My 86 turbo wagon was running ok this winter, rich, rough idle, but it cleared out ok when it was under boost. Drove it around the property a bit, then parked it on a steep downslope with the front down. Aparently one of the injectors was stuck open, and it siphoned a fair bit of gas into the engine. Like a gallon or so. The crankcase was a couple qts overfilled and the exhaust header was full. I tried starting it a couple days after I parked it, it sounded like it had no compression, figured I'd snapped a T-belt. Then I noted gas dripping out of the downpipe flange at the turbo. I drilled a hole in the exhaust and drained that. I tried cranking it some more, it would fire on the #4 cyl, but that was it. I left it till now.

 

Drained the oil/gas mix, put in the used oil I drained out of my truck. New filter.

 

Drained all gas in tank and filled with 5 gallons fresh.

 

Checked t-belts and timing, all good and turning.

 

No compression. Like nothing at all. Hooked up leakdown, little past the rings, but nothing too bad. Could hear air rush out on exhaust stoke, but none on intake. Removed air hose, cranked motor. Air gusting out of hose on compression stroke, untill I put my finger over the end of the hose, then nothing. So the intake valves aren't opening and letting air in.

 

Can the lifters collapse so far that the valves won't open? Will they eventually pump up with oil, or do I have to remove them and drain the gas out of each one?

sounds bizarre. EA/ER engines will run LIKE CRAP if the lifters are flat and be tricky to start. but doesn't sound like that's your problem to me as they usually aren't *that* hard to start after say a rebuild. takes a bit, but they'll start and just run really rough until the HLA's even out.

 

that's really bizarre - a gallon of fuel sitting in the engine?

Drained the oil/gas mix, put in the used oil I drained out of my truck. New filter.

 

 

ughhh........really?

I wonder where all that gasoline came from. Thinking the most that could have leaked into the engine would be whatever the line from the pump to filter could hold.

 

Wonder if the FPR ruptured?

Sorry, misread posting. My response was meaningless.

Re: collapsed lifters I've had a few cars that sat for extended time and had the lifters collapse. What has worked for me is to loosen/pull the plugs (to eliminate compression and let it spin fast) and turn it over with the starter fast and long. (not long enough to overheat the starter) good idea to have jumpers or a battery pack because it will kill the charge. After doing this for a while, like magic eventually it sputters back to life. Then change the oil.

 

(No clue about the situation with the gas leaking into the engine.)

Update:

I pulled the valve cover off the passenger side head to see how loose the rockers were. Well, both the intake rockers were sitting in the bottom of the cam case. So either the lifters collapsed so far that the rockers slipped out or the valves stuck open and the rocker dropped off.

 

Piece of junk either way.

Update:

I pulled the valve cover off the passenger side head to see how loose the rockers were. Well, both the intake rockers were sitting in the bottom of the cam case. So either the lifters collapsed so far that the rockers slipped out or the valves stuck open and the rocker dropped off.

 

Piece of junk either way.

 

I have seen that once before. There was even a little scarring from them rattling around in there. We put it all back together in about 30 minutes and that motor is still running 4 years later.

I used a prybar off the cam to push the valves down and jammed the rockers into place, couple taps with a punch to set them back over the lifter. Two on the passenger side, one on the drivers side. It runs on all 4 again, so the plan to properly kill it off is back on. It needs to go out with a bang, not a whimper.