Okay, I changed the plugs on my 1970 Valiant 225, and now when I run it, it just spews smoke, like a light blue color (oil I believe). All I did was change plugs, because the car began to run extremely rough at idle. When I pulled the old plugs out, the spark plug tubes came out with them. I took the tubes off individually and put them back in with the new plugs. Now, each tube was only out of the engine for maybe a minute while I got the old plug out of it and put the new plug in.

How could so much oil go in in just that amount of time? Could I have messed up the tubes themselves, to where they are now leaking oil into the cylinders?

Also, the car is running etremely rough at idle right now, especially when in gear. It smoothes out a little when it revs up in Park, but not much. It feels like a bad ignition miss, but I just changed the cap, rotor, and plugs. Could valve adjustment cause such a rough condition? If so, then why would it all of a sudden start running this way?

It was running relatively smoothly on Saturday. Ideas??

I'm at a loss on this one, as the rough running and smoke just started today.

Nick,
boggled...

I have never seen the tubes come out with the sparkplugs.

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82 D150-225/727
02 Dakota-3.9/5 speed
87 GMC C7000-8.2 Detroit Diesel/5+2

Not enough oil will get into the cylinders upon removing the spark plugs to cause an engine to "spew smoke" (I assume out of the tailpipe?). It sounds like your original new rough-running symptom is due to something other than dirty spark plugs. What did the old plugs look like when you examined them after removal? Any particularly heavy deposits on the tips? All look the same, or does one or more plugs look different to the others?

Also, no, there's no way to mess up the tubes such that oil gets in the cylinders.

How many miles on this engine?

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

yeah, my tubes come out pretty easy on my 67 dart 225. they all have thier rubber gaskets, but basically the spark plugs is what holds em' down.

Update:

I just went outside to check the oil and the coolant for signs of a blown head gasket, just out of curiosity. I pulled the rad cap off and the antifreeze was clean, with no oil. I pulled the dipstick, and the oil was clean. I started the car up, to see how long it took to start smoking (took about 30 seconds).

Then, just out of curiosity, I pulled the oil cap off while the engine was running. I couldn't believe what I saw!

#1 exhaust valve was happily ticking away, I could see it moving...

#1 Intake valve WAS NOT MOVING AT ALL! There was NO, absolutely NO movement from #1 intake rocker arm at all!!

I guess that explains the rough-running, huh? My question is, how could this have happened overnight? I started the car Sunday morning and warmed it up for a few minutes, and it was running pretty smoothly. Yesterday, I went out to start it, and it starts slowly and runs very rough at idle, and shakes the car violently in gear.

What happened to this poor car? Wiped cam lobe? Broken pushrod? Bent valve?

HELP!!!

Nick,
Up a creek...

P.S. The engine is the original for the car. 119,xxx miles or so. When I pulled the old plugs, #1 and 6 looked fuel/oil fouled, or were on the edge of it. The rest were clean, with a yellowish tint to them (I think from a fuel additive or the starting fluid the guy used on it when I went to pick it up)

Bent pushrods are not too uncommon on old low-miles units. Valve sticks, cam rotates, rocker contacts stuck valve and stops, somethin's gotta give, and it's usually the pushrod. Cam keeps rotating, bend-shortened pushrod falls away from rocker, rocker stops moving. Engine runs rough!

No need to panic yet. This may be an easy minor repair. Get yourself some Kroil (Liquid Wrench is a very poor substitute, but a spray can of Mopar 4318039 can be pressed into service here if Kroil's too far away) and pull the valve cover.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

Okay Dan,

I pull the VC and find bent pushrod(s). What now? Where do I find this Kroil, and what do I spray it on, the valve? Then what, do I install a new pushrod and try it?

Wouldn't the spring pressure cause the cam to wipe a lobe rather than bend the pushrod?

Nick

im new to thisa sorta thing, but my bet goes as follows.... cam lobe triumphs, pushrod bends...

It is better to have the weak link easily replaceable...................

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Ed
64 Valiant 225 / 904 / 42:1 manual steering / 9" drum brakes

Kroil gets ordered from the website (it'll take a week or so, hence my alternate suggestion of the Mopar fluid). Yes, you apply it to the valve stem where it enters the valve guide. A few (or more than a few) well-placed blows with a heavy hammer can help unstick the valve.

No, the cam lobe won't wipe that quickly. The pushrod'll bend first.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

I went through the exactly same thing a couple of weeks ago. Replaced bent push rods twice before realizing a valve was stuck. Ending up replacing head, which wasn't that big a job. I wouldn't have figured it out without help from some guys on this site. P.S. They charge $21.00 for a head at the wreckers here in Calgary!

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al mac.

Thanks for the help so far, guys.

I'll take a look under the valve cover tommorrow morning and post back with what I find.


Nick,
Hopes it will be OK...

Well, I pulled the valve cover and did some checking and, unfortunately, all is not well.

I pulled the valve cover, and find #1 intake pushrod sitting NEXT TO the rocker, and the rocker's adjustment nut backed almost all the way off. I figure that it just backed out and the pushrod worked its way out of the little pocket.

I pull the pushrod out and look at it with a straightedge, and it is straight.

So, I put the pushrod back in and lined up with the rocker arm, and set the valves for all the cylinders (.012"/.022"). Button everything back up, and start it up. Car still runs rough (no smoke now). I pull the oil cap off to look at the rockers, and #1 intake valve is not moving at all.

I shut the car off and reach in there to see if the pushrod had come back out, but everything was still tight.

So: straight pushrod, set the valve lash, and the valve still isn't working. Wiped cam lobe??

Nick,
Thinks it's done for...

In order to set the lash, you had to turn the engine over by hand to find TDC on compression stroke, correct? Did the valve open and close correctly, at that time?

Jerry

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There's a difference between ignorance and stupidity.
Ignorance is not knowing any better.
Stupidity is knowing, yet doing it anyway.

Nick,

Whoa...what you're going through sounds EXACTLY like the problems I'm having with my 1960 Dart. I just started reading these forums today to see if there were any tips for me and finally I find someone who's going through the same thing. Here's my story:

Sunday May 30--I've had the car for about a month now and I've driven it nearly every day. Added about 150 miles to the odometer, which now reads 31,949, all original. Everything's worked fine except the fuel & temp gauges and the hi-beam indicator light. That night I drive it to a friend's party, 15 miles there and back again. On the way it's smooth, doing 45 mph no problem. During the party, we have a freak thunderstorm and the Dart undergoes heavy rain for about half an hour. Doesn't seem to affect it, though, as it starts right up and carries me home later that night without any issues.

Monday, May 31--Next morning, different story. I'm about to take the Dart out and drive it to my folks' place for memorial day bbq. It's having trouble starting, and when it finally starts it's rough. I put it in gear and it starts shuddering, attempt to drive it around the block and it's underpowered, can hardly climb a hill. I put it back in the garage and took my modern car to the bbq. When I get back home I check the spark plugs (I thought maybe it was just misfiring) and they're all carbon fouled.

Tuesday, June 1--I change the spark plugs, check out the distributor for moisture, clean between the points. Having lots of trouble starting, when it does it's still rough.

I'm busy for the next few days following that, simply checking over the engine compartment every day to look for something wrong (I'm new to this). I notice, unfortunately, that the ehxaust manifold is cracked and definitely needs replacing, although this shouldn't be the source of my problem. Then over the weekend I notice it's starting more consistently. On Sunday I back it out of the garage and spray gumout down the carb and pull the accelerator, letting it idle fast. I get it to sound like it's idling about normal, so I put it in reverse, and it still shudders and sounds terrible. I let it idle once it's out of the garage, which it sits there and does just fine. When I attempt to drive it around the parking lot, it doesn't take long to stall out. Upon repeated attempts to restart, many times the engine just runs with my foot on the pedal, and once I lift it the engine dies.

Monday morning it starts right up and idles fine, I back it out of the garage and inspect the engine while it idles. Aha! I notice the fuel pump is dripping gas out the bottom. I assume this HAS to be the problem--I order a rebuilt fuel pump and wait anxiously for it to arrive in the mail.

The pump arrives and yesterday after work I tackle the job of installing it. After about two hours of gas fumes and greasy hands I finish the replacement, reattach everything and turn the key. It starts right up! I pull it out of the garage and it actually reverses OK. It's idling way too fast, probably thanks to tinkering over the previous week or so, so I turn down the idle speed screw and get it as close to "normal" sounding as I can. I get back in for a test drive around the parking lot and...it stalls out before I can complete a three point turn. Start it up again and it makes it halfway around the lot before stalling. Again...and I can't even make it all the way back in the garage before it stalls. So--the new fuel pump obviously works and doesn't leak, so that's a victory, but there's still something VERY wrong with my engine.

Now I'm reading your thread with mention of bent pushrods and all, and I'm thinking this has got to be the problem with mine, too. I think I'm just going to get it flatbedded to a mechanic on Monday at this point, but keep me posted on your progress with this problem.

--Phil