Bramham89

The engine machine shop has honed it and fitted new rings which should last about 2000 miles they said. It will have to do for now as I'm moving house in December and need to get the car moving. As long as it passes one MoT that'll keep me going for a year. I might have time at a later date to do a 4efe swap or failing that there's the odd 1e starlet breaking on ebay from time to time.

I've got the block stripped and checked my ring gaps with the old piston rings and got somewhere around 1.5 mm I took the block to a local engine shop and they said it looked like an engine that had done very high mileage. It had worn 2 grooves inside the bores top and bottom. (I thought that was normal) I need to take the pistons and rings so they can check if there is anything they can do with it, but it's not looking good. It would need a re-bore but there's not any O/S pistons/rings big enough for the bore it would require, and putting liners in is just stupidly expensive. So I've

I've finally got some good evidence that my piston rings are causing my issues. The first leak down test was done with the rocker cover on. I've just tested again with the cover off and found that the valves are only shut on one of the strokes where the piston is at TDC on this engine. All 4 cylinders leak through the crank case, and not through head, inlet or exhaust. I also did another compression test with some oil down the spark plug holes and the compression shot up to the 180 PSI mark. So it's not what I was hoping for but at least I know what needs to be done now. I lea

Sorry but what's a PK test?

Definitely not a bent valve. I've put some smoke stop in to thicken the oil and it there may be a slight improvement but it's still smoking. Still lots of moisture coming from the exhaust but no loss of coolant :| The rockers are adjustable and all the valve gaps are set. I may take the head off and check the valve seals properly. Might also stick it in for the mot and just hope for the best. At least I'll find out if it's oil or steam lol.

I can't smell any gases in the coolant and there were no bubbles coming out of the coolant system. :/ To be honest it is possible that the head gasket has failed I guess, or the head cracked. When I did the leak down test the air coming from the inlet exhaust could be going through an open valve in the adjacent cylinder. Maybe. I think I'm at the point now where I might just ask the garage to diagnose it for me. Get them to do a proper leak down test and emissions test. I'm completely clueless right now as there are so many things it could be. Really reluctant to take it to th

I just started the car up again today to see how bad the smoke was, as I've noticed it less the last time it was driven out the rear view. It seems that there is barely any smoke at all when it first starts up, even with a little dab on the accelerator. There is however some sooty water dribbling out the back after a bit of a rev. Once warmed up is when it really starts to smoke, although I am convinced that it is steam. It doesn't have much of a smell to it and I think it only looked the slightest bit blue as it blew over the tarmac. Looks completely white to me on our concrete drive.

OK, so I attempted my leak down test today, although the tester was playing up so didn't read the percentage of leakage (never returned to 100% and went to way past 0% when it wasn't even connected and blowing air out the end) The leak down test was done with the engine quite cold unfortunately as I was in a rush and the tester wasn't working right anyway. I made sure each cylinder was at TDC using the crank pulley markings and checking with a cable down the spark plug hole. (1 and 4 done together then 2 and 3) Despite not having the percentage of leaking, I found where each cylinder w

@ nEP71n - I've spent a fair bit of time on the head, what exactly do you suggest is wrong with the head? @ Stu - What does this test do? Not heard of that before :/

Is it worth changing the rings without pulling the engine out to have it honed at a shop? I know the bores are silky smooth so it's not gonna help with bedding the new rings in. I'd be willing to try it if it were possible to remove the pistons and reinstall them through the sump but it seems like a bad short-cut to me.

I've had a look at the breather hoses that I can see. There's just two on the rocker cover. They seem clear. I can blow through them anyway. I got the leak down tester today and should have a compressor tomorrow.

I will check the breather hoses tonight if I get chance. Hadn't thought of that, although it did only start after the timing belt failure. Will let you know soon. 4efte would be ace but also costs the price of the car to buy one lol. I'm guessing plugging the injector holes is just a case of finding a bolt with the correct thread and cutting it down? And if I can't use the mechanical fuel pump a leccy one with a regulator? I already have a cheapo regulator. Any chance of using the old 1e carb? Just to save some pennies, I'm not fussed if it only ends up making the same bhp as the 1e as long

I managed to find a leak down tester cheap enough and I've tracked down a compressor I can borrow. I'll post up the results when it arrives, and see if I can make any sense of them. If it does turn out to be the piston rings would an engine swap be much hassle? I will try track down a 1E but I've seen some 4EFE conversions with a carb but there's no write-ups. They are more easily available and probably cheaper too. I'm looking the quickest, easiest and cheapest option, I don't have any interest in extra power etc. Cheers Phil

Thanks, if there's nothing else I can check I will get one.

Hi there, sorry for the long post. I really need some help though, I'm completely stuck. I have an EP70 starlet with low mileage in great overall condition and I'm keen to keep it running. It has a 1E engine When I bought the car it drove well, good on fuel, no smoking, no misfiring. It had been stood a while so the old oil had caked the inside of the rocker cover and the head and the ignition timing was advanced too far, but once fixed it ran better. Then the timing belt snapped I put a new belt on and did a compression test, just turning it by hand. It would probably have go