The Houston 04 SE

[78F350]

Okay, No Snake Oil...
The engine does not put out smoke until after it has warmed up. I'm pretty sure that its from the oil-water mix in the exhaust heating up on the cats rather than a problem with the engine. I am still not happy with my oil samples. The oil on the dipstick looks clean and clear now, but samples from the filter are cloudy with water and fine debris.


I took the oil from the filter and strained it in a coffee filter, then spread the residue on white paper. There is nothing metallic or gritty. What I found is more like a flaking varnish. I have seen similar stuff in the carburetor of a lawn mower that sat with water in the gas tank. It is soft and can easily be broken up with the tip of a probe. The largest pieces are smaller than a millimeter in diameter. That is still more contamination than I had hoped to see after four oil changes.

Next I'm going to pull off the sump plate and give the bottom of the engine a good cleaning. I'll spray it with fogging oil, brush it, and wipe down the internal parts that I can reach. I would have dropped the pan earlier, but I was in a hurry to get it running and flushed. Now it seems like a good precaution before I run the engine under more of a load.



I did some diagnostics with my Autel MD802. Just some minor codes that are probably related to having an '01 instrument cluster installed instead of the '04. It also sometimes shows a secondary O2 sensor code. No worries there. The ABS/PSM shows code 4276 “Valve relay”. No idea about that yet, but the connector was wet for a long time.

Video:
https://youtu.be/BW-jrg0WdbQ

[78F350]

I don't want to apply power to the electronics until after I have inspected them internally. Yesterday at work, I checked the instrument cluster for corrosion. All of the circuitry looked good. There was only a little rust on some internal shielding where contact with a ribbon cable had held some moisture. Last night at Super Bowl Half-Time, I plugged it in. Finally I know the mileage of the car.
44,608. :dance:

[78F350]

I had a busy week of work, with heart attacks, strokes, a stabbing, car wreck, and a house explosion. I didn't get much work done on the car. Now I'm off for seven days.

Sump thing is dirty.

Engine oil flushes could not get all the crud out, so I dropped the sump plate today. The bottom of the pan looked terrible with soft, cloudy sediment and small water droplets. There was no way that the stuff outside the baffles could make it to the drain.


With the pan dropped it was easy to clean. One of the oil return outlets had broken tabs. Fortunately I had a pair of them available from a scrapped engine and didn't have to wait for delivery of a new one.


The engine itself looked great. No sign of internal corrosion. I'm glad I didn't disturb the sediment any further by driving the car around or running it hard. If I ever buy another flood car, cleaning the sump will be my first step.


It's all back together now. A very thin coat of gray sealant, then bolts tightened to finger tight. After setting for an hour I torqued them all to 10 Nm (7 Ft). Now it sits over night before I fill with oil and run it.


While waiting for the sealant to set, I removed the spoiler and rear bumper. The motor for the spoiler was bad, so I replaced it with one from my parts car. With the bumper off, I got a good look at the damage from transport. It looks pretty superficial. Tomorrow, I'll take it to a body shop for an estimate.

Also today I went to the Tag Agency (DMV). It's the 30th day since I bought the car, so if I didn't transfer the title, I'd start accruing fines. I explained that I planned to file for a rebuilt title soon, but the car wasn't ready yet. The clerk replied that she could take my application and fee, then hold it for me until the car is ready. That way there is no rush and no fine. Awesome deal.

The video: https://youtu.be/SLf2ukEbQeU

[GTA_G20]

Originally Posted by 78F350

I had a busy week of work, with heart attacks, strokes, a stabbing, car wreck, and a house explosion. I didn't get much work done on the car. Now I'm off for seven days.

Sump thing is dirty.

Engine oil flushes could not get all the crud out, so I dropped the sump plate today. The bottom of the pan looked terrible with soft, cloudy sediment and small water droplets. There was no way that the stuff outside the baffles could make it to the drain.


With the pan dropped it was easy to clean. One of the oil return outlets had broken tabs. Fortunately I had a pair of them available from a scrapped engine and didn't have to wait for delivery of a new one.


The engine itself looked great. No sign of internal corrosion. I'm glad I didn't disturb the sediment any further by driving the car around or running it hard. If I ever buy another flood car, cleaning the sump will be my first step.


It's all back together now. A very thin coat of gray sealant, then bolts tightened to finger tight. After setting for an hour I torqued them all to 10 Nm (7 Ft). Now it sits over night before I fill with oil and run it.


While waiting for the sealant to set, I removed the spoiler and rear bumper. The motor for the spoiler was bad, so I replaced it with one from my parts car. With the bumper off, I got a good look at the damage from transport. It looks pretty superficial. Tomorrow, I'll take it to a body shop for an estimate.

Also today I went to the Tag Agency (DMV). It's the 30th day since I bought the car, so if I didn't transfer the title, I'd start accruing fines. I explained that I planned to file for a rebuilt title soon, but the car wasn't ready yet. The clerk replied that she could take my application and fee, then hold it for me until the car is ready. That way there is no rush and no fine. Awesome deal.

The video: https://youtu.be/SLf2ukEbQeU

Well done man. Low mileage !!!! Looks good now need to source a used SE muffler tip