Metro - carbon on the piston head?

[an0nymous]

Whelp, take your time and enjoy your beer. I really appreciate all the advice.

lessee here:
Did the car have any oil related issues before dis-assembly? (burning or leaking or vomiting)
Um not really sure honestly. I bought it, drove it home and parked it. Oil was low when I got it, when I drained the old oil it was...rubbery. Clearly had a pretty good leak somewhere around the head gasket based on the film that covered the head. There's also a (hopefully small) leak in the main seal area, but the bottom half of the engine scares me, so it will go unattended.

Who made the head gasket kit? (Victor or Fel-Pro or Bob)
That would be Bob. Got it off ebay... says Kabuki Gaskets on the box. There's some head bolts in there marked with "Top Line" manufacturers stickers. Lot of various gaskets in there, all unmarked. The valve spring seal is marked "Viton"

Hmm... the seals don't sound like that much trouble.. think I should get a new set from a reputable manufacturer? I am surprised about the rubber.. I would have thought that the engine would have gotten too hot for that.

As for the frieze plugs.. there might be a little corrosion there. I'll post pics tomorrow and put it to a vote as to whether they need replacement.

[metroschultz]

Viton is a type of rubber designed to take the heat.
Everybody has seals marked Viton.
A reputable manufacturer is a better idea.
IIRC the seals alone are not that much money. ($10)
A little corrosion is O.K.
I'll wait for the pics. Go put a new battery in your camera.
S.

[an0nymous]

Would take pictures now if I could. Unfortunately the charger is half an hour away and it's a proprietary battery. I'll stick them up tomorrow. Won't be able to work on this again in earnest until at least this weekend, so I'll have time to buy new seals.

[an0nymous]

Here's the plugs. I think they're okay.. that's either dirt or some surface rust..what do you think?
I can take more shots if necessary, anything in particular I should be looking for?

[Johnny Mullet]

Choose the one you think may become a problem and replace it with a block heater

They look fine to me.

[an0nymous]

Now that is an interesting notion. I know Darin did some experimental work with heaters and such .. any suggestions as for brands and wattage? Might as well while I've got the head sitting here...

I really like your new sig by the way.

[metroschultz]

They look good to me also.
FWIW I would recommend a block heat in one of the plugs on the front of the block.
Under where the exhaust manifold goes. There are many on the market and they all will be more than adequate fro your Metro. Most are designed for V8 Diesels.
You will need to find one of the smaller ones so it will fit.
S.

[an0nymous]

Do you favor a heater for the block itself because there's more oil to heat there? I was thinking the head was the way to go because that puts the heated closer to the lifters... bad assumptions on my part? The head isn't filled with oil, I guess...

I went back and reread the engine block heater in San Jose thread, but it raised more questions than it answered. Apparently the factory block heater plugs into the back of the block beneath the intake manifold, according to Darin.

[Johnny Mullet]

I would also locate it in the rear under the intake just because of heat issues. GM makes one that might fit. I have a really, really, really, old one on the shelf and I will get measurements, pics, and possibly a part # for you tomorrow. This will heat the coolant in the block around the cylinders as it was designed to do.

I would do it now, because there is no later

[metroschultz]

What he ^ said