Hi all,
I have often visited this forum (google makes a habit of it too) but never had the opportunity to say anything until now. I'm in a bit of a pickle, I'm about to move house (next week!) and have had to replace the head gasket and skim the head on my 95 P38 with 200k miles after it started overheating consistently and pressurising coolant. I sent the head to be pressure tested and skimmed, it came back with good pressure but with hair-line cracks running between valves on 4 cylinders. Not having much time I have put it back on hoping it will at least see me a month until I'm settled.
I finished the reassembly today and bled the injectors and all seemed fine. Pinched them up and turned the key again and after a bit of hesitation and spluttering it fired up, but with a horrible metallic rattle and clatter. It is either coming from the head or timing cover by the sound of it, certainly from the top half. I followed the routine of filling oil up to full, running at 2500rpm for 5 seconds and then checking and topping up but the rattle and clatter remains and gets much louder as the revs increase.
There is also a constant stream of dark grey smoke out the exhaust.
I fitted the cam sprocket with cyl 1 in TDC with the dimple on the side of FIP sprocket visible as looking down from above. I have checked the upper chain tensioner since, it's tense although the rail seems to have travelled over further than I remember when I refitted it - the lever tool doesn't fit between rail and pin/bolt without having to first push rail toward slack position. The two cyl 1 cams were facing up/away from each other when refitting. I'm told the valves were removed for skimming.
Could it be to do with the chain or tappets? or something else?
All help right now would be very gratefully received.
Thanks,
Seb
I have often visited this forum (google makes a habit of it too) but never had the opportunity to say anything until now. I'm in a bit of a pickle, I'm about to move house (next week!) and have had to replace the head gasket and skim the head on my 95 P38 with 200k miles after it started overheating consistently and pressurising coolant. I sent the head to be pressure tested and skimmed, it came back with good pressure but with hair-line cracks running between valves on 4 cylinders. Not having much time I have put it back on hoping it will at least see me a month until I'm settled.
I finished the reassembly today and bled the injectors and all seemed fine. Pinched them up and turned the key again and after a bit of hesitation and spluttering it fired up, but with a horrible metallic rattle and clatter. It is either coming from the head or timing cover by the sound of it, certainly from the top half. I followed the routine of filling oil up to full, running at 2500rpm for 5 seconds and then checking and topping up but the rattle and clatter remains and gets much louder as the revs increase.
There is also a constant stream of dark grey smoke out the exhaust.
I fitted the cam sprocket with cyl 1 in TDC with the dimple on the side of FIP sprocket visible as looking down from above. I have checked the upper chain tensioner since, it's tense although the rail seems to have travelled over further than I remember when I refitted it - the lever tool doesn't fit between rail and pin/bolt without having to first push rail toward slack position. The two cyl 1 cams were facing up/away from each other when refitting. I'm told the valves were removed for skimming.
Could it be to do with the chain or tappets? or something else?
All help right now would be very gratefully received.
Thanks,
Seb
