408WPN 27 Posted August 27, 2021 Hi everyone Crappie raining day in Picton NZ Too much time over thinking etc Last year bought a XF ute un-certed, originally rebuilt stroked 393w, that went South. Breifly considered rebuild but for some bizzare reason had a sudden rush of blood to the head & went down the track of 408ci crate engine from Blueprint engines in USA with a 30mth warranty. Few months later all certified & on the road, happy days. Done break in as required & have also used manufacturers recommended 10w-30 mineral oil. About 6wks later checked the oil & noticed I'd used about a litre, thought, hell that's not good but put it down to, I don't know what Topped it up, kinda forgot about it, checked it again last week had used all of the top up & now discoloured. All of this & have only done about 1800km.. Jumped on another forum, some suggested try different oil grade such 20w-50 high zinc. Now down to the nitty gritty & this is where I need the advice on. I've been in touch with Blue engines & have lodged warranty file etc. They seem to think when the heads where getting assembled they've forgotten to seal the rocker stud threads & this could be the cause of the problem but 2L oil in 1800km is a bloody lot. They seem to think it's an easy fix, easy to check for, want the rocker studs removed & forward on photo's of the threads. Well it's not bloody as easy to check for is it, such as removing the studs x 16 & then torque'n them back into place, then also adding such technical terms in place such '0 lash 3/4 of a turn (((that's after bolting them back into 40 lb torque, they're also screwed in & not pressed))) Also been advised by a freind have to rotate engine so opposite cylinder is rocking when removing studs, worst case scenario if undoing it wrong, motor will go bang . Really after just dribbling on about all this,, has anyone heard if this could be the problem & why would it use so much oil. On a positive note it's note blowing blue smoke & I've got a 30mth warranty but they cover there arse's big time in the small print but have been really good so far in saying they'll look after me Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
deankxf 20,288 Posted August 27, 2021 seeing you aren't a mechanic, or know enough to risk touching it yourself(i'd be hesitant, and i have 20% of a clue) ask them if they have an authorised mechanic in NZ you can send it to for confirmation. if they don't find a local TRUSTED mechanic, and get them to approve him to work on it? or ask his opinion (i'd be asking an engine builder/reconditioner to do it) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
408WPN 27 Posted August 27, 2021 12 minutes ago, deankdx said: seeing you aren't a mechanic, or know enough to risk touching it yourself(i'd be hesitant, and i have 20% of a clue) ask them if they have an authorised mechanic in NZ you can send it to for confirmation. if they don't find a local TRUSTED mechanic, and get them to approve him to work on it? or ask his opinion (i'd be asking an engine builder/reconditioner to do it) Yeah I've touched base with blueprint myself & they seemed happy enough to do it myself but no way hozay. If it went paired shaped, good chance it'd void my warranty & kiss goodbye to that. Silvester performance V8's down in Christchurch 350km away is who imported the engine in,I contacted them & they reassured me they were going to email Blueprint engines & pretty disappointed to learn Blueprint haven't heard from them. Been stung by a few mechanics in last 12mths ,not listening to instructions & mainly over charging etc so plenty of trust issues there. There is local guy here that seems pretty clued up on V8 Fords My main hope listing on forum is hopefully engine builder see's it & can comment about rocker stud threads etc & whether this be contributing factor to the problem Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
deankxf 20,288 Posted August 27, 2021 23 minutes ago, 408WPN said: Been stung by a few mechanics in last 12mths ,not listening to instructions & mainly over charging etc so plenty of trust issues there yeah i hear you, been happening here for 25yrs that i know of. there are a few switched on people on this forum, but its' still hard to work out on the internet. 25 minutes ago, 408WPN said: My main hope listing on forum is hopefully engine builder see's it & can comment about rocker stud threads etc & whether this be contributing factor to the problem unless @Thom has any input or can tag someone else. i can't remember what engine it is already other than it's possibly windsor based? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
408WPN 27 Posted August 27, 2021 1 minute ago, deankdx said: yeah i hear you, been happening here for 25yrs that i know of. there are a few switched on people on this forum, but its' still hard to work out on the internet. unless @Thom has any input or can tag someone else. i can't remember what engine it is already other than it's possibly windsor based? Cheers Dean, apreciate 1 deankxf reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Thom 6,651 Posted August 27, 2021 This is something I've seen before, some heads the holes for the screw in studs is exposed to the intake ports, so it is possible if there is no thread sealer on the rocker studs that the engine could be sucking oil in around them, as far as setting valve lash goes there are some good videos about it, but it is something if you are not sure of its worthwhile having some else do it or show you how 1 408WPN reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
408WPN 27 Posted August 27, 2021 1 minute ago, Thom said: This is something I've seen before, some heads the holes for the screw in studs is exposed to the intake ports, so it is possible if there is no thread sealer on the rocker studs that the engine could be sucking oil in around them, as far as setting valve lash goes there are some good videos about it, but it is something if you are not sure of its worthwhile having some else do it or show you how Thanks so much NZ Be back to level 3 on Wednesday, so hopefully bit closer to getting it sorted Share this post Link to post Share on other sites