Fred we now understand how you feel and why it is so close to home, that info is of concern for all. We had no idea where you were coming from; not that attacking anyone is good tactics.

Lets keep this thing clean.
Lets get back on track and find out more… on what really gets us going….HP/TQ

 

Gosh,
I spend some quality time with the wife before I go out of town and misa ALL the "spice"...

Since I'm not emotionally tied to the thread and won't be doing this type of thing....

Everybody take a breath and let's try to honor Pres Reagan's memory in that he could disagree with it becoming a personal attack...
I, personally, have not perfected that either... but it's a nice goal to have :-)

Seems like we have someone that is very close to the issue and has been burned before... I tend to be like that too ! Case in point, if I am invited to a restaurant I've had horrbile service from and am seatd and the same server comes up... I have a preconceived idea that I should expect bad service and immediately develop an attitude :-)

Hey, already admitted I wasn't perfect :-)

I understand the "honesty" of the issue and that's why I haven't weighed in... I figured it would get hashed out in the end and most of the time it is done amiablly here (unlike the OTHER boards :-)

I cannot be the world's policemen, I don't have the resources to do it, but I understand that someone has to... and will support those that can, including my nephew that is in Fallujah RIGHT NOW !

So let's chill and speak nicely to one another - Please ?
And let the cause and effect take care of itself....

 

See the post on this forum that has to do with the $13,000 Warranty not covered. Even though dealers sell performance devices and other mods, doesn't mean it is covered under warranty. When you buy a new truck, you sign a lot of papers. One of these papers says the dealer went over each of the documents and you read them. Read the Warranty Guide and then make a choice. Is it worth it to you.

 

Fred, I cant exactly walk into the dealer and say "I think I MIGHT have sprayed a couple gallons of water and methanol through the intake, but im not sure." The two situations you are comparing here differ more than enough to make a good comparison. You say that you get people who bring knocking motors in for warranty work, only to find evidence of the motor being overboosted. I understand that, and if I were you I wouldn't be happy either. The thing is, here, is that I dont understand the full effects of the methanol, nor does the dealer, and we (escpecially at this point) DONT KNOW exactly what went wrong. It could be the fault of the methanol, it could be that the methanol simply helped along a fatally weak spot in the motor, or it could be something totally different. If the mechanic and I come to the conclusion that the detonation of the methanol soley and lonely destroyed the entire motor, Im going to find another motor somewhere else, and send it for a twin turbo kit, like i have said at least twice in this thread previously. Ford won't have to cover the cost, and I wont have to worry about Ford's warranty any longer. If it is a head gasket, ill buy the 60 dollar gasket and pay the mechanic out of my pocket; he is a family friend anyways. However, if evidence of other causes of damage come into play, I will seriously consider letting Ford cover the costs. From what I DO KNOW, one of the injectors on the OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE MOTOR from where the gasket is has come unseated. I do not believe the methanol would have caused this. I will know more later tonight, I am on my way down there as soon as I leave here.

 

Nice post Uncle adams...

 

We also assume the risk. Why anyone would warranty performance enhancements is beyond me. When I did performance mods on Mustangs, I had 'em sign a "No Warranty" document.

The biggest tabu Fred violated was jumping on Tim...that is not done.

 

Well guys, this is gonna be a really long post, so just hang in here with me.

First off, just to let you guys know, I have a new motor ordered and Im keeping the old one for a rebuild. Heres the evident damge. Left side head gasket blown (initial problem). All 8 pistons melted down, 3 just totally demolished. Valves beat up from melted pistons, and cylinder bores slightly scarred (repairable). Turbo vanes not actually melted, but charred and slightly deformed.
The mechanic and I (with a little input from Ken Englesman) have determined the events that took place that led to the damage.

First off was the overall stress on the truck at the time. At 130+, with the aerodyamics of a brick with a trailing parachute, the entire vehicle, escpecially the engine, the stress must have been quite high when you factor in the amount of power I was pushing at the time. The water/alchohol was the initial culprit, however it seems now only to be a partial contributor. The stress, along with the cylinder pressures posed by the water kit put the head gasket over the edge and it blew. (By the way, the slightly strong mixture of methanol and my little edgy finger that just HAD to turn the pump up contributed here too.) Ok here was where I really went wrong. I am running an SCMT. No problem here, until you cumulate the situation. I am sitting on the side of the road with the head gasket blown, and I decide to limp it home. Mistake.
The motor is very weak at this point, and very little boost is available from the turbocharger. However, my chip is still in happy-go-lucky mode and slinging fuel the same as if i was putting out 30 psi boost. It apparently did this all the way home. With no boost, the serious overfueling overheated both the cylinder temperature and the exhaust gas temperature, hence the demolished piston heads and charred turbo vanes.

I could have done several things to prevent the latter steps from happening. First off, I should have left it sitting there and towed it in. Secondly, I could have de-installed the chip before I limped it home. Thirdly, and ironically, I could have left the water on. The temperature drop from the water/meth would have sufficiently cooled the motor to prevent heat damage, within the time frame.

Ill be sending the old motor, minus the valves and bottom end, for the Twin Turbo kit. The new motor will be in the truck within a couple of weeks. We paid for it in order to retain the blown motor for the rebuild.

I took a disposable camera full of pictures; as soon as I get a chance to get them developed ill post them on here. I hope what I have posted has provided a little insight into the risks and returns of the topic of the thread. Im now officially a Beta Tester

Well, now since I owe my stepdad for the entire motor assembly, and sometime in the near future will owe him for the rebuild, I am officially penniless for quite a while. I am, however looking forward to 120 pounds of boost. Blow off valve? Whats that?

 

Wow, What a story! I'm taking bets on how long the next one will last.

Seriously, 60L PSD FX4, sorry to hear it was so costly. But what a ride.

 

Im gonna baby this brand new stock one...im even debating on wheter or not to put the tuner back on; i most certainly wont until it has a couple thousand miles break-in. Once i get the twin-turbo one, im gonna give it you-know-what all the time, but it will be built to handle it.

 

Thanks for the story. I'm sorry that you had to be the one! Thanks for sharing with all of us.

 

Bob, how is your kit coming along? Are you still planning on using it?

 

Wow..........

 

Yes, I am going to use it. Mine is smaller than yours, a single stage. I will limit my mix to 30% methanol. I think the reason it overfueled was the SMPT because their have been some earily head gasket failures.
Second, the methanol in a mix over 50% adds to the fuel snd raises the cylinder tenp.
I'm sorry that I was right in describing the destruction. I have been there before.

 

ive seen in ur erlier posts that the pistons are ceramic coated. make sure they also coat the skirts, combustion chamber, back sides of valves, and exhaust port clear out the head.

believe me, its worth every penny when ur hotroddin a diesel

 

dont forget that you dont have to use methanol. water makes power all by itself.

i dont think ill put much of anything but water in mine......no need.....plus that stuff is $$$$$$$