SirFireWolfe Posted February 12, 2022 Share Posted February 12, 2022 Hi all, My '87 hatch just broke down earlier today, at first I thought it might be a head gasket issue since the car was constantly overheating and it looked like oil might be getting into the coolant. However, after it finally stopped running one of the things I had noticed was that there was a small pool of oil at the bottom of the air filter. I had just put in a quart earlier in the day because the oil pressure was reading low, and the research I did elsewhere indicated this might be a PCV issue? I'm not sure what is wrong with the engine, any help y'all can provide would be greatly appreciated and I'd be happy to provide any details I know or could find out Thanks, Xavier Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_freddo Posted February 12, 2022 Share Posted February 12, 2022 It could be a blocked PVC system or engine blow by (expected for an older engine) being pushed into the air filter box. Nothing to stress about unless you’re seeing more oil in your filter than in the sump. Don’t fill up with oil because of low pressure. Always check the oil level when the vehicle is on level ground and the engine off for at least five mins. Low oil could indicate a worn oil pump or a stuck open pressure relief valve. Cheers Bennie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirFireWolfe Posted February 12, 2022 Author Share Posted February 12, 2022 Thanks for the advice Bennie, that seems to cover the oil related problems, but what might be causing me to overheat? That's been a much more overarching problem with this engine and I feel like it's starting to get a bit serious Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_freddo Posted February 12, 2022 Share Posted February 12, 2022 Hopefully it didn’t stop because it was too hot. I’ve seen an EA81 that ran so hot it melted the bottom edge of the dizzy cap that contacted the metal of the dizzy body! Needless to say it was retired after that. It could be a dead coil or ignition module in the dizzy. I had a coil suddenly die on me and it also killed my ignition coil. Replace both and see if this is the issue. DO NOT just replace the ignition module, if the coil is dead it will kill the ignition module in the blink of an eye. Ask me how I know. $75 down the drain Not much else really stops these engines other than a lack of oil or coolant. Actually there’s a fuel cut module under the dashboard. Six pin plug into a black box that cuts the fuel pump in the event of a crash, no engine revolutions = no pump operation. You should be able to hear your fuel pump prime with the ignition on and run when cranking. Not the easiest thing to work out! What have you tried so far? Fuel down the carb? Investigated the spark situation? Does it crank over or is it seized? Cheers Bennie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirFireWolfe Posted February 12, 2022 Author Share Posted February 12, 2022 Hi again Bennie, I haven't looked to far into the situation on this, but what I did notice some oil which looked to have gotten all over the dizzy cap, might have seeped in and gunked it up, I've actually got a second dizzy around in my spares, should I try just dropping that in? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sasse Posted February 12, 2022 Share Posted February 12, 2022 If I read your missive correctly: Overheating is likely either: bad head gasket (or worse a bad head) or something wrong with cooling system. Water pump, radiator, collapsed hose, etc, but, oil in the coolant, or coolant in the oil points to a head gasket or head issue. my $0.02 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirFireWolfe Posted February 12, 2022 Author Share Posted February 12, 2022 (edited) Well, given that I've just replaced my radiator, water pump, and lower hose, as well as cutting down the upper hose by about half an inch to remove a split, I think that takes the cooling system out of the question. As far as the engine starting, it'll crank, and sometimes it'll seem like it's about to start, but it won't. Edit: I've just tried getting the PCV valve out but my socket was too big to get it in there I'll try to figure out how to get it out, but it's being a real pain in my backside Edited February 12, 2022 by SirFireWolfe Update on situation regarding PCV valve replacement Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirFireWolfe Posted February 12, 2022 Author Share Posted February 12, 2022 Also, update regarding the cranking situation: watching the carb with the air filter cover off, as I crank it some small puffs of smoke or something pop out from the carb rhythmically, it seems like it's just about to start up and then nothing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveT Posted February 13, 2022 Share Posted February 13, 2022 Any air in the cooling system that builds up enough will cause an overheat. Repeat (or even one) overheats damage the head gaskets. Typically, the compression pushes exhaust gasses into the cooling system. This gets worse over time, until it's so bad you can't drive the car without risking seize ing the engine. Any place the coolant leaks can start this failure. Carb gasket. Intake to head gaskets. Head gaskets. Cracked head. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirFireWolfe Posted February 13, 2022 Author Share Posted February 13, 2022 Right, I figure at this point the engine at least has some head gasket fatigue, if not outright damage, but it hasn't seized as yet, it'll still crank when I turn the ignition but as I said it just doesn't want to turn over for some reason. Also worth mentioning that I did replace the PCV valve yesterday, no change in the car's operation (or lack thereof) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pksjeep Posted February 14, 2022 Share Posted February 14, 2022 (edited) It looks like you replaced some hoses. There is a small one that runs behind the distributer on the passenger side of the engine. This one leaked on mine, I didn't know the hose was there. The hot coolant would mix with the oil and grime on the engine and look like oil was dripping, I also had a cracked plastic plug in the radiator. Check the heater hoses. There is also a small hose that goes from the heater hose to the carb. there is a plastic thermo device that cracks and leaks. The best way to check for leaks is to do a pressure test. You can get the tool at HF, on possibly rent/Borrow one from Autozone or, O'Reilly. You pressurize the system and wait to see if it bleeds down. Plus, you don't get burnt looking around the hot engine parts. Edited February 14, 2022 by pksjeep spelling and grammer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveT Posted February 14, 2022 Share Posted February 14, 2022 You can be mislead by cold pressure tests. A leak has to be big enough to show up with that test. Many that cause the slow coolant loss are too small. You won't see the most common leaks that go into the intake via the carb or intake gaskets. The beginning failure of head gaskets, the leak is so small that coolant doesn't go into the cylinder, but the many times higher pressure of the exhaust gasses gets into the coolant. The gasses build up until they accumulate enough to cause a bubble in the water pump, which doesn't pump air so well, then it over heats. For the not firing while cranking, check fuel, spark, choke. Simple quick check - spray a 1-2 second blast of carb cleaner down the carb. Try to start it. If it fires momentarily, you have spark, so you are missing the fuel. If it doesn't even try to bark off, check the ignitor, coil, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveT Posted February 14, 2022 Share Posted February 14, 2022 If the engine is an EA82, it has a total of 7 hoses in the cooling system. These should all be replaced at least every 10 years. They are all under the same stresses and conditions as a radiator hose. If one is iffy / bad, they are all likely in a similar state. This avoids one of the main ways to loose coolant, which then causes damage the head gaskets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirFireWolfe Posted February 16, 2022 Author Share Posted February 16, 2022 Well, it seems that I've found the reason the engine isn't starting, or at least the probable cause. It sends that while the engine was overheating, it got so hot in the engine bay that it fused the cap of the distributor to its body, if I were to guess the rotor is probably toast in there so I'm looking for a new disty right now, and actually I'm starting to think that I may have just unveiled my new radiator given that it doesn't have a clear fill line like the stock ea81 radiator. As for the hoses in the cooling system, I figured they might all be toast, given that I had to cut the uper hose short to eliminate a leak, and my lower hose almost split the whole way 'round, I'm definitely gonna be looking for a replacement upper hose, I'm not sure how many total hoses the ea81 has in its coolant loop so if any of y'all know that'd be a great help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_freddo Posted February 16, 2022 Share Posted February 16, 2022 If she got that hot your HGs might be toast and the alloy softened too. @GeneralDisorder would have more info on this, I suspect it could be time to look into a new engine or an EJ conversion Bennie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveT Posted February 16, 2022 Share Posted February 16, 2022 That's way hotter than any I ever did. In my experience, any run low on coolant + over normal temperature = head gasket failure, sooner or later. The hotter the quicker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirFireWolfe Posted February 16, 2022 Author Share Posted February 16, 2022 (edited) Alright, well since I've already got the car at my mechanic's, I'll just get a head gasket swap along with the new distributor, I can't really get a whole new engine, seeing as this is already the 2nd one I've had to put in there in the past 6 months Edited February 16, 2022 by SirFireWolfe Typo fix Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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