Car ID

To get a performance gain from higher compression, you need high octane fuel. Another thread recently highlighted the difficulty of getting high enough octane fuel for these engines in the US!! What fuel(s) do your petrol stations sell?

Cheers

Alec
 
Overfinch said:
Hello Wildebeest,

Cleaning was done before reassembly. Haven't heard it rev yet. Can't wait. Are there significant gains (performance or otherwise) I can look forward to as a result of the grind?

Sent from my Infinix-X600-LTE using aussiefrogs mobile app
Click to expand...

Other than an improvement in running ie no compression loss via the leaking gasket.
General standard performance will be restored. Were the valve clearances re-adjusted? When retensioning the head later the clearances will need re-doing.

Hope it goes well for you.
 
Hey there Armidillo,

We have certain additive fuels in Kenya. Shell V power is one touted for performance but I haven't heard of any wow effect in the market. I use a new additive fuel from Total known as Excellium. If I can have only original compression restored, I'd be more than happy.

Sent from my Infinix-X600-LTE using aussiefrogs mobile app
 
As promised, exhaust unit photos

1491197111243.jpg1491197126633.jpg1491197137926.jpg1491197145010.jpg

Sent from my Infinix-X600-LTE using aussiefrogs mobile app
 
Overfinch said:
Hey there Armidillo,

We have certain additive fuels in Kenya. Shell V power is one touted for performance but I haven't heard of any wow effect in the market. I use a new additive fuel from Total known as Excellium. If I can have only original compression restored, I'd be more than happy.

Sent from my Infinix-X600-LTE using aussiefrogs mobile app
Click to expand...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shell_V-Power

As this Wikipedia entry shows, octane ratings vary from country to country, even if the fuel has the same name in each country (such as Shell V Power)! However it looks as if it would be at least 95 octane in Kenya, which is likely to be fine (and also the minimum you should use). One thing about a small compression leak such as you had is that it is more noticeable at lower revs, as there is literally more time for the gases to squeeze out!

So you may notice an improvement in low to mid-range pulling power, but the top end difference will most likely be marginal. As Wildebeest says, it's more about getting back to 'normal', as the amount taken off the head is unlikely to be enough to significantly increase compression.

It's hard to find information about your fuels just using Google - your media outlets just reprint the company's press release, without doing any of their own research. However I did find a chat site where Excellium was compared with with V-Power: https://www.kenyatalk.com/index.php?threads/total-excellium.37032/

It seems Excellium is cheaper for a reason - it is 93 Octane, same as your 'regular' fuel. I would use V-Power if you can get it.

Cheers

Alec
 
Thanks for the feedback. Yes, our press are copy paste specialists. Proper and rigorous research is precious stuff in my dear republic. If what I had was a small compression leak, I would shudder to think what a big leak would be like. The car's acceleration and throttle response was lethargic. I had several instances of car jerks on attempts at acceleration. There was the obvious coolant/ water loss. I had a recurrent misfire with eye stinging exhaust fumes (fouled plugs). Consumption had significantly deteriorated. Even with the new exhaust pipe, the exhaust was throaty on idle. Are all these compression leak/ loss symptoms?
 
Big pressure loss? Try a burnt valve or two, or a piece blown out of the head gasket :). Pity you don't have compression test figures from before the head was removed.

Actually, looking at your photos, I see that the cylinders 1 & 2 are very close to each other, as are 3 & 4. It's hard to tell from the photos, but if that very thin bit of head gasket between one (or both) pairs had disappeared then I think it would count as a major compression loss!

Best double-check with your mechanic about the points Wildebeest raised - valve (tappet) clearances need to be set any time the head is torqued down or re-torqued, and torque (head bolt tightness) needs to be checked after a few hours of running.

I'll let the experts explain how soon to retorque head. Also, perhaps someone can explain whether your head bolts can safely be reused or not?

Yes, most of your recorded symptoms can be explained by the failing head gasket, but I'm not sure that the exhaust note is related!

Cheers

Alec
 
Head bolts are re-usable on the 504 engines. Re-torquing should be done with the engine cold. Six to eight hours.
If the head bolts are showing sign of rust they may need replacing. Many methods of torquing the head have been debated here.
You takes your pick.
A couple of oil changes may be required to remove traces of coolant.

I would put the exhaust sound down to some of the silencers and pipe sizes do not appear standard.
 
Hi guys. The cylinder head was replaced. I am not losing coolant anymore (minor victory). Cold start has also significantly improved. I managed to get a shroud (or pieces of it) from wreckers.1493574487599.jpg

True to form its a fit for my radiator but I can't locate where I'm supposed to screw it onto the radiator. Is there another bracket that goes onto the radiator prior to this shroud? My radiator bare. There's nothing apart from the radiator in there.

Sent from my Infinix-X600-LTE using aussiefrogs mobile app
 
Overfinch said:
Hi guys. The cylinder head was replaced. I am not losing coolant anymore (minor victory). Cold start has also significantly improved. I managed to get a shroud (or pieces of it) from wreckers.View attachment 95899

True to form its a fit for my radiator but I can't locate where I'm supposed to screw it onto the radiator. Is there another bracket that goes onto the radiator prior to this shroud? My radiator bare. There's nothing apart from the radiator in there.

Sent from my Infinix-X600-LTE using aussiefrogs mobile app
Click to expand...


Overfinch,
Good to hear all is well.
The radiator shroud, with sections cut away are usually attached to the radiator side straps. There should be 4 threaded [6mm] holes, two on each side for mounting the shroud. Caution! use only short 6mm screws, longer screws may damage the radiator fins/tubes.

The missing shroud section will make very little difference to the cooling. I always cut away this section on all my previous 504's.
It makes for easier removal of the radiator.

Keep in touch.
Wildebeest
 
Wildebeest said:
Overfinch,
Good to hear all is well.
The radiator shroud, with sections cut away are usually attached to the radiator side straps. There should be 4 threaded [6mm] holes, two on each side for mounting the shroud. Caution! use only short 6mm screws, longer screws may damage the radiator fins/tubes.

The missing shroud section will make very little difference to the cooling. I always cut away this section on all my previous 504's.
It makes for easier removal of the radiator.

Keep in touch.
Wildebeest
Click to expand...
Hi there Wildebeest,

I don't believe my radiator has side straps. I'll post pictures shortly

Sent from my Infinix-X600-LTE using aussiefrogs mobile app
 
IMG_1461.jpg IMG_1462.jpg

It varied - I have some 504 radiators with the side mounting lugs and some without. This pic is one with. Sorry for the poor quality.
 
Peter and Overfinch,
I'm wondering if the radiators without shroud mounting bolts are from an early 504 ?

I have run my present 504 without a shroud, it didn't seem to make much difference?
 
Without the lugs/shrouds could well have been early 504, don't know. Someone is sure to know. It didn't seem to make much difference in any of my 504s either. The main thing that did make a difference was taking out the radiator each year and thoroughly flushing the radiator and the rest of the cooling system out.
 
I've only ever seen the shroud on the later 504s. Anyone else?

Although I didn't notice much difference they wouldn't have gone to the trouble of installing them for nothing. It must help!
 
Hello folks. The old gal has been stationary for about a fortnight. I don't want her out of parking as I want to fit in a new carburetor next week and also remit the brake booster. On trying to warm her up today, I realised that I had a proper leak underneath the driver's wheel well. I couldn't see any holes in the firewall visible behind the dashboard. Is this a common pug issue?

Sent from my Infinix-X600-LTE using aussiefrogs mobile app

0e8d938f08e853e6159ac0de4bd8db14.jpg


A proper lake.
 
It's not that common a problem. The first thing I would check is for a leaky windscreen and if all is well there I would next check for rust up around that area.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top