My father was a long term member of the VAR and his 16/6 was in the family from about 1972 to present. He passed away last may and I am trying to carry the torch forward...
Our 16 is not used as much as it should be but has always been pretty reliable albeit in need of some maintenance defferred over the last few years. Getting it out today it reluctantly started after 18months of inactivity and got me down to the local garage to fill up. On the way back it suddenly started popping and banging and lost power dramatically. I parked up and had my nephew came and towed me home behind his Discovery. Several questions for those (most of you I think) who are far more knowledgable than me on these cars...
1 Is it possible that filling the tank disturbed sediment and rubbish old fuel in the tank that resulted in the popping and final cutting out of the engine altogether? Tank was low when I filled it.
2 If this is a possibility is there a simple way of clearing the lines and filters (if any). The car still starts but quickly backfires and dies.
3 There is a lot of weeping water from the cylinder head gasket area on the right side of the block. Could this be a factor?
4 If none of the above is this something more terminal ie requiring engine rebuild or similar.
5 Another but related subject is that I have a spare block with crank etc, head, gasket, manifolds and gear box etc and as the engine has never been apart I'm considering getting it totally re-built. So question can anyone recommend a good person for this work?
Sorry for the flood of possibly naive questions - I'm trying to get up to speed or at least understand what's going on - without my fathers detailed knowledge of this car its difficult to know where to start so I appreciate any response and thank you in advance.
Best
Mark Lintott
UK
Poor running and "hello"
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TomStapledon47
- Posts: 6
- Joined: Sat Nov 12, 2016 10:15 pm
Re: Poor running and "hello"
Hi Mark,
Just logged in and spotted your post and noted you haven't had any replies. I'm afraid I'm not the expert you need, but I can't "walk by on the other side". Not a lot to go on here, and anyway my car's a 12, but here goes.
If your old fuel got you to the garage, then that hasn't deteriorated too badly even though people tell us it does go off and lose its potency. Muck in the tank is a very likely possibility. My car is fitted with a glass bodied in-line filter in the fuel line to the Autovac. I find this very useful as it gives a good visual indication of how much crud is coming through from the tank and can be stripped and cleaned out easily. It also tells me when the autovac kicks in and shows that sudden rush of fuel which means all's well with fuel delivery. Fitting a filter would be wise. If the tank is bad, it would need to be taken off the car, cleaned and sealed to cure the problem. Not something you want to do if it's not necessary.
Weeping water from the head gasket sounds like the main cause of your problem to me. If water's escaping outwards, it's probably escaping inwards too causing a whole list of problems depending on where the gasket is blown. I'd say your first action should be to whip the head off and inspect the gasket. From my experience the gasket can blow in various ways and it's not always immediately obvious, so it's best to replace it anyway whatever else you might find. Good luck. Tom
Just logged in and spotted your post and noted you haven't had any replies. I'm afraid I'm not the expert you need, but I can't "walk by on the other side". Not a lot to go on here, and anyway my car's a 12, but here goes.
If your old fuel got you to the garage, then that hasn't deteriorated too badly even though people tell us it does go off and lose its potency. Muck in the tank is a very likely possibility. My car is fitted with a glass bodied in-line filter in the fuel line to the Autovac. I find this very useful as it gives a good visual indication of how much crud is coming through from the tank and can be stripped and cleaned out easily. It also tells me when the autovac kicks in and shows that sudden rush of fuel which means all's well with fuel delivery. Fitting a filter would be wise. If the tank is bad, it would need to be taken off the car, cleaned and sealed to cure the problem. Not something you want to do if it's not necessary.
Weeping water from the head gasket sounds like the main cause of your problem to me. If water's escaping outwards, it's probably escaping inwards too causing a whole list of problems depending on where the gasket is blown. I'd say your first action should be to whip the head off and inspect the gasket. From my experience the gasket can blow in various ways and it's not always immediately obvious, so it's best to replace it anyway whatever else you might find. Good luck. Tom
Re: Poor running and "hello"
Hi Tom,
Thanks very much for the reply and thoughts. I think you're probably right re the head gasket. I think I have a spare one somewhere and being a pretty simple arrangement ie no overhead cams etc taking the head off should be a fairly straight forward exercise.
Any idea of the torque values needed for head bolts etc? \
I'll probably blow through the pipework before the autovac with an airline too. Fuel seems to be flowing fairly freely as the float chamber fills quite quickly when the top cover is removed.
Will keep posted for the record and anyone else's future use.
Thanks
Mark
Thanks very much for the reply and thoughts. I think you're probably right re the head gasket. I think I have a spare one somewhere and being a pretty simple arrangement ie no overhead cams etc taking the head off should be a fairly straight forward exercise.
Any idea of the torque values needed for head bolts etc? \
I'll probably blow through the pipework before the autovac with an airline too. Fuel seems to be flowing fairly freely as the float chamber fills quite quickly when the top cover is removed.
Will keep posted for the record and anyone else's future use.
Thanks
Mark
Mark
Taiwan/UK
Taiwan/UK
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Mikeg7210 _+[]
- Posts: 20
- Joined: Tue Sep 27, 2016 10:07 pm
Re: Poor running and "hello"
Mark
Regarding your comments on torque settings.Some suggest using a torque spanner at 30 lbs/ft.I am very wary of this for my 12/4 and would not use one as it is quite possible to strip out the thread if overtightened.I am no engineer but I use an 8" ring spanner and go round the nuts several times ,little and often so the nuts are "just tight".It is easier to do it than describe.You do need to be confident about the condition of the head gasket and I would go round the nuts again after 20/25 miles.To get the real answer to your query speak to Tony Smallbone.
Hope this helps
Mike Gibson
Regarding your comments on torque settings.Some suggest using a torque spanner at 30 lbs/ft.I am very wary of this for my 12/4 and would not use one as it is quite possible to strip out the thread if overtightened.I am no engineer but I use an 8" ring spanner and go round the nuts several times ,little and often so the nuts are "just tight".It is easier to do it than describe.You do need to be confident about the condition of the head gasket and I would go round the nuts again after 20/25 miles.To get the real answer to your query speak to Tony Smallbone.
Hope this helps
Mike Gibson
Re: Poor running and "hello"
Hello Mike
The only information I have on the 16 comes from the Austin Service Journals (Plug - copies available from Ken Davies) so I'm not at all conversant with the car, however if you are using 3/8BSF studs as the other Austin engines then take a look at the post currently 16 posts down in the technical section of the forum titled "torque setting". I go to 45lb-ft on the 20 but that is with new studs and nuts. With old studs and nuts maybe a little less would be wise.
Martin
Edited
Oops, sorry Mark. I misread your name.
Sincere apologies
Martin
The only information I have on the 16 comes from the Austin Service Journals (Plug - copies available from Ken Davies) so I'm not at all conversant with the car, however if you are using 3/8BSF studs as the other Austin engines then take a look at the post currently 16 posts down in the technical section of the forum titled "torque setting". I go to 45lb-ft on the 20 but that is with new studs and nuts. With old studs and nuts maybe a little less would be wise.
Martin
Edited
Oops, sorry Mark. I misread your name.
Sincere apologies
Martin
Last edited by Martin27 on Thu Jul 12, 2018 8:38 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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vintage124
- Posts: 12
- Joined: Mon Oct 03, 2016 6:40 pm
Re: Poor running and "hello"
Hello Mark
When I enquired about cylinder head torque settings I was told, " a good man with a 12" spanner".
Regards
Clive Kennedy.
When I enquired about cylinder head torque settings I was told, " a good man with a 12" spanner".
Regards
Clive Kennedy.
Re: Poor running and "hello"
Well I've faced the inevitable and realised on close inspection the weeping from "gaskets" is looking very much more like cracks in the block and even in the cast waterway attaching to the top of the cylinder head. I guess the coolant was not drained 2 winters ago and freezing has split the block.
Depressing but luckily my father had stockpiled a spare block and head and other castings so at least a rebuild will be easier to manage. Now more a case of finding a suitable firm to do the rebuild work.
So does anyone have any recomendations for a firm (or individual) who could take this on. I would do it myself but I'm not in the UK for long enough periods to make this feasible.
Thanks for the replies so far and all suggestions very gratefully received!
Best
Mark
Depressing but luckily my father had stockpiled a spare block and head and other castings so at least a rebuild will be easier to manage. Now more a case of finding a suitable firm to do the rebuild work.
So does anyone have any recomendations for a firm (or individual) who could take this on. I would do it myself but I'm not in the UK for long enough periods to make this feasible.
Thanks for the replies so far and all suggestions very gratefully received!
Best
Mark
Mark
Taiwan/UK
Taiwan/UK
Re: Poor running and "hello"
Hello Mark
I would normally recommend Tom Titterton - he advertises in VAR newsletters - but he is a long way from you (Derbyshire). He does an excellent job although as with all those doing this class of work he is very busy and it may be some time before he could take it on. There must be someone a bit closer to Somerset.
Martin
I would normally recommend Tom Titterton - he advertises in VAR newsletters - but he is a long way from you (Derbyshire). He does an excellent job although as with all those doing this class of work he is very busy and it may be some time before he could take it on. There must be someone a bit closer to Somerset.
Martin
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Humphrey47
- Posts: 38
- Joined: Mon Feb 19, 2018 6:46 pm
Re: Poor running and "hello"
I hope that the only cracking is in the head and not the block. The block usually cracks the side on the 16/6 just above the core plugs. The drain tap often gets blocked and gives the impression that the draining is complete, when it is not the case. I unscrew the tap and poke the hole. I think it is better to use anti freeze as the aluminium pump and manifold are then protected from corrosion.
Re: Poor running and "hello"
Hi Martin,Martin27 wrote: ↑Sun Jul 15, 2018 5:39 pm Hello Mark
I would normally recommend Tom Titterton - he advertises in VAR newsletters - but he is a long way from you (Derbyshire). He does an excellent job although as with all those doing this class of work he is very busy and it may be some time before he could take it on. There must be someone a bit closer to Somerset.
Martin
Thanks for the recommendation. I've found a firm in Bridgwater Somerset who are willing and able to take it on. Currently dismantling and cleaning as I plan to send the cylinder block and head out to them to recondition. I will also need a new set of pistons, rings and bearings but I think I may have found some on ebay to suit.
Will keep posting...
Mark
Mark
Taiwan/UK
Taiwan/UK