How-dee! Got hooked-up with this site courtesy of a fellow MoPar nut over on the P15-D24 site ('46-'48 Dodge & Plymouth).

After playing around with flathead MoPars for years, I got my first S-6 the other year - a '64 Valiant Signet 200 ragtop, with the 4-sp. stick.

Car is pretty good (not the usual NE Penna rust-buggy), but "needs finishing" (new top, other "details").

Am fighting major oil usage problems (1 qt every 50-100 miles); mostly burning. Have been using Wolf's Head 20W-50.

Numbers on the block (behind the alternator) tell me that the engine is a '66 225 block.

If I really tromp on the gas, I can't see the car behind me; even worse when decelerating on a ramp , then stepping on the gas.

When I take the car out of the garage for it's next trip, there's usually patches of oil drippage along the the pass. side of the engine.

I am suspecting that part of the oil consumption is a combination of bad valve guide seals, and blocked oil returns allowing oil to stand up on the head...

Pulled the valve cover and found mucho sludge, and little bits of fossilized valve stem seals; I tried looking down past the spark plug tubes and pushrods to inspect the oil return ports..."didn't see any"...did see the tops of the lifters though...

Where should I be looking for the oil return ports on a S-6 ?

(Mileage on car is 98,000; mileage on engine is unknown. I know I should plan on pulling and overhauling the engine and being done with it, but that's not in cards for another year yet (house projects and honey-dos...), so I'm hoping that new stem seals and some de-sludging will help cut down on the oil usage)


Looks like a great site , thanks for any hints you can send my way !

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De Soto Frank

I've heard that the valve seals don't cause that much smoke. Not a smoke screen kind of cloud anyways.

I suggest you do a compression test and see if the rings are toast. If so, save your time and money, and do the whole thing when you get around to it, instead of expecting unrealistic results.

I also suggest you don't run 20-50 oil. It might burn slower, but you could hurt the oil pump gear, although no one has verified that condition yet.

Others with these extreme oil burning problems have found holes in pistons, so don't be surprised if you find one or more need replaced. If you want to get lucky, you could compression test for the piston with a hole, and just replace it, before you get low oil damage, but that's still close to an engine rebuild.

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1980 Aspen 225 super six

I'd be surprised if it's only valve stem seals causing your high oil consumption. My '64 has dried seals and it burns a half-quart every 1500 miles.

In my experience seals will give you a cloud of smoke at startup, but a cloud when backing off and then hitting the accelerator usually means rings. With your heavy consumption, I'd suspect broken rings.

I beg to differ to some extent.
I have a 1979 Dodge truck with 318 V8 with 100,000 miles on it. If I would let it idle for several minutes and then stomp on the throttle it made a big cloud of smoke. I replaced the valve stem seals and this phenomena went away.

What makes you think/suggest that? I don't like 20W50 either, but not for that reason. 20W50 is not as thick as some people like to think. I run SAE 30 all day long and have been known to run SAE 40 in some junkers with no evil pump gear problems on the /6

D/W

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If it ain't broke, fix it!

I run 20/50 on an oil pump and gear that were last replaced in 1972! No problems to date.

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Troops on the battlefield have a far better view of the battle then the generals who lead them

Okay, thanks so far, but as long as the top is open, I'd still like to find those oil returns and verify that they're clear...

Can I see them from looking down past the pushrods? Are they between every cylinder? Just on the ends?

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De Soto Frank

There are holes in the bottom of the lifter gallery. Should be able to see them with the head installed if it's the original head with the plug tubes.

D/W

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If it ain't broke, fix it!

Thanks, Dennis...


I took a look yesterday evening, and found three holes: between the intake and exhaust lifters on cylinders 1,3, & 5.

They looked pretty clear (at least there does not appear to be sludge encrustation such as I found up on the head and valve gear).

My engine does have the aluminum plug tubes.

Guess I'll run a compression check after I get the valve cover back on.


Frank

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De Soto Frank

I've had such a huge oil comsumption before my /6 rebuild this summer. I ain't did this job before (started to drink oil like 4 months before the rebuild) and when I popped it appart I had no comp rings at all (every comp ring was cracked) and 4 oil rings where dead. I had to rebore 0.20 due to the scratches on the cyls... so if yours smokin that bad, don put too much miles on it before you rebuild it, you may get away with new rings and bearings, gaskets, etc.

good luck, frank!
Juan

i was having similar oil drippiage down the passanger side of the moptar with just a few more miles and found my balancer seal in the timing cover wasn't sealing at all, it was burnt like chong, it might be a start perhaps some of the smoke is it crawling over to the exhaust manifold.
cheers

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anything worth doing is worth re-doing, again and again and again...........

The oil pump is mounted on the side of engine passenger side.
Mine would drip on that side too. I replaced the pump cover
o ring and that stopped the drips.