oczuk32 Posted September 4 Share Posted September 4 Tried starting the engine this evening and it sounded like it completely lost compression. Any thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushytails Posted September 4 Share Posted September 4 Are the accessories (alternator, etc) turning? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oczuk32 Posted September 4 Author Share Posted September 4 2 hours ago, bushytails said: Are the accessories (alternator, etc) turning? Everything is turning over and getting spark. It cranks, but then stalls out. Based on what someone mentioned, the old varnished fuel may have damaged the valve seat seals or piston rings, causing a loss of compression. I drained the old fuel from the tank and blew out the fuel lines with compressed air. Then I added a couple gallons of fresh gas along with a treatment. I suspect the treatment is doing its job by breaking down the varnish in the tank—but that might be sending residue into the engine. I’ll monitor how it performs over the next few days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushytails Posted September 5 Share Posted September 5 If everything is turning, you probably just washed the cylinder walls, and it'll sound normal again after you fix the fuel problems and get it running for a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_freddo Posted September 6 Share Posted September 6 Worst case scenario your valves are stuck open from some gummy crap. You should be able to pull them closed again with the rocker covers removed. If it happens again afterwards, I’d be looking at spraying some sort of solvent or fresh fuel down the intake while cranking to hopefully clean up the gum that’s holding them open. Cheers Bennie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushytails Posted September 6 Share Posted September 6 I doubt it's anything actually mechanical, just because it's all cylinders at once. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_freddo Posted September 7 Share Posted September 7 9 hours ago, bushytails said: I doubt it's anything actually mechanical, just because it's all cylinders at once. A complete loss of compression suggests it’s mechanical. It would be odd for all cylinders to lose compression, yes, but stranger things happen though. Someone even suggested that the cylinder walls were washed and will come good. I don’t know what that means exactly though - but it is something mechanical that’s the issue. I’d be flushing out the old fuel rather than having the engine eat it. I’d put the highest octane fuel you can get and run that for several tanks, then return to your regular fuel octane rating you use. Cheers 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushytails Posted September 7 Share Posted September 7 I'm the one who suggested that the cylinders were washed. lol. The piston rings seal with a very thin coat of oil on the cylinder wall. If you ever get fuel without starting, like trying to get a bunch of old gas and a dirty carb to run, the fuel washes this thin oil coat off the cylinder walls, and you lose compression. Fixing the problem that caused it not to start (i.e. flushing bad fuel, and dismantling and cleaning a gummed up carb), and starting it, will get oil slung back onto the cylinder walls, restoring the ring seal, and restoring compression. Sticky valves or such aren't going to happen simultaneously to all four cylinders from a running engine... Mechanical things that could affect all cylinders at once are a broken crank, broken cam (I saw this once! ... but there was a lot more broken too), broken timing gears, slipping ring gear (so you're not actually cranking the engine), etc... But if the accessories and dist are turning, those are all going to be fine. Broken cam or timing gears also cause a distinctly different sound, since some cylinders will be stuck with both valves closed, and compress each revolution - the sound of an EJ ready for a timing belt and half the valves replaced.... Am I positive I'm right? Of course not. They could have blown both headgaskets at once, or some other simultaneous multiple failure. Or the engine is total crap and never actually had any approximation of full compression but was limping along. But, based on my experience, I think it's the most likely diagnosis, which is why I said "probably". 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el_freddo Posted September 8 Share Posted September 8 Makes sense. Thanks for the explanation of cylinder washing. I wouldn’t think you’d lose that much compression though unless rings are super shot already. But I could be wrong on that too. I too said it was unlikely all four cylinders would have a stuck valve. This one seems almost the same as removing the spark plugs and cranking. Cheers Bennie 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oczuk32 Posted Tuesday at 03:05 AM Author Share Posted Tuesday at 03:05 AM Updates... Was able to get it started again. Yes it's the old varnish gasoline that created that slick coating on the cylinder. Reason I know is cause I drain the 4 gallons of gasoline and filter it back to my Suzuki Samurai to burn it off. The next day I went to start my Suzuki. I got the same slick no start issue. Took some starting fluid to crank the engine on. Crazy that fuel would cause that. Gave me reason to take a trip to the mountains to completely burn off the fuel. The Subaru fuel tank has come out and discover a huge layer of sludge and rust. Drop it off at a radiator shop and see if it could be saved.Updates… I managed to get it started again. Turns out the old varnished gasoline was creating a slick coating on the cylinder. I figured it out after draining 4 gallons and filtering it into my Suzuki Samurai to burn off. The next day, when I tried starting the Suzuki, I ran into the same slick no-start issue. A little starting fluid finally got the engine to crank. Crazy that the fuel I added just days prior could varnish so quickly! At least it gave me an excuse to take a mountain trip to burn it off completely. As for the Subaru, I pulled the fuel tank and found a thick layer of sludge and rust, so I dropped it off at a radiator shop to see if it can be saved. Bushytails you were smack on on the that issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moosens Posted Tuesday at 04:05 AM Share Posted Tuesday at 04:05 AM Just a suggestion for the tank if you take it serious and want it around for maybe the next generation or so. Moyer in PA does an awesome job. If I could post pics easily I’d show you. They blast is rust free inside and out, do repairs if necessary, and treat it with their own patented formula which is NOT epoxy and good for all fuels. Tank looks ready for another 50 years. Good luck with it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oczuk32 Posted Tuesday at 05:09 AM Author Share Posted Tuesday at 05:09 AM 1 hour ago, moosens said: Just a suggestion for the tank if you take it serious and want it around for maybe the next generation or so. Moyer in PA does an awesome job. If I could post pics easily I’d show you. They blast is rust free inside and out, do repairs if necessary, and treat it with their own patented formula which is NOT epoxy and good for all fuels. Tank looks ready for another 50 years. Good luck with it. Thanks, I'm in California I could just imagine shipping cost. The radiator shop I found has good reputation on repairing fuel tanks. From low budget to high end customize fuel tanks. And I'm going for the low budget repair. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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