LOTS of water in oil

[volkswaben]

Hello there. I finally got around to registering my 74' Cherokee, trying to make it street legal after it has sat on non op for 15 years. I went to move it in my garage a few weeks ago, and I thought i'd fill up the radiator before I moved it with water, just to see what'd happen. Well, when I cranked it over milky oil shot up all over the engine bay through the filler tube. That never happened before I put the water in. I now drained the oil, but about a good 6 or 7 quarts of clear water came out, followed by a good 6 quarts of milky oil. I am wondering if this is a blown head gasket, and if so I can just get away with replacing it for now to get it on the road. I will probably do a proper rebuild or engine swap in the near future when funds allow. Just wondering if a head gasket would allow that much water in, or if it could be something else.

[ShagWagon]

Seems something filled it up if it's clean and not green.

Drain, refill and fire it up, then see.

Man 15 years is a long time.......

[volkswaben]

Seems something filled it up if it's clean and not green.

Drain, refill and fire it up, then see.

Man 15 years is a long time.......

I have some used oil I will throw in there. I did fill it with straight water, and no antifreeze. That's why I'm thinking it's a bigger issue, I will see though.

[CheapJeepBrad]

How long did you let it sit for when you put the water in? Did it instantaneously fill up? According to you there was almost two gallons of water in the block. I doubt a head gasket leak would allow that much water to seep into the block very quickly. I'm betting there was already some in there from the initial failure which is either a cracked head or block or the aluminum timing cover and water pump housing has corroded inside and a hole has formed, allowing the water to run into the timing chain area.

[REDONE]

For it to happen like you described, I think your timing cover has a big honkin' hole where the water pump mounts. That's the only way I can think of all that water getting into the crankcase that quickly.

If that water had been sitting in there under the oil the last 15 years, I think your crank would be rusted solid, that's why I think it's your top-up water that wound up in the crankcase.

[will e]

Probably your best bet at this point is to drain the water, put in some oil, pull the spark plugs and do a compression test. If you get consistent compression then timing cover is more likely. Like CJB indicated, a head gasket wouldn't leak that much just sitting.

[440sixpack]

If I were going to bet on it I'd bet on the timing cover. very common.

[volkswaben]

How long did you let it sit for when you put the water in? Did it instantaneously fill up? According to you there was almost two gallons of water in the block. I doubt a head gasket leak would allow that much water to seep into the block very quickly. I'm betting there was already some in there from the initial failure which is either a cracked head or block or the aluminum timing cover and water pump housing has corroded inside and a hole has formed, allowing the water to run into the timing chain area.

It seemed to be pretty instant, as when I filled up the radiator the engine would crank roughly and not run very long before it sprayed all over. Before I put the water in the engine ran good. I will do a compression test next.

[Tatsadasayago]

I wager the others are correct in that your timing cover has corroded away.
The only other cause I can think of for oil/water puking out of the oil filler would be a cracked/broken cylinder wall or head...and you would have heard that.

The bummer is that you've most likely sucked coolant into the oiling system and oil doesn't like to stick to glycol coated metal.
There is a treatment available at big truck repair shops that is designed to clear the coolant out of the system. It's essentially nitro-methane.
You do an oil change, pour some in, run the engine till warmed up then do another.
It's not cheap, but will save an engine with the dreaded 'Chocolate Milk' problem.

[Nikkormat]

I would follows Tatsadasayago's advice above. No reason to toast a motor over $40 in parts and effort​ especially if you have used oil to do it with.

Edit, I see above you used straight water. There is likley some residual glycol shmoo in the cooling system and subsequently in the water that filled the crank case.

[tedlovesjeeps71]

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[Tatsadasayago]

Holy CrapTastic®

[tedlovesjeeps71]

Holy CrapTastic

Lol! Just wanted to offer a visual bon how the covers wear out. This is on my spare-spare 360 in my commando. Didn't see it until I sandblasted it.

[volkswaben]

I did a compression test, and all 8 cylinders were around 120, so I believe it is the timing cover. I will start to disassemble the front end within the week, and hopefully I can fix the old cover and not have to buy a new one if that is the problem.

[Cheap Hobby]

Might as well order a new cover now, or start the search for good used one. MIne sat for 17 years, had to coax the water pump off and several small bits of the cover stuck to the water pump gasket but the TC didn't look damaged until it was cleaned and the gaps appeared . The distributer had bonded to the cover through the gasket but looked perfectly normal. Had to disassemble the distributer to remove. I can only think of 2 people I would wish that fun on.

[volkswaben]

I finally found time to pull apart the front of the engine and see what was going on. Everything came off pretty easy except one of the thermostat housing bolts that broke, and it doesn't surprise me why...

The water pump was also nasty, very nasty. I got the cover off and cleaned it, and found where the coolant was going straight into the timing chain area and oil pump.


Time to order a new timing cover and many other parts. Hopefully she'll be on the road soon.

[ShagWagon]

That's crazy. Looks like some mutant rock rat made its home in there......

Your whole coolant system must be totally screwed.

They should have used distilled water lol.

[volkswaben]

That's crazy. Looks like some mutant rock rat made its home in there......

Your whole coolant system must be totally screwed.

They should have used distilled water lol.

Lol. I'm hoping everything else is alright. I'll have to get a new radiator too. I'm wondering if there's a way to flush out the passages with a hose or something so I can at least get the loose crap out.

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[tedlovesjeeps71]

Reminds me of my crossed fingers 360 when I tore it down. Stupid aluminum cover.


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[volkswaben]

Reminds me of my crossed fingers 360 when I tore it down. Stupid aluminum cover.


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That's remarkably similar to what my water pump looked like, just mine had oily sludge.

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