Cleaning pistons and heads - what is the best way?

shokwave2 Officially Full-On Dubber

289 posts · joined Mar 2010 · 11 Aug 2011, 6:50 am

#856449

After chasing an oil leak from an oil cooler seal, i got bored so i thought i'd clean up my engine which i have never stripped down since owning.

I found a bit of carbon build up on my pistons (a couple of millimeters thick!) and heads, and would like to remove it to check for damage so what is the best, safest way without paying someone to do it? Valves will still be attached to the heads.

I've read oven cleaner, diesel, carb cleaner, brake cleaner, metho, etc, but will any of these damage the parts? I've also attached pics so if you see anything unusal in them let me know.

Cylinder 3 & 4 head

Piston 3

Piston 4

Pushrods - notice on 2nd from left there is a mark, this can be felt when i run my finger across it. What could this be from and should i repalce them?

ian.mezz I never said, I could write or spell

3,913 posts · joined Sep 2004 · 11 Aug 2011, 9:22 am

#856458

if your not getting a valve grind etc DONT clean any thing.

😂🤪😂🤪😂
car forums. where a lot of peoples good intentions end up taking a good old car off the road forever never ever to see the road again. 🥲

shokwave2 Officially Full-On Dubber

289 posts · joined Mar 2010 · 11 Aug 2011, 9:30 am

#856460

ian.mezz wrote:if your not getting a valve grind etc DONT clean any thing.

Not even the pistons? Could you explain why that is?

Does everything look okay so far? How about that marked pushrod?

vw54 Administrator Always Waiting 4 Friday

16,723 posts · joined Aug 2002 · 11 Aug 2011, 1:57 pm

#856499

you can clean it with a piece of alluminium sheet nuthing to hard so u dont scratch the surfaces

I read it on FACEBOOK so it must be true

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http://forums.aussieveedubbers.com/viewtopic.php?tid=60650&page=1#pid574409

Peter Leonard Moderator Volatile

1,456 posts · joined Apr 2003 · 11 Aug 2011, 3:47 pm

#856513

good way to raise the compression, filling the head with carbon and baked on crap 😉 put on some new aftermarket heads while it's apart, great chance to play with it! The pushrod looks like it's been rubbing somewhere, maybe one of the pushrod tubes was bent for a while, or it was off its rocker and rolling about in there for a while (or maybe on a previous motor.. these things have chequered and interesting pasts). Worth replacing if you plan on reiability, depends on how deep the mark is and how hard you're pushing the rods... I'd replace it.

let sleeping dubs lie

ian.mezz I never said, I could write or spell

3,913 posts · joined Sep 2004 · 11 Aug 2011, 3:58 pm

#856514

shokwave2 wrote:
ian.mezz wrote:if your not getting a valve grind etc DONT clean any thing.
Not even the pistons? Could you explain why that is?

Does everything look okay so far? How about that marked pushrod?

cause you just don't do it, you don't pull motors apart to clean them , you pull them apart to recondition them.🤪

😂🤪😂🤪😂
car forums. where a lot of peoples good intentions end up taking a good old car off the road forever never ever to see the road again. 🥲

shokwave2 Officially Full-On Dubber

289 posts · joined Mar 2010 · 11 Aug 2011, 4:10 pm

#856515

Fair enough. I just thought a build-up of carbon in various areas may have affected my motor.

So in other words pistons, cylinders and heads must be all recondtioned together?

grumble Son of Jim - Creator of Good

2,672 posts · joined Jun 2008 · 11 Aug 2011, 6:55 pm

#856541

shokwave2 wrote:Fair enough. I just thought a build-up of carbon in various areas may have affected my motor.

So in other words pistons, cylinders and heads must be all recondtioned together?

Are you going to re ring it? If you are I suggest you also go the rest of the way as the extra load is then transferred to the next weakest point which will be the bearings.