blowing grey smoke and overheating

[napsta]

recently i have upgraded the cooling system on my bundy, new water pump, then new thermostat, then new hoses, then new core on radiator,
after doing the radiator, it ran perfectly, with 35" tyres, thru mud, offroad, highway and lots of city driving for nearly 2 weeks.

but recently i have been towing a heavy boat, and all has started to go wrong. the radiator is overheating and loosing water, and the exhaust has been blowing out HUGE amounts of grey smoke at idle and when accelerating. it is running rough at low idle

there is heaps of oil.
the motor was replaced with a reconditioned model by the previous owner just before i bought it (less than 8000km since fitting). i have the receipts and warranty from his purchase.
anything i should look at that could be obvious?

Thanx in advance,
Ben

[taziiy]

wat colour is your oil and or water

[napsta]

water is quite clean (not spotless cos the old radiator had some muck in it, which didnt totally flush out)

the oil was changed less than 2500km ago and is a clean black

[taziiy]

thought it might have been a head gasket

[dumbdunce]

from the symptoms it sounds like a head gasket to me, the combination of running hot plus the grey 'smoke' (probably steam) is the giveaway. grey smoke and rough running would indicate overfuelling (stuck choke) but that will cause it to run cool, not overheat. just hot running without smoke would indicate massively retarded ignition timing.

you need to visit a mechanic who has a cooling system tester, basically these testers look like a big turkey baster, they suck some vapor from the radiator up and have a liquid that chages colour in the presence of carbon dioxide. if the goo changes colour, blown head gasket. also a compression test may give some clues.

the 22R is a pretty indestructible motor but like any alloy head iron block motor, one decent overheat (say towing a boat up a hill) is all it takes to warp the head and blow the gasket. sadly there's no cheap solution, probablly need to get the head skimmed ($100 minimum) plus the cost of a VRS gasket set ($200min) plus labour ($250ish, depending on how hard it is to get the head off - air cond etc makes it more difficult)

doh :(

[v8zuki]

you have what is commonly known as cracked headitis or blown headgasketitis
symptomsare as follows
water is getting in to the combustion chamber not in the oil and youalso get combustion gas in your water
a simple tk test will verify this diagnosis .available at any reputable radiator shop
regards dr mick

[napsta]

bugger, sounds expensive.

dumbdance, mine is a 2LT, not a 22R. do u reccon the overheating could be a completely different problem? (cos it blows smoke all the time, not just when it is hot. i will have a look at the choke, and look at getting that test done...
you weren't on ryde road at around 6:15 yesterday were u?

also, i have a 90 psi radiator cap, cos its the only one i could get. apparently it should be 88. is this true? does it matter?
thanx everyone
Ben

[napsta]

ugger
took it up there, guy said i definately have a problem with my cylinder head/gasket.

he recconed 1500 minimum to start getting it fixed.

i simply cannot afford that.
any suggestions?

[dumbdunce]

unfortunately the 2L-T is famous for cracking heads - a new head is about $900 (try SMS diesel at Auburn, on parramatta road). if you have not had the injectors serviced at 100k km intervals that will also cause smoke and overheating both due to overfuelling, but it is likely to be a darker black/brown smoke. overheating may also be caused by incorrect injection timing, or overfuelling due to pump adjustments, or relative overfuelling due to a clogged air filter. if you have had it tested and it definitely has head/gasket problems, you really have to get the head off to determine exactly what's wrong with it.

my motor is for sale and I put a new head on it about 40,000km ago, for 1500 you're in the ballpark for my whole motor, incl turbo, overhauled fuel pump, etc etc.

is yours the late (7/89 ->) 2L-TII or the early 2L-T ?


are you in sydney? bring it around I can have a look, there's not much I haven't fiddled with on these motors. sorry for assuming you had a 22R!

cheers

Brian

[dumbdunce]

dude if your motor is onky 8000km old it should still be under warranty, whoever sold the motor should have to cop it. put 31's back on and don't mention about the boat though!

[napsta]

yeh, i have the receipt that says the guy bought it on 26/10/02. so its only been in the car for 4 months max.
i am pretty sure its only a 2LT. the bundy is an 86 model
the model number on the new engine is TOY HILUX LN56 2L Y0102
1302 Engine 2L Turbo Motor

it was bought from tempe 4x4 Spares.

[dumbdunce]

what's the engine number, from the left front of the block?

[NICK]

if the head is cracked it will work out cheaper to buy the motor mentioned above and then sell your bottom and other gear, you could also look at fitting a 2L head to it, there is alittle mod work needed but it would still work out alot cheaper than getting a 2LT head.

hope i got the right models there, basically it is a 2.2 head on a 2.4 bottom end.

NICK

[Punchy]

That engine is surely under warranty..all engines sold by reputable retailers carry a minimum of a 1 year warranty (providing all service scheduled maintinance is carried out by authorised repair agent.. ---ie mechainc)
You can fit the 3 ltr head on that unit as well i believe as this is what happened to santa with his surf just after he bought it. waked on a 3ltr head and no more dramas.

But for the costs involved i would certainly be going back to the engine rebuilders and getting some questions answered

[dumbdunce]

[quote="NICK"]if the head is cracked it will work out cheaper to buy the motor mentioned above and then sell your bottom and other gear, you could also look at fitting a 2L head to it, there is alittle mod work needed but it would still work out alot cheaper than getting a 2LT head.

hope i got the right models there, basically it is a 2.2 head on a 2.4 bottom end.

NICK[/quote]

the 'L' is the 2.2 litre, 2L is 2.4 litre, 2L-T is 2.4 turbo. there are significant differences in the heads, apparently. I don't know what they are, I would start with different precombustion chambers as the compression ratio is different. when I was buying a new head for mine (2ish years ago) the turbo head was available off the shelf at toyota for around $1200 or from SMS for around $900 (identical toyota part number), the new head incluuded precombustion chambers but no valvetrain, that all had to be swapped over, valves reground/lapped etc.

anyway I have had a look at the smokin' motor and changed the radiator cap and thermostat, and it appears to be running better - no smoke, no overheating, and it was on the trail all day yesterday.

[napsta]

yep,
she's running fine atm, thanx brian!
if it gets bad again i think a trip to the engine place will be in order...

now for more serious stuff like suspension and lockers... $1500 spent on the engine would have put them alot further down the track

had awesome fun yesterday, got to get that flex going tho (will talk to u soon brian!)
Ben

[NICK]

the 'L' is the 2.2 litre, 2L is 2.4 litre, 2L-T is 2.4 turbo. there are significant differences in the heads, apparently.

the differance is in the way that the exhaust housing bolts up, the studs have to be moved. Water way has to be moved and so does the oil.
The valves, ports, etc are all the same. When i did mine i fitted the roller assembly of my turboed 2.4 to the 2.2 head witch was afew miss matched parts here and there but it all came good.


NICK