Hi Perry!
Thanks for the post. I was rudely reminded by my brother that last year when we were returning to northern california from quartzsite, arizona we had a brake failure and it was the master cylinder that failed. In fact, the hydro-vac sucked the brake fluid past the seal in the master cylinder right into the engine and it smoked like hell. We did nurse it home and I replaced the master cylinder, flushed and bled the system, changed the oil in the engine, etc. But, never gave a thought to what the brake fluid might have done to things like valve stem seals!! Well, here we are, I think!! The day of reckoning is here. Napa will have my seals for me in the morning, just need to find a stud mount valve spring compressor and have at it. I will keep everyone posted once I have skinned all my knuckles. Stay tuned!
Just for kicks I decided to perform another leakdown test on the engine in the cold condition, the results were pretty substantial in that all cylinders were in the 20 to 28 percent range! Makes quite a difference between warm and cold testing. I didn't expect that big of a change. I used the same equipment and same parameters. Any thoughts??

 

"Is this thing on" ???

Did you check the PCV valve, and see if there was an excess amount of oil in the PCV hose leading back to the intake?

 

Well valve stem seals dry up over time. Usually between 10 and 20 years. I had this happen on my 91 Turbo Eclipse. I figured the turbo seals we going and attributed the oil consumption to that. Well I rebuilt the turbo and still had the problem. I was replacing the timing belt and tried to start the car. It hit a lick to and died. I did a compression check and compression was almost nothing on three out of 4 cylinders. Well I thought the worse that I had messed something up and bent all the valves. Well it turns out that there was so much oil leaking past the seals that the engine was full of carbon. When I started it up the loose carbon jammed the valves open and it died. When I pulled the head I found that the valve seats were toast from munching down on all those junks of carbon. I ended up lapping all the intake valves and replacing the exhaust valves. I put her back together with new seals and she runs like new and does not burn oil. The timing belt replace was caused by a cheap NAPA water pump that the bearings died in less than 20k after install. It is one where you have to remove the timing belt to replace. So I guess it was a good thing that the pump when bad when it did.

So seals do go bad over time even if the rings are fine. My 95 ranger with 200k on it does not burn a drop so they must have good seal material that does not age over time. If they make silicone seals get them. They don't break down and harden over time like the rubber seals do. Summit racing or Jegs might also have the seals you seek if you can't find them locally. If you are going to keep it another 20 yrs then go with the silicone. If not, then take what the local place is selling.

Perry

 

You is he fixed yes the valve spring is too hard?,
Change the oil pump, is easier.
Change the filters? Tested?

 

I pulled the PCV valve and hose off and the PCV valve did indeed need to be replaced as the valve would fall off it seat by about 1/16" when inverted. There was a small amount of oily residue in the vacuum hose but nothing that could be poured out, just a bit that I could get on my fingernail. I will replace the hose though along with another PCV valve. Not sure why PCV valves only last about 1500 to 2000 miles before the spring fails in this thing but it has been a characteristic of this engine since I've had it (20 years).

 

I ordered the new replacement seals from Napa auto parts and they will be here this morning. They are a teflon/viton type seal with a wound spring that holds them to the guide. Being as the original seals went almost 20 years along with a little help from a brake fluid bath, I expect that with me being 71 years old, these will see me through my voyage. Maybe even longer if one of my youngun's or friends wants it when I no longer need it.

 

Viton will last a while as well. It is a synthetic Flouropolymer and is used as an alternative to Silicone. The better O-rings are made of Silicone and Viton.

Perry

 

Well, I have replaced the valve stem seals on 5 of the 8 cylinders but have had a tough time of it. The space around the engine, with the doghouse being the biggest problem, is so limited that I have had to build and rebuild 3 spring compressors. I keep breaking them off due to the fulcrum being mounted with a 5/16 bolt, which is marginal when you start anything other than a vertical push or pull on it. Of course there will be a lateral load and there lies the problem. There isn't room to use the Ford tool or any other tool that requires a handle more than 7 inches long, and it has to be L shaped to work in the limited space. So, maybe by next weekend I will have all 8 cylinders done. I did find the correct spring wrapped, guide mounted seals and that is what I am using, not the umbrella seals. I sure hope this is the problem but should know in a couple of weeks.

 

I finished up the valve stem seal installation this morning. The job entailed modifying a couple of commercial valve spring compressors, one to take the spring off, the other to install the spring. I put new spark plugs in it and a new PVC valve along with the seals and valve cover gaskets. I am going to change the oil and filter and take it for a 100 mile drive, maybe over the weekend and will then know if I helped it out or not.

UPDATE!!
I took my RV for a 202 mile drive today, pretty much twisted its tail for most of the way as I drove it a little faster than I usually do and it didn't use a drop of oil, best I can tell. I levelled the RV, scratched a fine mark on the dipstick before I left and the engine was stone cold with all the oil in the pan, took the 202 mile drive, came home, re-levelled the RV, let it sit for 3 hours, checked the oil and it is on the same line I scratched on the dipstick. So, I think I can say for sure it was the valve stem seals. I am now ready for Quartzsite this winter!! Thanks to all who responded. Much appreciated and a great site you have here.