I give up! - advice on who can help - oil everywhere post rebuild

Does he really know what he's doing? I suspect not (fitting rocker cover breathers to a stock type 1 engine was a clue).

IMHO it can only be one thing - blow by from worn rings or related problem. Something is pumping the case up.

What have you got as an oil filler? I'd take the cap off (or even the filler), so you've got as big a hole as possible. Start the engine, hold your hand near the filler. A light fluttering as the pistons go back and forth is fine, real chuffing isn't.

Obvious, but it's got to be something . Engines don't really work by magic. There's hardly anything in them.

 

Surely a compression test would be one of the very first things to do - before fitting pointless and no doubt expensive non standard parts?

I'm guessing something catastrophic has happened to one of the pistons.

 

He says he's done 3 because he hasn't even got a compression tester...yet. On his way to Halfords right now.
Cynical? Why 3? !!!

"might" be rings. Well, the only thing that can pressurise the case is combustion getting past a piston(s), so what else could it ever have been?

 

Always treat the symptoms first, rather than the root cause

 

OP - does smoke come out of the exhaust when you start it up?

 

How can that even happen? Unless...

...that didn't happen and he left a breather box port open. I guess he must have.

I don't think he has a clue what he's doing with this particular problem. He doesn't know what the cause is. He's "seen it loads of times" but he doesn't know what it is, just how to mask less serious cases and earn a few quid in the process.

 

If I were you, I wouldn't drive it around until you have fixed the problem, which sort of rings a bell with me.

My 1600 twin port engine developed quite serious blow by and loss of compression on one cylinder. Foolishly I ignored the issue which got much worse and eventually the piston broke up and the engine damaged with pieces of piston skirt in the crank case. Probably started out with rings wear which allowed hot combustion gases past the rings and caused catastrophic failure.

I think @zedders has suggested dismantling the engine to find the fault, which sounds good advice rather than let that garage mechanic near it.

 

That is your only breather. Forget the daft ones going to the rocker covers.

Measure the internal diameter of the breather port on the filler. I bet it's too small. The VW original was about 20mm in diameter.

 

If it's splattering out of the breather box one would think it's getting out ok?
In a way, better than if he'd connected to the carbs in a closed system, burning the oil and who would ever know?

 

Still may be a-pumping, tho'?

 

Might be even worse with a bigger breather. lol

 

You fried it running with an oil system blockage, fuel in oil ? . Now missing a piston ring.

Find a better garage, you already have a pile of not useful bling to throw back at the garage..

 

So, some more news. After some discussion he has now compression tested cylinder 1 - vey down on pressure and so he has looked down the bore with an endoscope. Low and behold it has a hole in it and clearly thats why the case is pressuring. Its daft when you look back as it seems obvious now, but even on three cyls it ran well on tick over. After i got the news I called the vw engine shop who supplied the barrels and pistons (AA ones). He thinks the piston has melted from over pressuring the carbs from the original mech fuel pump which led to lots of fuel sitting in the barrels which burns and burns. He said they build with aa pistons all the time and dont see a prob with them so cant be a manufacturing prob.

The guy doing the work at the garage is now suggesting he replaces the one piston and should be able to check the case for metal without a case split once the piston is off. I am thinking to ask him to remove both heads and check all the pistons, heads, carb float levels etc

What would u guys do...? Then again i know your answer will be to get it back and do it myself.... prob is logitics of getting it back, gear to do as i borrowed lots of bits from a mate miles away last time and time which i dont have.

By the way mike, he did check the oil pressure earlier in the game and said it was on the high side but ok given it was a maxi 3 pump.



See pic ...

 

Who's he trying to convince? - You or him? Both I think. Total rubbish, manc blather, cockney cobblers.
Well, he should be able to fix the engine but I wouldn't trust him with the timing and/or jetting, which have caused your problem. No doubt that was him as well.
so...Run a mile...as soon as practically possible, and never, ever go back.

 

It's either high or it isn't. What's this bloke on?

Did they build the engine?

 

Man, what a sorry state of affairs. I only partially understand the situation but, if it were me, I’d have the other head off for sure. Given how far in you are, has to be the right option I’d have thought.

 

A pic is below.

I think i will need some help if it comes back with carb setup and timing. I have a feeling its over jetted from a previous mis adventure with a supposed expert engine tuning guy. In the meantime is it fair to say the piston prob could be the over fuelling on the carbs? Remember its prob done no more than 15 miles by the way...

 

Oh, and it was me who buolt the engine trying to save money and wishing to go i hadnt now.

 

If I'm understanding you the piston has a dirty great big hole in it. If so, I not sure how the mechanic can guarantee finding all of the metal following his method unless it is found in one piece that fits that hole perfectly, which is unlikely. The shards of metal could be anywhere and I imagine the engine will need a strip down and cleaning of oil galleries to make sure the metal does not do further damage to cams, crank etc.

 

Steve

@Dave Goddard built the engine
The vw engine shop supplied the barrels and pistons (AA ones). They thinks the piston has melted from over pressuring the carbs from the original mech fuel pump which led to lots of fuel sitting in the barrels which burns and burns.

It's being worked on by south west splitz in Exeter: suggesting he replaces the one piston and should be able to check the case for metal without a case split

Dave wants to know if he should ask South West Splitz : to remove both heads and check all the pistons, heads, carb float levels etc