[jimmy87]

Hi I'm looking for some advise on what to do with my 1997 1.6 efi vitara . last week I found a inch crack in the engine I'm losing coolant quick but not over heating iv tried chemiweld but still losing coolant. I no I need a new engine should I just put a new 1.6 efi or something else? what else should I do when doing this e.g clutch, timing belt? where I can find a new engine? any advise will be appreciated.

[atari4x4]

Get it tig welded or do the dodgy & use a 2 part epoxy like jonno_racing did.

[jonno_racing]

atari4x4 wrote:

Get it tig welded or do the dodgy & use a 2 part epoxy like jonno_racing did.

2 part Epoxy still holding like a boss 10000km latter.. the rest of the motor is fucked tho lol

[Vits93]

atari4x4 wrote:

Get it tig welded or do the dodgy & use a 2 part epoxy like jonno_racing did.

Did the dodgy too, used Devcon 2 part aluminium epoxy putty.
http://www.devcon.com/products/products ... %20%28F%29
It's good stuff i've heard of people using it to close deck their blocks.

[Scrawny]

When mine cracks I'm just going to grout fill the block

[atari4x4]

Scrawn wrote:

When mine cracks I'm just going to grout fill the block

Victor Bray style?

[2stroker]

Scrawn I thought you would modify it to air cooled

[jimmy87]

thanks for that I have a go Devcon 2 part aluminium epoxy putty.

[atari4x4]

just make sure the area is spotlessly clean & cover a larger area than just the crack.

[jonno_racing]

i used KB weld pretty sure there are pics of mine in my build... i layed the crap in there.
cleaned it first with break cleaner and a wire brush

[Vits93]

If you can get some type of abrasive to rough up the surface and give the epoxy something to stick to.

[Lokidog]

I have a very slight weep on the exhaust side of my G13BA around cylinders 3 & 4. Was thinking of doing the Devcon repair. Seeing that it's the external wall and apart from having to remove the extractors, it's in a reasonably accessible area. Which Devcon product or putty would be the best. The Aluminium Putty or the Titanium Putty. Their product catalogue has two listed for engine blocks ie, Plastic Steel Putty (A) and Titanium Putty.
The Aluminium Putty isn't even rated or marked for repairing engine blocks but has a temperature rating at 120ºC. Not sure whether this will be high enough for this application. There are other products such as Hi-Temp Lab-metal which isn't even a two part epoxy, but is rated at 1000ºF or 537ºC.

Any thoughts or suggestions.

FYI, Not interested in TIG welding as the engine's got plenty of life left in it, and I've heard epoxy type repairs can last a few years if done properly.

Cheers Darren

[Lokidog]

Update: It's looking to be a head gasket, the bright green coolant has pooled in a crevice in the engine block. When I was having another look at it, I noticed there was a slight hint of coolant running down above from underneath the extractors. I've taken a couple of photos and it's looking to be coming from the head. Will post some pictures to see what you think...

[Scrawny]

Corroded head or block? That's a pain when they leak like that

[Lokidog]

I don't think it's corroded. I re-tensioned my head bolts last year due to a weep on the intake side. Note: The mechanics who did the original head reconditioning/work 18 months prior, didn't exactly do a good job at tightening them up to the correct torque settings (they must have girly arms). I didn't notice any weeps on the exhaust side up until today, but I can't be sure that they're old (pre re-tension) or new.

The following pics show the fresh coolant pooling (small), after I hit it with degreaser yesterday, after doing a coolant flush (mukout) and replenish with new coolant. I'm having two thoughts…

1. The head gasket is in need of replacement and pretty much any obvious evidence of it running down the block is evaporating on the warmer engine wall above. The small pool of green is where it's collected.
2. Somewhere in the crevice just above the pool may be a small hairline crack and the stains above are old ie, pre re-tensioning of the head bolts.

If it's the first scenario, I'll have our new mechanic re-do the head gasket and do the timing belt etc why he's at it. If it's the second scenario, I may have a go at the epoxy repair myself.

Please see pics…

[Lokidog]

I had another look at it this morning and I'm leaning towards it being a very slight crack in the block. I reckon I can get to it through a gap between the 2nd and 3rd extractor pipes with steel wool and some acetone.

I feel I should give the epoxy fix a shot. Vit93, how did the Devcon Aluminium Putty go?? Has it held out with the heat transfer through the block? And Phil is this what you used ie, JB Weld
http://jbweldit.com.au/index.php?main_p ... ucts_id=37

I'm thinking I've got nothing to lose and if this works it's saved me a shit load of money. Even if there is still a leak at the head gasket (pretty confident now there's not), I've lost nothing more than a bit of time and money.

[Reubs]

If ^^^ fails, maybe you could try some chem-i-weld. It's fixed 2 of my cracked G16 blocks and it's supposed to fix suspect headgaskets as well.

[Lokidog]

I've heard many good things about chemiweld. The one thing I'm concerned about is the chemical reaction with the coolant. They recommend that you flush the system of the old coolant, before you replenish it with new coolant, also to never mix two different types of coolant, or old coolant with new, as it can be detrimental for the engine.

[Lokidog]

Tried to find Goss Chemiweld at the local Repco. They only had Dynagrip Seal-Tite so I gave it a whirl instead. Seems to have done the trick. From all observations and after giving the cooling system a few good flushes and new coolant. The leak has gone.

[banga]

i was told to stay clear of chemi weld and use seal it. I had to pump the water out of 2 cylinders then put the seal it in. I ran our old motor with seal it for a long time. I used to work for a guy who owned a radiator place and they used to used 2 part epoxy to repair ally radiators cause they crack where the core joins to the tank I did to my ally radiator on my legacy the other month seems to be working awesome.

[timberface]

Is this a common problem on the vits?

I'm currently losing coolant too at the moment but I think it's a split heater hose...(fingers crossed)

[Lokidog]

Change your hose and see how you go. Can you see any evident coolant leaks on a visual inspection of the engine? Have you checked your oil filler cap for a milky white residue?


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[Reubs]

timberface wrote:

Is this a common problem on the vits?

I'm currently losing coolant too at the moment but I think it's a split heater hose...(fingers crossed)

From my experience a cracked Vit block is more common than uncommon. Luckily Chem-i-weld and equivalents are cheap and will fix the problem...

Why do you think your heater hose is split - can you see weeping coolant?

[timberface]

We did a quick pressure test and it pissed out of the top heater hose but I also replaced a different hose last week before I noticed this problem that was also split.

My oil and coolant looks fine but I'm using about a gallon a week just keeping it topped up, it only leaks while I'm driving...If I let it sit idling none of the coolant will leak..

I have just picked up the hose and I'm waiting for it to be fitted, I'm hoping this is the end of it.

[Lokidog]

Ok, after using the Seal-Tite everything was pretty good for the last 6 or so weeks. I did notice a couple of slight leaks after driving it for a bit, one from a hose (where it connects to a steel pipe on the intake side) and also both ends of the small hose which goes from the radiator cap to the overflow bottle. I think these result from a slight increase of pressure in the cooling system. Unfortunately the slight weep has re-occurred… Going to give the JB Weld a crack, hopefully this will do the job.

[Lokidog]

Did the JB weld... This stuff sticks like shit to tissue paper. I was really impressed with its bond to the metal. The only issue I had was the location of the crack. Basically I could not see where I was working and I covered every part of the crevice in the area other than the entirety of the crack. So there was still a very small weep. To do this properly I would need to take the engine out to get better access. If I did this I may as well have it welded. So I have now just done the chemiweld and hopefully that is it.

[MrRocky]

I believe baleno 1.6 blocks are a thicker casting and dont suffer from the block crack issue like the vits