3-valve, Intake runners in heads filled with liquid/goo, did I just get f'd? PICS!

[Parker Lewis]

Hey guys, I haven't posted on here for a long time.......moved across the country in 2011, busy with house, work a ton with new job, kids, life, etc.

I am not really sure what is going on here with my motor, if you have time i would really appreciate some advice. I have a 2005 3v engine, all stock. I bought it from a guy then it sat on a stand in my garage for 3 years. Today for the first time since I bought it I actually touched a wrench to it and started working on it. I removed the intake manifold and looked down into the lower intake runners inside the heads and for the cylinders that have the intake valves closed there is a TON of yellowish liquid/goo in there! A couple runners have about an inch deep of this liquid. Some of the liquid is crusted over like a film/varnish crusty layer with liquid underneath. I can break through the crust easily with a screwdriver, then the tip of the screwdriver is coated in chips of a varnish like film. Could this be coolant? How would coolant get in there, bad head gasket, or cracked water jacket? Anyway, I can see the valves that are open and there is a ring of white deposits, probably carbon?, at the outer rim of the valves. Do I need to yank these heads for clean-up? Can I shop-vac the liquid out and brush/wipe out the remaining without removing the head or am I asking for trouble down the road? Here is a couple pics, and I have full res pics if anyone wants to really get Columbo on this. Keep in mind this thing has sat for 3 years.....can moisture and condensation build up like this? Anyway, I am probably f'd on this one! If anyone has any advice PLEASE let me know, but be gentle because I suspect this is going to be expensive. Thank you for taking time to read this.

[belinda06GT]

That does not look good!

Pull the plugs and drain the oil and see what comes out. If it were me, I would pull the head to see what the cylinders looked like. I would be more concerned about what may be lying in the cylinders and in the pan.

[Parker Lewis]

I pulled one plug for the cylinders with the most goo. Surprisinly the plug came out fine, it's pretty black but no sign of goo when I shined a flashlight into the cylinder. I suppose the next move would be to pull off the heads. I guess no matter what they'll have to come off just to clean everything up. Thanks.

[androdz]

Look at the oil on the pan. I would open the heads up though... Much easier to do outside of the car.

[mrv8outboard]

It looks like water and the level has dropped. As others have recommended I would suggest draining the oil, in doing so pay close attention to what comes out first. Do not pull the pug all the way out, get it loose and wiggle it to see if you get the contaminant first. If you do it is probably water. There will be corrosion on the pistons and rust on the cylinder walls, ect.

[06vistagt]

Isn't this just 3 years worth of condensation and whatever oil was all ready in the intake manifold? The reason isn't not built up on the front cylinders might just be from the angle the engine was sitting.

[belinda06GT]

Isn't this just 3 years worth of condensation and whatever oil was all ready in the intake manifold? The reason isn't not built up on the front cylinders might just be from the angle the engine was sitting.

In a word .... No.... Not even if it were in the amazon would this be from condensation.

[06vistagt]

In a word .... No.... Not even if it were in the amazon would this be from condensation.

3 years sitting in a cold garage and condensation will build up. It doesn't need to be in a really humid environment. Mold will likely form too, if it will eat oil.

[Parker Lewis]

Nothing like a 6 years later follow up.........took my engine for rebuild this past spring (6 years after my original post above!) and there was a crack at the top of one of the cylinders so that explains the mess in the pics above. Thankfully I had another 3v stock block to build. No one is on this forum anymore.

[eschaider]

There are still folks on the Forum Parker however, they tend to have already built their engines and do more observing than posting. Additionally the bulk of them tend to be in the Terminator forum so traffic over here where you are posting is, shall we say, light?

Ford has long ago shut down parts availability for the Modmotor engines or made them only available over the normal parts counter at normal dealership pricing which further depresses Modmotor activity. The upshot is Coyote presence of mind.

You should still be able to get some feedback on general engine building practices if you stop over to the Terminator forum. The basics of engine building are not valve count or combustion chamber shape determined. They are foundational to all IC engines.


Ed