# Overhead Cam?



## Gypsy (Sep 23, 2004)

Is the engine on the '93 240 SE and overhead CAM? 

Not saying this is correct, but someone drove my car today (with the burning oil smoke) and they said it was most likely my valve seals. Something about the compression too good. 

My ex told me to pull my spark plugs and isolate which plug had oil on it. I know so little about this that I don't know if the spark plug will verify the valve seal diagnosis (from another). He did tell me any shop should be able to run a compression test and tell me which valve/whatever is bad.

And he said it was most likely the seal, and not the actual valve, or wait...he called it cylinder I think????

My ex said that how hard this was to fix depends on what kind of engine the car has. An overhead cam would make it harder.

I did call the place that's worked on my car in the past, Crawford's Z Service in Nashville, and when I told him about the smoke, he said it was probably an $1800 job and not worth it, but the two conversations today give me hope that maybe...just maybe, there's something I can do that's more reasonable than $1800.

your thoughts? Please.


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## mille-16i (Jun 16, 2004)

Ok generally speaking the valve stem seals only smoke on start up and little to nothing after that if it is smoking contiually then it is probally the piston rings and the shop is just quoting either a rebuild or a engine replacement. What you can do is run a compression check, all the cylinders should be within 20 psi of each other if you have one that is weaker then the rest put a little oil down that cylinder and redo the test if it come up then it is the rings if it dose not then it is the headgasket or valves. And yes the engine in your car is duel over head cam(DOHC) I would wait to see what is really bad on your engine if the valve seals are the problem then it should not be that much to relace them if it is the rings then the swap may be a good idea more bang for your buck


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## TheNose247 (Jun 19, 2004)

$1800, yeah it's because u went to a nissan specialist, go to a neighborhood mechanic and if it needs a swap u can find a motor at a junkyard for around 500-750 and for a motor swap the mechanic could charge 500-700, if u have someone else that u work with u can get it cheaper


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## Nizmodore (May 9, 2003)

Nearly all Nissan motors a either overhead cam or double overhead cam. The only Nissan motor I know of that isn't is the old A serries motors  And those motors came in things like the Datsun 120Y....


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## 180SX-X (Sep 21, 2003)

1800? shiet, get the motor and ill swap it for you for 2 cases of beer...j/k


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## Gypsy (Sep 23, 2004)

How would one be assured the engine you bought from a junkyard doesn't have the same or similarly bad things wrong? Of course I understand a hit in the back would be much preferable over a hit in the front, but anything past this to help tell?

Reason I was asking is I know a kid who someone said he could do a valve job for me...and actually he told me he had put two motors in the bronco he's driving. I haven't talked to him about doing anything, I'm still trying to decide what I want to do with a car that I only want to drive for the next 9 months.

It is a great car. It drives wonderfully. The friend who drove it yesterday said "that car has awesome pickup and it was a blast to drive". And being black with tinted windows...not bad on the eyes. And yes, some small dings here and there, and a not so great paintjob, but 10 feet away, its a beauty. 

Decisions...decisions... :-( :-(

And thanks for the first post...this isn't just on startup. And it gets much worse at idle...I had to jump someone off the other day and it was HORRIBLY embarrassing the amount of smoke that was coming out as I had to rev it to get some more juice to the other car. :crazy:

I will try to get it in for a compression test this week.


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## mille-16i (Jun 16, 2004)

if you are only going to drive it for 9 months I would not recomend doing anything with your engine in the car go to a good wrecking yard mine around here will start the engine and observe it and if it smokes or makes noise they mark it bad/core so when you get an engine from the yard you know it is decet shape don't know its past. I would do that and get a mechanic to do some side work say $25 an hour going off book time. Should save you over half of what a shop would charge and it should not be to hard to find a mech willing to do it. Cause if you open your motor up you will more than likley find more than 700 in repairs and it will be harder to get a mech to do it on the side. Also while at the yard have them run an interchange on your car so you can get the newest motor that will fit in your car


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## Gypsy (Sep 23, 2004)

So you're recommending an engine swap with one from a junkyard?

Another possibility, is that my ex is not a mechanic by trade but can do anything there is to do with a car. he used to restore 60-70's camaro's until the last two he did got wrecked within two months of completion. Maybe I can work a "deal" with child support payments.

What's the time frame for an engine swap? This is my only vehicle, and yes, I can deal without one for a short while as I live a mile from work and live right behind a grocery store and could curtail other activities for a while, but are we talking a weekend job? A week? Two?

And I recall my son searching junk yards online, but I'm assuming I should try online, and also just pick pick up a phone book and call any within a reasonable distance?

I really apprecaite all of your help. I'm trying to make these decisions without being totally blind and you guys usually know your cars.


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## mille-16i (Jun 16, 2004)

if it is a straight in swap about a weekend with a little extra given for oversights ie flywheel machining what not. the problem with the online thing is you will pay shipping out the a*s and that can kill a budget cause you have to figure in 1-2 gallons antifreeze 6 quarts oil and a filter some heater hose and vacume hose and possable radiator hoses also the thermostat and gasket and I would either swap out your o2 sensor or get a new one. so that will run around and extra hundred also don't forget the case of bud when the job is done..


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## mille-16i (Jun 16, 2004)

Hold up I just went through your lasts post from a different thread is this smoke white blue or black the reason is that each one tell of a different problem 
White: Caused by the burning of coolant normal cause headgasket blown easy way to ckeck on a cold engine start it up rev it up a little then get out and take off the radiator cap there shold not be any pressure yet if there is then there is combustion getting into the cooling system.
Blue: Caused by the burning of oil normal cause bad piston rings easy check compression check as said earlier on in this thread.
Black: Caused by the burning of fuel normal cause bad tune no real easy fix you should know when the last tune was so go from there.


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## Gypsy (Sep 23, 2004)

mille-16i said:


> Hold up I just went through your lasts post from a different thread is this smoke white blue or black the reason is that each one tell of a different problem
> White: Caused by the burning of coolant normal cause headgasket blown easy way to ckeck on a cold engine start it up rev it up a little then get out and take off the radiator cap there shold not be any pressure yet if there is then there is combustion getting into the cooling system.
> Blue: Caused by the burning of oil normal cause bad piston rings easy check compression check as said earlier on in this thread.
> Black: Caused by the burning of fuel normal cause bad tune no real easy fix you should know when the last tune was so go from there.


What if I say it appears "gray" to me? :-( It does.

I had a friend over doing some electrical work and he also restores cars. He said the exhaust smelt like gas and that it might be something with the fuel injectors. He said if it was burning oil the smoke would be black. He said the smoke was a result of it running "rich". lol Said the using oil could just be the leak which the previous people told me was significant (drain pan gasket).

I am so confused. I am woman...don't hear me roar. (Where cars are concerned.) Are you all too young to remember that song?  I'm old enough to remember it well, but I also love it when my 13 year old wants to hear "Die MF Die" by Dope or "Bodies" by Drowning Pool.

Ok, I'll do the radiator thing...by rev it up a little, I'm assuming you mean 4-5 revs in quick succession. I don't want to do it too early, but also don't want to get spewed.


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## Gypsy (Sep 23, 2004)

Let me add I am normally viewing the smoke through very tinted windows and visibility totally SUCKS out that back window anyway. It reminds me of the smoke (steam/whatever) you see on cold mornings with many cars, but generally goes away quickly (on them). When I'm looking at it outside the car, the smoke simply looks gray, not real light, but not dark gray. In between the light and the dark on the little blue smiley ---->>> holding sign.


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## mille-16i (Jun 16, 2004)

As my shop teacher once said this is like french kissing over the phone it just isn't right  Well if it is whitish gray then more than likely is coolant it will darken up with the more antifreeze you have also it will normally be acompainied with less then stellar performance decrease in feul economy and running ruff mainly in the morning. I hope I am helping you and not confusing you but without accually seeing the smoke I can only go off what you say


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## Gypsy (Sep 23, 2004)

No, no, I appreciate every response!!! You guys are usually better guessing from post descriptions than someone not familar with these cars standing over it.  Or that was my experience with my Maxima. 

Fuel efficiency I wouldn't notice. Many days I drive about 3 miles total as I live a mile from work and my town is small. They look at me like I'm crazy putting in $3 gas, but heck, that will last me 3-5 days. 

Haven't noticed any rough running....yet. And dayumnit, had the head gasket done two years ago. Guess that's what i get for the couple times I checked the oil and nothing was on the dipstick. :-(( BUT no oil light was on. My 19 year old son wanted to beat me to a pulp. :-( but I understood. :-(

I'll do the radiator thing tomorrow...and I LOVED the french kissing analogy!!!

TY!


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## mille-16i (Jun 16, 2004)

Well the best thing I could recomend is to have the car checked out by a shop a resonable priced shop just to see what is wrong tell them about the headgasket having been done two years ago and running it low on oil once they give you what they think is wrong start your questions from there cause if it is a headgasket that isn't that hard to do and would not cost too much I don't think should be under the 700 mark if it is the rings gone bad then start looking into the wrecking yard engine.


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## automaton (Jul 14, 2004)

If you were burning coolant you'd most likely smell it. It smells "sickly sweet" (it almost smells good if you catch a wiff of it, but if you're getting a more concentrated smell of it, it almost is nausiating), a very distinct smell.

If I had to guess from your description, I'd say it was the piston rings, but then... 

Really, your best bet is to get to a reputable mechanic. If he's had any experience at all, he'll be able to tell what it is, and give you a quote on the spot. Should be free, too. That's my 2 cents


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