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I was planning on doing valve seals this winter so that is already in the works.
Change the valve seals. Easy enough to do.
If it isn't the valve seal, then................crap.
It "could" be the intake gasket sucking oil, but not likely if it runs well.
Your engine is ingesting oil from somewhere...and it's not the entire engine--just some cylinders. This could be an 'electrical' problem with the ignition (bad plugs/bad wires), or it could be 'mechanical' (rings/valve seals). Personally, I don't think that it is ONLY valve seals, if it is a mechanical problem.
The engine appears to be running rich, in general, but that's not fouling the plugs.
A source of excess oil could be a PCV system problem, such that it is sucking oil splash from the valve cover into the intake (but that should show up on all plugs or on one bank of plugs [w/dual plane intake].
Check for ignition problems, evaluate PCV system; if necessary, do a PROPER cylinder leak-down test to assess mechanical issues.
Yes, the heads are only 2 years old (summit vortecs) so it would be strange that the seals would go bad already, especially on only two of them. But I will check/replace them.
I will check those wires as well, these are also new.
That's the best thing you can do to tell you what is going in inside the engine. Everybody says compression test first, but, leak down will tell you more.
Yeah, that looks like oil fouling. If I had to put money on the table it would be on rings or a holed piston. It is better to find out sooner than later because it will only get worse.
Yes, the heads are only 2 years old (summit vortecs) so it would be strange that the seals would go bad already, especially on only two of them. But I will check/replace them.
I will check those wires as well, these are also new.
Could it possibly be #5 and #7 wires were crossed? That's easy to do, BTDT
(Although I don't think it could cause that much crud unless it was leaking oil).
Last edited by cabman72; Jan 18, 2017 at 10:49 PM.
From: Who says "Nothing is impossible" ? I've been doing nothing for years.
Originally Posted by jim-81
Yes, the heads are only 2 years old (summit vortecs) so it would be strange that the seals would go bad already, especially on only two of them. But I will check/replace them.
I will check those wires as well, these are also new.
I will definitely check the intake and also replace the plugs. Thanks for all the help and suggestions. I have a couple things to finish up and I will get back to this and let y'all know what I find out.
I think those plugs are fine to use. 4 electrodes just gives the spark the opportunity to fire on the best available electrode vs only one electrode that may misfire once it becomes oil fouled.
In your case this may be why you did not notice a miss. That oil fouled plug may have still been firing on one of those electrodes where as a single electrode plug may have stopped firing since the spark has only one to fire to.
It doesn't really enhance the performance of an engine but it may keep a cylinder firing where as it may otherwise stop due to carbon or oil fouling of the single electrode.
Of course it's better to not have fouling, but it happens.
With multi-ground electrode plugs, you still only get one spark. However, the other three ground electrodes will impede flame progress - so what's the benefit?
With multi-ground electrode plugs, you still only get one spark. However, the other three ground electrodes will impede flame progress - so what's the benefit?
Look at the plug from the bottom looking up towards the top of the plug. There is no ground strap at the bottom. A groung strap on a conventional plug serves to shroud the spark to some degree causing a delay in ignition of the fuel, or poor ignition.
These plugs happen to have 4 unshrouded ground straps.
As you say only one is going to spark. However it has a choice of 4 grounding straps. The one with the least resistance is the winner.
Consider what happens to a conventional plug as the electrode wears down.
The gap increases.
As the gap increases so does the energy needed to jump the gap.
This would cause a delay in the jump of the spark. In other words retarded timing.
If you have 4 straps it's going to take some time (years and many miles) to wear all 4 postitions to the point that the spark becomes retarded.
So I can see at least three advantages.
1.) unshrouded spark
2.) less gap fluctuation and wear over time.
3.) In the case of fouling, a better chance of one of the 4 grounding straps providing the spark.
I personally don't use them and probably would not pay the premium for them. The OP already has them, so why not use them?
They are not going to hurt anything, particualrly on a stock or nearly stock motor. And they may help, as in this case.
Edit: I just looked these up. They are not all that expensive in any case. About $6 each. I never really considered a 4 strap plug vs a 1 strap plug. Cost sure isn't a factor.
Last edited by REELAV8R; Jan 22, 2017 at 07:51 PM.
Help reading spark plugs
