DaveT

Oil in a cylinder sounds odd. There are no pressurized oil passages that go through the headgaskets. Really bad valve seals or really bad oil rings are the only ways I can imagine it getting there, assuming you ran it before disassembly. Even those wouldn't let in enough to pool though. Wet maybe....

I would check and recheck the dimensions of the odd valves with the bent push rods. The carbon is only looks unusual in the even ness of the coating. If a valve / guide were to get sticky, wouldn't it more likely get stuck open? The strength of the springs has to be considerably less than the strength of the push rods.

make sure the system is full of coolant. The temp gauge on the dash is not accurate from car to car. But if it normally runs at say 1/2, and it suddenly runs higher than normal, it means check everything, something isn't right.

Gear lube used in the diff has a distinct odor.

What kind of transmission do you have? The oil pressure relief valve [in the oil pump for the engine] does not release oil outside of the engine. If you have an automatic, you will have an ATF dipstick, near the brake master cylinder. AND a diff oil dipstick, under the spare tire, opposite side, rear of the bell housing.

I've got a 180 in one Loyale, and a 190 in the other. I haven't noticed anything drivability wise. 160 I think would be too cool. The car with the lower thermostat seems to have less heat for the heater in winter. I'm surprised 10 degrees makes that much difference - but it's possible something else is messing with it also.

Parts cars are a great thing.

I had an 86 gl. Most parts were interchangeable with all my others, including the 90 loyale. Only catch for me is I never had a dl.

I think I remember the name bosal for aftermarket stockish better than cheapest exhaust patts. They didn't last as long as factory, but were a half or a third of the cost.

It doesn't effect power noticeably. But when the cat fails, it's an 80.00 easy to find part, not a rare couple hundred. Also puts an end to having to replace rusted off pipes with good cats...

Don't know about that specific car, but the AC condenser is typically the heat exchanger placed in front of the radiator.

Here is my exhaust: http://home.comcast.net/~davidtief/exhaust.html

The full set of 4 books was over $150.00 when I bought them from a Subaru dealer in 1988. I've seen them on ebay sometimes. I'd be happy.

Remove it from the car. In the driveway, wash with bleach etc. Hose off. Let dry. Re install.

They were from about the same time period as the subarus. Most likely corollas. They were (probably still are) used in most cars from then on. I also used then from a random Honda. This reminds me, I'm going to have to find a new place to put my Web pages, since the is no longer is going to provide them.

There are a few threads about how to use Toyota solenoids. As far as I know, I'm the originator of the mod. I am still using the same Toyota solenoids I bought from a junkyard in 1989.

Check the radiator. Are the little thin fins still attached to the tubes that the coolant flows through?

Grease is not the problem. If the coolant system has a recovery tank, there should not be any air in the coolant system after a few drive cycles.

There may be pdfs posted somewhere on the forum. My FSMs are 88 and 90. There may be slight differences. Troubleshooting intermittent electric problems is a pain in the butt. I have seen wires in the engine harness fail by breaking internally - barely any visible external sign of failure. And the loom would have to be removed for that anyway. Factory Service Manual schematic and at least a volt meter. Then you can begin verifying 12V is getting to all the places it is needed. [coil, ECU, etc]

visual inspection is ok to a point. A voltmeter may tell more. Do you have a schematic from a FSM?

Cooling system problem has nothing to do with grease burning off of the cat.

Yep, that connector is for the AC clutch. It should stay disconnected until you replace the missing A/C line. Also missing, seems to be the rotation sensor for the A/C compressor. It is supposed to disengage the clutch if the compressor seizes.

a picture or 2 might help...

Hardware wise, it seems to be the only difference, having swapped a 49 state engine into my Cali car. Maps and all that, I don't know. I could probably pull the ROMs out of a couple and read them, but not having the source code would be beyond me to figure out just what is different. Could there be any tweaks in the maps worth tinkering with?

I found the same chart in my 90 FSM. Same pin has the wire for 49 / California. Sounds / looks like they are the same. Can't find it in my 86 manual, although the MPFI section shows a similar chart, with a different pin for the same function.