Started 499 StROkEr today! Serious Issues

[nivvy]

The car started up ok and took a while to warm up...been all winter....well anyway after it got warmed up it reved good and had good oil pressure etc....temp held at 180* and that mysterious ticking sound was gone by the way but man those new roller rockers seem noisy and chattery anyone elses sound like that but when disaster happened water started pouring out of the back of the block on both sides   I though it was a head gasket but after several start ups with my buddy I seen that it was coming right out of the freeze plugs in the back of the heads on both heads what causes this is this serious

[Moparal]

Your engine froze up over the winter. You didnt have the propper anti freeze mix. Or, you got rotten freeze plugs.

[nivvy]

so it is not seriuos...just change the freeze plugs...the water coming out was kinda brown like rust ...??

[Moparal]

If you didnt crack the block or valley, you should be ok. Water in the oil? Hope not.

[nivvy]

Well I checked the oil on the dipstick and looks like regular oil to me....or should you drain it why would the block possibly crack

[ksierens]

If you didn't have proper protection with antifreeze, and the water in the block freezes, it expands and has to go somewhere so ... crack!

May not be your problem, hopefully it is just bad freeze plugs.

[nivvy]

I really didnt have a cold winter and when I was out working  on my car the heat was on ... if the block was cracked would water leak out of the block....the only place the water was coming out was the freeze plugs in the head...

[Moparal]

No water in the oil is a good sign. You may just need to install new freeze plugs. Can be a bugger of a job tho.

[nivvy]

yea since there in the back of the head....you pry em out with a screwdriver

[nivvy]

After looking at mine they are the crappy steel ones that rot out ...  i need brass ones ... or do they make better stuff now...

[Moparal]

Brass, rubber and steel is all I know of

[nivvy]

where do you get the rubber ones

[Moparal]

Rubber ones are easy to do, but dont last as long as steel or brass, most every parts house has them

[nivvy]

How the heck do you get those plugs out....

[Oldschool]

How the heck do you get those plugs out....

You are prolly gonna have to pull the heads to do it right.  If there is enough room between the back of the heads and the firewall, you might be able to "dig" whats left of the old ones out.  But in order to make sure you get the new ones in and correctly seated, you will most likely have to pull the heads and put them on a workbench in order to get them in correctly.  That way you can get the hole good and clean so the new ones will seal correctly.  As much of a pain as that would be, it's what I would do.  That way you know they are in right and you won't have to do it a second time when they fail again.......