.... yeah, did a compression test on teh pass. side of the truck.. The back two cylinders(looking at the engine) are a whole 25PSI lower than the front one and the other side. THe other four are at 125PSI and the two are at 100 PSI..

This sucks so bad, I dont even know what to do right now lol.. Anyone got any advise?

 

I found this on JCwhitney.. DO i need all of this? Its 200 bucks.. Or do i only need to get the head gasket and valve stem seals? thats over 100 bucks cheaper...

 

Or is this what i need?

 

Don't panic yet...you did a compression test and 2 cylinders are low...ok. Now, do a leak down test to determine if it's the cylinder rings or the valves leaking.

--It could simply be a stuck valve or a valve that's bent (I hope not).
--It could be a stuck lifter because it's not uncommon on a OHC engine.
--Are there any tapping noises? Put your ear up to the valve cover with a wooden or metal bar and listen to the valve cover for any noises.
--Did you take off the valve covers to see if anything looks wrong?
--Look at the cam lobes, it's unlikely but it does happen.

Does the vehicle feel low on power? If not, maybe you did the test wrong (again, it does happen cause those cylinders are hard to reach).

 

yes it feels VERY low on power.. And there is some clicking noises coming out of the exhaust.. But its very constant and consistant.. And how do i do a leak test? No, i have not taken the valve covers off lol..

 

oh, and could it still be a bad valve? if it was, it would only effect the one cylinder, not both, correct? And i am loosing coolant somewhere.. which makes me lean towards the coolant leak..

 

*cough*sell it*cough*

 

haha, yeah yeah yeah.. if i could get the right amount of money on it, i would.. It looks like i am only going to spend around 100 bucks for parts( if the rock auto cart is the parts that i need), which isnt bad, and my buddy and i are doing it, so thats free..

 

Change your oil and see if there's any coolant in there. If there is...headgaskets.

Is this on both sides of the engine??

 

no, only one side.. And I did change my oil.. no coolant.. But that doesnt mean its not the headgaskets, just means its not going into the engine, but out the exhaust.

 

Take it apart and wait to see what's wrong with it before you buy anything. My guess is something with your exhaust valves.

 

Its my DD, so i cant afford to take it apart like that..

 

Sounds like your going to drive it??

Borrow a car or take some time off or make it a weekend project.

 

Well, im in germany and in the military, so, #1, parts take ATLEAST a week to get here, and #2, taking time off isnt that easy, so i cant just take time off on a whim like that. idont see how it couldnt be a coolant leak.. My coolant is dissapearing somwhere, and there is no leak in the hoses, or in the radiator..

 

Have you checked the plugs on the two cylinders that are low? What do they look like? If the plugs are discolored or cracked then you are burning coolant. You need to give more info than just telling us the compression is low in the cylinders.

Edit:

Saw your post on another thread. my apologies for asking about the plugs. But you should post that info in this thread too.

 

there arent any parts stores in germany?

 

sorry rangerdad. and the two plugs on those two cylinders, well there is something wrong. the threads are COVERED In something, not sure what and the actual electodes look like they have been in the engine for a lot longer than 3K miles.. The other plugs have clear threads and the electrodes look nothing like that.

 

um, yes there are parts stores in germany where i will be paying EUROS.. with the exchange rate the way it is, that basically means a 10 euro part is going to cost me about ~16 bucks..

 

buy a head gasket from a parts store, the price shouldn't be much more than jc whitney's parts... it was like $50 for 2 of them for my mustang the left and right banks are NOT the same, so make sure you get one of each, the head bolts, depending on the type of bolts they are, you might need to replace them, the ones you have to replace are torque-yeild bolts, i forget the actual difference between them... something like you torque it to spec, then give it 3/4 of a turn more and there is a section of the bolt that stretches... i don't think ford ever used them though...

 

yeah, im getting the whole head set(comes with head gaskets, manifold gaskets, etc. ) for both sides, and the bolts, will run me just under 240 bucks shipped from rock auto..

 

take your rad cap off while you're doing a cyl leak down test and see if there are bubbles comeing up in the radiator.