Excessive oil usage!

[drag-n-cuda]

Rebuilt heads, but didn't install until rebuilding bottom end. Put all together and was using oil. Pulled apart and replace teflon seals with Edelbrock style blue viton seals and touched up valve job.

Rebuilt heads: new pressed in iron valve guides
new valves and valve job
Edelbrock style blue viton seals
intake suface cut to correct alignment
heads were previously ported

Pulled single plane to put on dual plane for street driving. Looked down all intake ports to see oil build-up on backside of all intake valves. I have maybe 1000 miles on this since the valves were beadblasted and recut. Cylinder 7 intake was closed and about 2-3 tsp of oil was resting on the back of the valve. The intake ports from the head/intake interface to the valve seat are bronze looking. Probably from the oil and porting finish of the cast iron. Could oil like I'm describing be from low tension or not seated rings? The engine builder want to get a new set of rings and go that route, but I think it's something else. I'm questioning the press on the new valve guides. He says it .002" and there wouldn't be any leak, but I've seen oil droplets at the guide casting interface inside the intake port. At least leaking here would make more sense to me about the oil build-up on the back of the intake valves.  Just put the car away for winter and will be tearing it down, but #7 cylinder was oil fouling about every 30 miles or so.  Good thing I only drive that distance in a single-way trip.

What do you think,
drag-n

[dodge freak 2]

It could be a bad intake manifold gasket / seal. The oil would get suck in from the valley by the cam. I put a $25 tray down under the intake just in case my intake gasket starts to leak. Sure the motor would still idle not as good but it limits how much oil gets suck in and you can live with it for a while. Plus it helps keeps the cam lube good by sitting right over it.

Look at the port again, does the oil go all the way to the opening..might be hard to tell. I know I had problems in the past getting a air tight seal on my intake.

You need to wipe the surface down with something like brake cleaner, which has no oil, unlike carb cleaner. Get some sticky stuff, I use something like high-tack but made for light airplanes--no EPA bs and Fel-Pro print o seal.You just use the sticky stuff on the head side not the intake.  Careful you don't over tighten the bolts, can be tight but not so tight the gasket cracks...most of the time that happens when retorking which I don't do anymore.

Still the valley tray pan helps in case theres a tiny leak, burning oil stinks and everybody on the road hates U.

[Chryco Psycho]

 
check the intake seal first , try a 1214 for B engine or 1215 Felpro for the RB engines & use 1 set of the side gaskets between the pan & head to stop any leak from the lifter galley + it will block off the heat crossover port & eliminate excess heat from the intake

[drag-n-cuda]

Guys,
    I forgot to mention this is a small block.  Over the last 2 years, I've had 3 different intakes on this motor and it hasn't gone away.  2 new RPM Airgaps and 1 new Victor 340.  Use Felpro 1213 gasket and haven't found any oil in between head and gasket any time during disassembly.  Will disassemble hopefully soon to try and find issue.

Thanks,
drag-n

[Chryco Psycho]

you mentioned porting , was the intake port opened up in the area where the oil passage to the rocker shaft goes through
 with new guides & seal I really doubt it is coming through the guide & pooling behind the valve is not caused by rings , I still suspect a leak between the intake & head especially since the intake surface was planed

[drag-n-cuda]

I believe the guy that ported the heads also milled the spring seats some to get the 1.800" installed height.  I'll look closer at the porting to see if the oil passage is cracked and is leaking oil.  I know the valve cover studs were Locktited, since they broke into the intake ports after porting.  If I can't find anything wrong with the heads after next tear-down, I'll try some sealer under the intake gasket next go-around.

drag-n

[moper]

I agree with CP.. Sounds more like a leaky gasket. What does the intake's #7 port look like? If it's clean, the oil has to start somewhere, and it's pulling it past the gasket. Iron guides? Not sure why i'd bother using them if you were drilling out and replacing. Bt, if they are in there, more than likely they are sealing. If they were that loose, I think you'd have some other bad issues, and it would be more than one hole. Careful disassembly should tell you. Clean of the gaskets and end rails, lay the intake on the longblock with a trouble light behind it, and look at the fit. You should see no daylight on the intake port mating flange areas, and about 1/8" or less on the end rails.

[dodge freak 2]

It could be a crack head or its just the intake gasket.

I always use those valley trays now on a small block. Helps keeps the lifters in it holes if like a rocker arm breaks. And it keeps most of the oil from spraying the bottom of the intake manifold.

With the valley cover tray even if the intake gasket leaks, it won't suck up nearly as much oil as without one.

Why Mopar did not put them on at the factory, I have no idea ?

[ntstlgl1970]

Maybe pull the intake and the valve covers and after cleaning the ports, prime the oil pump for a few minutes. Something should appear if there is a oil passage leak pretty quickly. Also, since you said there is oil in all 8 ports, are you running a PCV valve? Is there a baffle under the valve cover where the PCV is installed? Is there an open breather on the opposite valve cover, is it clear/unrestricted? Is there anything on the port for #7 intake, like a vacuum tree or brake booster hose (drawing in brake fluid from a bad master cylinder)? Maybe you could try plugging all the ports on the intake and see if the problem repeats. Just thinking of some of the weirder stuff I've seen. Have you mocked up the manifold with no gaskets and checked to see if the head and intake surfaces are parallel? was the top of the block surfaced? I've seen some heads milled too much and the ends of the intake would bottom out on the top of the block before the intake/head surfaces touched, would have to machine the end seal surfaces on the intake or not run the end gaskets and replace with RTV. Weird that you have been through 3 intakes, all with the same oil usage problems.

[Chryco Psycho]

if you are going to pressurize the oil system you willl need to rotate the engine to where it feeds into the left head , if the passage through the cam is not in the correct position you will get nothing