Need help again. Water in YJ 2.5 oil.

[Casey L]

Tim, I have a leak down tester I can give to Joey and you can pick it up at his house if you like. I will send you a text.

[rich]

Tim I have a 1995 yj 2.5 that runs mint if needed

[Twisty]

Tim, I have a leak down tester I can give to Joey and you can pick it up at his house if you like. I will send you a text.

Not sure if it's needed, but if you want to pass it along to him, I will gladly take it.

Tim I have a 1995 yj 2.5 that runs mint if needed

Seriously?  Just the engine, or the whole Jeep?  jeeptech gave me a short list of things to do, and I'm going to try to investigate to the best of my abilities.  However, with the pending cold weather and snow I might not be as productive as I would like.  Shoot me a PM with a price if you're looking to part with whatever you have.

[Twisty]

Does the engine typically fire up when you turn the key or does it take some cranking? Was there a recent time when it wouldn't start and you had to crank extensively? Are all cylinders firing?

It has always started after a normal ~5-7 revolutions.  The battery is quite old (came in the MJ when I got it in 2006) and it cranks slowish, but it always fires. 

The only time of extended cranking was when I did the compression test.  I did not disable the fuel system.  I figured that any fuel injected would be pushed out of the spark plug holes.  However, I did pull the oil sample after I did the compression test.

Yes, all cylinders are firing.  I'm going to try to get some new spark plugs, check the injector wiring, and check the fuel pressure.  The spark plugs do not appear to be fouled by a rich fuel mixture, and the engine runs terrific.

[rich]

Yes I have the whole yj, I am planning on parting it out the 4:10 axles are removed
4cyl,ax5, and 231 all work and shift fine

[Twisty]

How many miles?  Are you looking to dump the 2.5/AX5/231?  I'm interested in the whole package.

[rich]

Current state of the yj

[Axle]

Hahaha

[Twisty]

Ok rich, I will wait. 



Now that the snow is done (for now), I'm going to try to dig into the 2.5 to see what's going on.   I have some ideas, but I'm going to do some work to figure out WTF happened.

[Twisty]

Ok, I've done some more fiddling with this.  I've been trying to do it quicker but between plowing an the extreme cold I have not had much time/ability to do so

I changed the spark plugs.  The gap on the old ones was WAY too much, and I'm not convinced that it was getting enough spark.  I also found the little rubber elbow on the plastic vacuum line -> fuel pressure regulator was cracked.  Got a small length of 1/8 hose and fixed that.  Then I pulled the valve cover and cleaned the top end.  There was no sludge but there was a decent amount of contaminated oil.  I then thoroughly drained the oil (again) and let it drip for a while.  I re-filled with clean, fresh 10w30 and a new Wix filter. 

With the new plugs and FPR vacuum fixed it runs smoother and fires up quicker.  I think the fuel pressure might be a tad low; ~32 at idle, ~40 with throttle.  But that wouldn't cause the issue I seem to be chasing. 



Something peculiar happened when I had the valve cover off.  Coolant was coming out of one of the valve cover bolt holes.  I do not think that it should be doing this.  Maybe it rusted through, or the factory drilled it too deep and hit a water jacket.  Anyways, with the new valve cover gasket and the little bit of RTV that I put in the hole followed by a bolt I do not think it will be an issue.


I'm going to take it for a test drive now and hopefully use it a little more to keep an eye on everything.

[SPYDER]

I know on the 4.0l one of the head bolts goes into the water pump passage way so you need thread sealant on it.   I'm pretty sure the 4cyl is the same way.  So that's good you sealed them back up.  And that explains where the water was coming from. 

[Twisty]

The bolt that was leaking coolant was on the driver's side, in the middle of the head.  Not sure why it was doing it.  Anyways, I've left the fuel pressure gauge on the rail for 2 days now and the pressure is still reading 36psi.  I can definitely rule out any fuel leakage into the cylinders!  Up next, I want to replace the radiator cap.  It doesn't feel like that the system is building pressure and there is usually some evidence that coolant may be leaking from around the cap.

I do not know what to test/look for next.  I'm rather confident that my problem wasn't coolant in the oil to begin with.  The sample that I pulled is still in a jar and has not separated (water/oil would show some signs).  Like I said before, jeeptech smelled it and immediately said "that's fuel, not water."  I have some suspicions about what my have caused this dirty oil issue and, they are entirely my doing.  But I will not know for sure until I get some miles on this oil.  I'm going to feel like an ignoramus if it turns out to be my fault.



EDIT: Hey rich!  I still want that engine/trans/t-case combo!!

[Posimoto]

There is no mistaken the smell of gas in oil, and I've seen what gas looks like in oil (exactly like the pic you posted).
Although it's only 4 cylinders, and you pulled the plugs, fuel may still have washed down to the oil (disconnect fuel rely).
As I mentioned in the second post, I still believe condensation caused the white smear/foam. Winter and a engine that doesn't get to normal operating temps will do that, whether it's short runs, or a faulty t-stat.

[HEYzipupyourfly]

Tim i read through this whole post but besides the condition of the oil you have no other symptoms?? head gaskets can be tough to diagnose are you losing coolant level? coolant getting milky too? head may be cracked etc. until symptoms become extreme or head gasket or cracks may not be super easy to read.
Did you have a proper oil analysis done or was it just an opinion by smelling the oil?
You can also test the coolant for exhaust gases if you bring a sample to a shop that has the proper kits. kind of like a pool kit or a fish tank test kit.

If its running fine but keeps on getting the oil milky I personally wouldn't hesitate to pull the head and check things out. inspect the gasket good and if you don't see a fail point have the head pressure checked.
I think i saw a can at autozone that will do all the work for you.

[SPYDER]

I just talked to a friend who had a 4cyl yj and he said the only bolt that goes into a coolant passage is the first one on the driver side.  but if its leaking around or near another head bolt, the head is most likely cracked.