4age cam journal & head deep scratches/gouges... so does thing mean I have to replace head??

[wezwally]

Car - AE93SX 4AGE

motor / part in question - Head / Cams

problem - Deep Scratches & Gouges = Sad Panda

occurs/started when (if applicable)- No idea (more below)

personal situation (if applicable)-

Firstly I apologise if this isn't the best place to post this topic but it did seem like the best place so I really hope I don't get yelled at.

Just in the process of stripping my car down due to suspected valve stem leak, car was running ok but it would start smoking when idling in traffic and always since I got it seemed a little low on power (compared to the 4af I owned previous) beside the smoke though it was running fine so I decided to do a head job as well as a hone & rings plus replace a bunch of other things.

Anyway Ive already spent a crap load and bought a bunch of new parts before starting and now one of the first things I find is that my head and cams both have significant damage/wear.:crying::crying:. The car has always ran fine for me and never overheated once. Ive been good with servicing but obviously have no idea how it was treated for the previous 20+ years.

Well I need to know do i have any other options other than getting another head and cams?

If it needs replacing I'm wondering apart from gumtree ebay and local wreckers is there anywhere else recommended I should or can look for parts?

This has left me quite depressed now and Im just wondering what the heck Im going to find in the bottom end.

Here's a few pics of my sad car:

This is the worst one, its 2nd across on intake side and a few others do have small scratches but nothing like this:

296242962529626

Edit: Would it be OK to just replace the cams and also get some replacement caps for the badly worn ones?

[dove grey 64]

No one's going to yell at you. Seeing as you were going to do rings and hone check over the rest of the bottom end. As for the head it might be repairable but by the looks of stuff it'll cost more then its worth. I've got a spare unassembled smallport head and some bigport cams you can have cheap if you get stuck. Would be a better base to get reco'd.
Welcome to the forum

[LittleRedSpirit]

Yeah thats a lot of damage, seems there was a lack of lubrication through those galleries in a big way. Did you find other failures?

Id agree a new head would be easier. If it were something more rare and exotic you might try and have it fixed somehow, but realistically, its too much work on a 4a.

[Matt]

By the time you get it right again you could have purchased another motor

[wezwally]

Thanks heaps for the help guys I haven't dropped the pan yet and I'm a bit busy until the end of the week but when I do ill assess the rest of the engine. As I said It was running well (even my mechanic thought so) so unless there is any other major wear or damage ill likely just replace the heads / cams as suggested spec it all the best I can and try to do the best job I can, but of course if I find anything else major I might get a reco engine (but then i worry whats stopping me from getting another engine in the same or worse condition?) If it comes to it I might do a full rebuild on this engine it might be better the devil you know right...??

yeah if things were better and I had more money id get as clean an engine as I can and rebuild that one instead but Im really on limited funds.

AFAIk the heads & cams could well have been replaced prior to me owning it (starting to suspect it has been from the blue sealant used all over the rocker covers) and possibly with untested wrecker parts, this is my suspicion, and to be honest this car came from a local (by trade) mechanics daughter so I have no idea what that guy has done to it before they sold it, funnily enough he came to my door preaching about Jesus a few weeks ago (no kidding hes a Jehovah) and when he said who he was and asked me 'how the car was' I gave him a bit of a earfull about it, [before I bought it he actually told my aunt+uncle it had been 'rebuilt' not long ago which was obviously a lie but it did influence me buying it and I had no reason not to believe it, LPG was only installed in 2009 I figured the engine probably got a rebuild then it seemed to make sense to me that one would do this when taking the trouble to install gas (unless hes just the worst mechanic ever and he only gets 1-2years / 30k out of rebuilds LOL) maybe he just replaced the head at some point [which could to him = rebuild] I dont know, but the look on his door-knocker friends face when I said something to the affect of "well i thought it was wrong to lie but i guess anyone would say anything to sell a car right" was priceless and he left quick smart after that] .. Sorry about the rant. ;-)

Thanks heaps for the offer Geoff I might well send you a PM in a week or two if I decide to go that way although I just have to figure out if the rest of the car is ok first before spending more, and ill take a look around locally and see what I can find first.

Thanks again Geoff, Matt & also Matt :-) for the help I appreciate it.

[Course_Out]

Hey mate - I have a similar issue although nowhere near as bad. To get me by for the rest of the season we sanded and polished the caps and cams, and chucked it back together. Same as you, only found out there was something wrong because we started pulling it down to change the valve stem seals!

As the others have stated given the price of 4age bits its not really worth fixing what you have. I have recently picked up another head for $50, but having it reconditioned (skimmed, clearance set, etc.) is costing me around $550, so I am getting the bottom end freshened up while I am at it. I've been quoted around $1500 all up if there are no serious surprises, but I am pulling the engine out and delivering it to the shop myself.

While it might seem like a big hit to give the whole thing a freshen up I would definitely suggest it. A decent 4age, freshened up and cared for properly should happily give you 300,000km plus of service

[wezwally]

Hello again..

Can anyone please help me with the location of the 'engine drain cock' as described in the engine manual? Ive read a few places online but cant find a solid confirmation, I just need to know if it is this stupid bolt just to the left and basically the same height/inline with the oil filter?? There's also what looks like a freeze plug directly above it (about an inch).. This is the bolt I assume it is but im not sure, and ive unfortunately slightly rounded it now trying to get it out which is great....

Here's a picture of the one I think it is.

[timbo]

its a coolant drain. why do you need to remove it?

[wezwally]

its a coolant drain. why do you need to remove it?

Um because I was trying to drain the coolant from the block..lol.... Ended up just removing the water pump and didnt bother with that block drain.

Everything on the bottom end looks surprisingly good, all bearings are still in excellent shape and crank looks perfect. Well all is great except for the half liter of coolant I found in the oil pan 8| now im trying to figure out if my block is cracked somewhere or if it was (hopefully) just the head or gasket causing it. Oh what a world.

[wezwally]

Im fairly annoyed thinking back to the fact I specifically asked my mechanic if he could do a leak down test as well as a compression test on it which he replied that he 'could definately do' and then when he came out to my place he didnt bother doing ANYTHING testing wise except giving me his 'expert opinion' that the cylinders were glazed (which they simply arent),instead of doing either test I specifically asked for he just watched it run for 5 or 10mins and then obviously just gave me his best guess.. As soon as my intake came off it was obvious oil is getting in through the 2nd cylinders intake valves (and I even told him i suspected the valve stems and he said 'nah most likely not') but the dip stick didnt bother to test anything so it was obviously just a completely (un)educated guess, and when I even held a piece of paper up to the exhaust for him to see that there was WATER coming out the exhaust he still dismissed it and told me it was nothing... 'condensation' from sitting so long he said..!!! OMG really? I was also slightly annoyed that day that he didnt do the tests but back then I didnt realize I could possibly have a crack in the block! (im new to all this)

I actually feel like making a complaint to someone about him after this I think he just completely ripped me of that day since he did nothing that I had specifically requested but of course he still happily took my money for the 'call out and inspection' or whatever it was..

I honestly don't think he ever in 1000 years expected me to pull the engine down which is probably why he didnt bother doing his job properly.!. I really should have kept my money and bought a leak down tester myself instead of wasting my money for him to come out and give me his rotten half arsed advice.

What a jerk..

Sorry for the rant

[timbo]

didnt bother with that block drain.

nor has anyone else, thus a bolt instead of the drain plug that is normally there...