same old ford different problem
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Senior User
Joined: Feb 2004
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From: knoxville ,tn
same old ford different problem
hello guys, i am still workin out the bugs on my 82 f-100 . took the 6cyl out and put in a 351- windsor with a c- 6 transmission. i have a couple of questions first, lifter problem comes and goes mainly in the morning it will tap pretty loud. i tried a can of sea foam it helped some. second , i am loosing about a half gallon of coolant from the radiator a week there is no leaks. right under where the head bolts on always seems to look wet. when i drive home in the traffic it will heat up when stop but cool back down when i take off again, sometimes the valves will rattle and when i try to restart when hot it cranks like it is out of time or dead battery , could this have something to do with my coolant lose? thanks for any info and so sorry this is so long 
Last edited by volfan945; Aug 23, 2004 at 04:53 AM.
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Joined: Jul 2003
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From: Tyrone GA
Sounds like you either have cracked heads or a bad head gasket. If you're losing that much coolant, it could be getting into your combustion chambers and it's being burned off there. What does the exhaust smell like? Does the engine smoke? The starting problem could be whats called hydraulic lock, which is when theres so much fliud in the combustion chamber, that the compression is so high that the starter cant turn it fast enough until the fluid is expelled. You might also be loosing coolant in your heater core. You might not be able to see that leaking. these are just possibilities for now. Replace the cheap stuff first !
Edit: you're tapping lifters might also be coming from the coolant diluting the oil, making it lose its viscosity. Might be time for a rebuild on this motor.
Edit: you're tapping lifters might also be coming from the coolant diluting the oil, making it lose its viscosity. Might be time for a rebuild on this motor.
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Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 114
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From: Tyrone GA
Oh boy, a municipality motor. It's shot to all high hell probably. They run those engines HARD. Good motor for a rebuild. Because of the fact it's a municipality engine, might be the 351wHO. good luck with it though, sounds like the engine is screwed ! 
Thread Starter
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Senior User
Joined: Feb 2004
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From: knoxville ,tn
took it to a shop today they looked it over and said no need for a compression check because it didn't smoke or miss at all 
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Fleet Mechanic
Joined: Aug 2002
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From: Swansea SC
351
Engine sitting for 10 yrs, gosh 
ossible be a head gasket 351 r notorius for them . Also as previous post stated leaking into the ehaust being burned off TR
ossible be a head gasket 351 r notorius for them . Also as previous post stated leaking into the ehaust being burned off TR
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From: Tyrone GA
ok, number 1. DONT EVER USE THAT SHOP AGAIN !!!! Thats the most retarded thing i've ever heard. Just because it doesnt smoke or miss doesnt mean that it doesnt need a compression check. I would dismiss that shop of its credibility by now. Go to advance auto, napa, where ever and buy yourself a compression tester. Do it yourself. This will tell you what your engine is doin. Look at it this way. Say one cylinder is getting water in it. Might not necessarily miss or smoke, but it's compression will be higher than the rest because of the extra volume in the chamber. Keep us updated, and dont ever use that shop !
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Joined: Feb 2004
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From: knoxville ,tn
this truck is a uphill batttle all the way, fuel pump went out yesterday had to change it and change the oil (gas was in it) do you think one oil change is enough to get all the gas out?as for the compression check what kind of numbers should i look for? again thanks guys for all your help
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Joined: Apr 2003
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From: Wyoming
For 1985 motor, might be okay at 100 - 120 psi. The Ford manuals have this goofy way with numbers; they won't come out and say the exact psi, just that the cylinders should all be within 75% of each other. If they are all zero, then it must be okay according to Ford????
As for the shop's statement, that is weird. I burnt an exhaust valve in my 4.0L Explorer this spring and drove it 700 miles home from Las Vegas. Yeah, it had an odd miss, but it never smoked. My suggestion of a compression check is based on that being the gold standard for engine analysis. Best investment in tools I ever did. I will always check the compression on an engine before I buy a used car these days - it's quick and easy (at least on the old cars I buy - I can't even find the spark plugs on some of the newer Fords).
As for the gas in the oil, how did it get in there? Need to figure that one out before doing multiple oil changes. Sorry you are getting so much trouble from this engine - do you miss the old straight six yet?
As for the shop's statement, that is weird. I burnt an exhaust valve in my 4.0L Explorer this spring and drove it 700 miles home from Las Vegas. Yeah, it had an odd miss, but it never smoked. My suggestion of a compression check is based on that being the gold standard for engine analysis. Best investment in tools I ever did. I will always check the compression on an engine before I buy a used car these days - it's quick and easy (at least on the old cars I buy - I can't even find the spark plugs on some of the newer Fords).
As for the gas in the oil, how did it get in there? Need to figure that one out before doing multiple oil changes. Sorry you are getting so much trouble from this engine - do you miss the old straight six yet?
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Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 114
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From: Tyrone GA
Yeah, you're alright with just one oil change. No biggie, happens all the time when those mechanical fuel pumps go. It happenes, they're common wear items on trucks this old. As spikedog said, 100-120-150 psi is around normal, depends on the amount of wear. Do the check and see what the numbers come out to be.It's pretty simple.
