The engine drinks oil now, the DMF does not feels good and there has been a whine/rattle from the release bearing since it was installed. There is also an oil leak coming from the flywheel side of the engine. I do not know if this is from the bell housing or between the engine layers. Fixing these things would require some cash and man hours. After a 400 mile trip this weekend I have had some time to think and decided that I would try to do the best out of what I have and try to source an used DMF and get things up to a working standard. The old engine was mainly replaced due to a misfire under load, high RPM which I could not get sorted when it was installed. The old engine did not use any water and oil after it got it last HG change, so this one is mechanically good. The misfire is still there with the "new" engine and the cause lies somewhere else. The plan now is to put the old engine back, together with a good used DMF and a new slave cylinder. Clutch has only done 32k miles so I do not bother to replace this. A new timing belt and WP will be put on the old engine together with a few other service items and gaskets. Doing this would keep the cost down to a minimum and hopefully make this car mechanically acceptable again and I will investigate the misfire further after all these bits are in place. I also see this as this as the best solution economically as spending a £300-400£ on the required parts to keep the car running for a few more years than spending £6000 on a Jag.... More to come.... Last edited by beinet1; 13th October 2016 at 04:58..

14th December 2016, 08:07	#127
beinet1 Posted a thing or two Rover 75 2.0 V6 Auto Join Date: May 2011 Location: Sandnes - Norway Posts: 1,560 Thanks: 64 Thanked 283 Times in 174 Posts	Hi all, The old engine is now back into the car: http://forums.mg-rover.org/mg-zt-rov...4/index11.html So, the project engine after 60000km`s: This engine is now back in the engine stand. Turning the engine by hand shows me that there is a badly leaking valve on the inlet of cyl.3. I removed the cylinder head and discovered a large amount of carbon deposits, evenly in all cylinders. This is probably due to the large amount of oil burned through this engine: Based on my observation, I have made the following assumption: A badly leaking inlet valve on no.3 has caused the misfire under load condition. This leak has also created excessive pressure in the inlet manifold and crankcase which has pressed the oil past the piston rings and out other seals. If the oil consumption was caused by bad piston rings or valve seals, the carbon deposits would only be showing in the actual cylinder and not evenly as in this case. The fault code reader also address the misfire to cyl.3. Does anyone follow my assumptions? I think I will investigate the affected valves closer. The focus should also be put on the tappets for the actual valve. Last edited by beinet1; 16th January 2018 at 19:04..

16th December 2016, 05:34	#129
kaiser This is my second home 75 Tourer 2.5 Auto, 1.8T, 75V8ZT Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Johannesburg ZA Posts: 6,200 Thanks: 1 Thanked 859 Times in 613 Posts	I don't think there is much chance of an inlet valve leaking, unless there is something seriously amiss somewhere else. Normally it is the exhaust valves that are highly stressed and they can get burned and leak. Also the whole engine looks stressed. I think you have general wear problems, and rings and guides would stand up as possibles. As mentioned it looks as if pieces of piston are missing and also as if there are marks on the deck of at least one, how can that be??. The engine in one word looks "tired, and I think it was a good idea to pull it. Let's see when you have stripped it. Parts are easy to replace, and not that expensive. I wonder if any of this is caused by lower compression owing to the saver shim? Not that I can see how that should have happened, but the engine does not look right to me. Even the colours of the valves are off. It looks as if it has run cool, fat and rich. __________________ Worth his V8 in gold

20th May 2014, 18:43	#122
corneliusfield Newbie MG ZT Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Barnsley Posts: 27 Thanks: 1 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Hi, Yep, I will. Just been working on it now. Cheers.

10th April 2016, 04:32	#123
planenut Regional Secretary Rover 1.8T Tourer Join Date: May 2007 Location: Heathrow Posts: 6,955 Thanks: 1,551 Thanked 2,036 Times in 1,264 Posts	I'm on night shift so had a bit of time, now read this entire thread and what an outstanding one it is. Many thanks for your work here Einar, absolutely brilliant. Fred (planenut)

12th April 2016, 05:36	#125
beinet1 Posted a thing or two Rover 75 2.0 V6 Auto Join Date: May 2011 Location: Sandnes - Norway Posts: 1,560 Thanks: 64 Thanked 283 Times in 174 Posts	Hi all, Thanks a lot for the feedback It was a fun project to do This engine has been in daily use for two years now and covered nearly 30000miles without causing any serious trouble. The sad thing is that this project has not had the happy ending I wished it should have. The engine developed a coolant loss over the first year which was around 0,5 litre / tank of fuel. Traces of coolant was found in the oil so I decided to replace the HG. I used the same type of gasket together with the shim and this one has been completely watertight since changed. The other issue is that it is burning to much oil. Around 0.5l/tank of fuel. Compression test is fine and engine runs like a dream. I still wonder where the oil goes. Is it past the piston rings or valve seals? What went wrong? I could swap the cylinder head with a known good one I have to see if it cures the problem but at this point i do not bother to do anything so I just monitor the oil level and tops it up with the cheapest oil I can find when necessary. A bit disappointing, but thats life

15th December 2016, 20:16	#128
minimutly Posted a thing or two mg zt Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: cardigan Posts: 1,087 Thanks: 28 Thanked 187 Times in 158 Posts	Is that piston no4 burnt? And yes its possible ecxessive crankase pressure caused your leaks. Job to say if it was valve seals or rings, but I would remove each one and check them in a liner. Its unlikely that all the stem seals are faulty?

16th December 2016, 07:44	#130
beinet1 Posted a thing or two Rover 75 2.0 V6 Auto Join Date: May 2011 Location: Sandnes - Norway Posts: 1,560 Thanks: 64 Thanked 283 Times in 174 Posts	Hi, One inlet valve was leaking badly, no doubt about that. I will check this one closer on next opportunity. Except for the excessive carbon build up, the piston crowns are fine. As already mentioned, it surprises me that the carbon buildup is evenly on all cylinders. If there was faulty rings or valve seals on one cylinder, the carbon buildup would only show on that one. One other possibility is that the overall quality of the piston/liners fitted is bad. I do not bother to put to much effort in this engine now, but finding the answer for the issue would be nice to have in my experience pool Last edited by beinet1; 16th December 2016 at 07:48..