in a jam, no new head gasket available... gonna run the oldie.

[kevin hueser]

Hey Guys,
Im in a jam with this engine, I've been reading the posts and lookin for info but i need some advice here pronto.
this site has always helped out mucho with my SD 33 scout and any input would be much appreciated.

I'm gonaa put a SD 33 in later this summer but right now I have a problem with this basterd engine that is in my boat.

There are NO parts available for this engine, the rings were stuck from sitting for 5 years and I had to pull the head to get the pistons out.
YES i know we are never supposed to reuse a headgasket but there is NO other choice, I can't make one because it has "special little rubber o ring things @ the water ports.
The gasket is in "good" condition, it was installed from an aftemarket kit , no longer available' and run approx. 52 hours. it was torqued really lightly though, only 65# on the head bolts when I checked it with my old pointer style wrench.
Infact while doing compression tests, i noticed as mist in the air while cranking the engine,.. I think it was leaking past the gasket.

Anyway, I have to reuse this Gasket and was wondering what I might do to increase the odds of it working out, I am Taking the head to a shop tomorrow to make sure its flat, cleaning the threads and bolts, lubing them and gonna buy a new real torque wrench at sears in the morning.

Should I over torque this head "abit" to make up for it being squished already... here is the rest of the history.



I have spent the last 3 days and 250 minutes of cell time trying to locate a head gasket for this engine... NA. It is a french built Peugeot, block by Mitsubishi, Marinized by Vetus and sold thru Holland... REALLY, no joke!

Not Even Vetus or Peugeot can get parts for this friggn thing. It's a Vetus P4.25
I have to get this thing running this week and move the boat off the hard, out of this yard and down the coast. I need about 5 hours running and thats it.

After that i'm gonna get rid of it and run my SD33 chrysler in it but for now I'm stuck.

I have good fuel at all 4 cylinders,, timing is on, compression was squat, first test gave 80,140,40, 0.
I pumped in PB blaster, tapped the jugs and let set for a day, major improvement, next test was 290, 300, 260,135.
Another day a little more tapping and soaking got 300, 300, 310, 240.

Still she wouldn't even fire, not at all even with a rag and starting fluid very lightly.
A local diesel mechanic suggested that I was getting bogus readings and the oil was boosting the PSI.

Well, 2 of the pistons had stuck rings , the lower smaller rings, and # 3 has pitting and #4 a little too.
Its all back together except the head and as soon as I get it back from the shop I will bolt it on. Any help on this odd problem would help much,..

Thanks ,...Kev

[Eldon McFarling]

Kevin,

Here is what I would do to increase your chances for success if I were in your shoes.

Clean the threads and bolts as you mentioned. lube them with 85-140 gear oil on the threads and under the bolt heads.

DO NOT over torque the bolts. that will just lessen the clamping force they will produce, and the gasket will blow. instead tighten them in sequence using small increments like 20 ftlbs or so. when you get to the proper torque run the engine until you get it to operating temp. Let it cool down, and repete the process 2-3 times.

Next re-torque the head bolts by first backing them off, then torque in small increments as above. You should be good to go.

[kevin hueser]

Thanks Eldon,
thats the info I was looking for, Can't believe this thing has an Aluminum head,... what were they thinking???
frenchies..lol

[Paul "Misterfixit" Schulz]

Originally Posted by kevin hueser

Thanks Eldon,
thats the info I was looking for, Can't believe this thing has an Aluminum head,... what were they thinking???
frenchies..lol

Alloy heads are used on late model Nissan patrols too! the Nissan TD42 engine actually shares the same head as its 4.2 litre regular gas counterpart.


Also i think that on both sides of the cylinder head gasket a spray of 'hylomer' would aid the sealing

[jeff campbell]

i used the copper spray once in a jam.it worked.as far as i know,it's still running.392-loadstar dump/jeff

[Eldon McFarling]

Originally Posted by kevin hueser

Thanks Eldon,
thats the info I was looking for, Can't believe this thing has an Aluminum head,... what were they thinking???
frenchies..lol

Sorry to hear about that Kevin. Perhaps the best thing to do is find a couple oars to use to propel the boat and use the PEUGEOT for an anchor.....


Using a little dope on the gasket to help the thing seal won't hurt either. the main thing is to get the compression seal to hold after it has been deformed the first time. another thing you can do to help is to take it real easy. Just baby the thing.

[bmacguyver]

i would second the copper coat. use the spray and paint the block, the head, and both sides of the gasket REAL good. torque as Eldon said. for help starting a rag soaked in gasoline works as good or better than ether especially at moderate to high ambient temps, and its not as hard on the engine.

hth

mac

[bobn]

no experiannce at all with head gaskets, but dont run out and replace the pointer style torque wrench. they actually are a better wrench than a cheap click style. they just require a little more diligence during use. fwiw, bobn

[kevin hueser]

OK,you guys are funny ha ha. LIKE I AMUSE YOU!!! ..lol

well wouldn't ya know,.. A day after I bolt the new head on,.. (the old one was wasted from salt water),.. the MANUAL appears at the office for the boat,.. been missing for a month.

Anyway,.. turns out I find that this is NOT so rare a horse,... its a friggn common car and utility engine, much like the nissan sd33. used in trash pumps, forklifts gensets and so on W/ a CAV rotodiesel pda pump.

I found a new head gasket in California and had it shipped here to annapolis,md..$$$ it arrived a couple days ago.

I now have the whole engine back together with a good (NEW)head gasket, a used but good 5000 mile head , properly torqued with my sparkly new wrench
and all is looking .... but it wont run!

Not even a HIT or a miss, NADDA, :confused

I have a new fuel tank w/ new fuel,on gravity feed, showing fuel at all 4 injectors, correct valve settings (tripple checked)

Glow plugs are workin!

A COLD Comp test today gave me 400 on all cylinders and it WILL NOT FIRE

I'm friggn baffled,.. even a very careful shot of starting fluid off to the side on a rag yielded nadda....

I agree on the boat anchor part... I would have sworn this girl would go... guess she's lookn to get deep 6'd... what a shame.

I can only think that this is a compression issue,... don't know what else to check,,, if she won't kick on a little starting fluid,... GOT ME

Does the feed pump make the pressure to the injectors or does the injector pump do it,.. I thought probably the latter?

I pulled an injector today and moved it off to the side to see if I was actually getting fuel out of it.(yep I know it can be dangerous to skin) but I didn't see anything come out the injector,.. shouldn't there have been a spray or mist or something?

My newly discovered manual says the injector pressure is 115 + over - BAR ,.. what does that mean,(115 psi?) and can I maybe check the injector pressure with a PSI gauge or is that just stupid,.. Should I look for a local shop to put the injectors to a test or ????

Bloody hell, .... this $#%$%^#^%$$&^ thing is wearing me out and the $%$&^%%^$ hatch fell off from rott when I opened it to get a breeze,.. this girl is testn me testes... go ahead,.. laugh it up,.. if I were not me,.. I WOULD


Kev

here is the website of the Bloody dead horse I own,.. www.dlmurphy.com

no I didn't pay that for her,.. lol,.. I got a nimrod discount,

best days of boat ownership,.. day of purchase and day of sale... I'm in the middle and drowning.....LOL

,

[Dana Strong]

I have never worked on diesels so can't offer much help but believe the "115 + over - BAR" probably means the pressure above atmospheric, not absolute pressure. The injector output pressure must be much higher than that to overcome compression, so that might be the inlet pressure.

I would check any filters, the fuel pump, any overpressure valve, and thus the pump output, and then check the linkage or whatever drives he injectors, to be sure it's working; I assume they aren't electric.

What does the manual say about this? Any good troubleshooting section?

I write this just to give you some fresh ideas,
as it's already late here and therefor even later there; are you trying to pull an "All-Nighter?"