70's Camaro Engine Help

[redressonance]

Hey guys

I'm new here to the forums and I wish that my first post here didn't have to be about my car breaking down. I was wondering if anyone could give some advice on the situation.





The car problem:

The car is kicking up a large cloud of smoke. I can't really tell if it's white smoke or blue smoke. The smoke looks white but my mechanic said it smelled like burning oil. The smoke is only coming out of the drivers side exhaust.

Other strange things that might be related:

Radiator fluid has a white foam in reservoir.
Radiator seems to be loosing fluid.
When accelerating there seems to be a slight banging inside of the engine. (might had to do with new carb but before it ran smoother)
Valve cover oil leak

The mechanic problem:

I recently moved to east bay near San Francisco and I haven't been able to find a mechanic nearby that I can trust.

I took my car in to a shop that deals with classic cars because of the smoke problem and somehow I ended up purchasing parts from them I didn't need and didn't fix the problem. While working on my car he added some new carburetor that made the filter higher and when he closed the hood he cracked the paint on the hood. When I came back he never mentioned the crack until I pointed it out.

He also forgot to point out that my new carburetor had a different feature that when you started the car the rpm's went to 2200, and you had to wait a couple of minutes for it to comedown. I stupidly thought that this might be normal with the new carb and threw the car into reverse, and the obviously the transmission felt like it dropped out underneath my feet.

I neither claim to be an expert on cars or have always made the right decisions, but I still feel like I was made a fool going into a shop because of a smoke problem, paying 950 dollars to install a new carb and fix a headers leak, not fixing the problem and then have the car more damaged than before I took it in.

My mechanic said that I've probably blown a piston ring or the valve guide is leaking.

This car is my daily driver and I need it to be somewhat reliable. He said that since I wanted it to be reliable the best option was to not just fix this but to rebuilt the engine which he said would run around 4600 dollars.

Since the block's vin isn't matching I suggested just getting a crate engine. He said that that was a bad idea since crate engines' warranty was worthless and that I was just better off sending my engine to his buddy and that they could guarantee the engine not to breaking down.

My plan is to first get the radiator pressure tested. Other than that I don't really know what to do and wanted to ask more experienced people before I ended up wasting more of my money. Your opinion is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,


-Alonso Martinez

[derekf]

Alonso, welcome to the site. From looking at the picture, it looks like your car is on a steep slope and that can interfere with the floats in the carburetor.

Seriously, though, given that you're losing radiator fluid and it doesn't seem to be leaking out, it has to be going somewhere and I'd guess it's ending up in the cylinders.

I'd start by finding another different mechanic and getting a leakdown test done.

As for crate engines - GM sells some direct; I'd trust them a bit more than I would "his friend".

[sik68]

Sounds like you're getting water into your oil pan. If you drain the oil or pull the dipstick, and it looks like this:


Then you probably have a head gasket leak like I did. For me, I lost about 3 quarts of water in about 15 minutes, which is very fast so I knew it was a gasket leak (due to a semi warped surface on my cylinder head). It ran like there was a knocking sound as well, and I had white smoke from the header when i revved it at all.

[redressonance]

Hey thanks a lot you guys!

I really want to start doing repairs on my own but it's a little tough when you don't have any friends that have done it before. Did you guys learn by reading a lot and trying it our yourself or from somebody?

Do you have any recommendations for someone trying to take up working on their car on their own as hobby?

-Alonso

[zbugger]

Welcome to the site Alonso. Where in the east bay are you? I'm on the Peninsula. First move is to check your oil. If it's milky, you've definitely got at least a head gasket issue. The banging would be a rod bearing getting pounded to death. The foaming in the overflow is a sign that the a cylinder is pushing exhaust into the cooling system. Definite sign of a head gasket gone bye bye. As there is smoke only coming out of the drivers side, it seems to be the drivers side head gasket. There are a few good shops in the area. Apparently the one you went to isn't one of them.

As for recommendations, listen and learn. Do and learn. Don't be afraid to do what needs to be done as well. If you don't do it, you won't learn it. And if you need help, don't be afraid to ask for it. There are quite a few people here in the bay area, and some of us are happy to help when asked.

[twosaturns]

hi, welcome!
1st off, mechanics HATE working on hot rods. you would think they would be 'car guys', but they aren't. if they can't plug it into a machine, or look up the solution in a book, they don't want to deal w/ it.
every modded car is different. I'm assuming you bought the car from someone else who modded it. if so, you need to get a basic book on maintenance and learn the basics (changing oil, setting timing, changing plugs, etc)
if your coolant is going, I'm going to say you've got a warped or cracked head allowing coolant into the engine oil. if so, a rebuild is necessary (not just new heads, but a complete teardown because the bearings have been compromized from the bad oil).
a crate engine is a great idea. GM offers many different levels of performance (go w/ an 'entry level' motor, nothing too powerful, so you don't have to change anything else). many sponsors are on this site that can help you out.
btw, nice photo! you didn't think we'd notice you reversed the image? LOL
seriously, don't get discouraged.

[70camaro406]

I also agree with it being a blown headgasket, and that you need to find another mechanic.

If that is your daily driver, then you'll want something that is not too radical. The best 2 GM crate engines that come to mind are the 350 HO (330 hp) or the 350 Fastburn (385 hp). Those two would be direct replacements, and they also only cost $2719.95 for the 350 HO less intake (part # 12486041) and $4939.95 for the fastburn 350 with intake and distributor (part # 12496769). These prices are from Summit Racing .

And if you're on an extreme budget, you could always go with the base 350 (290 hp) crate engine for $1939.95.

You could always check your local GM dealership to see if they could do the install for you. Depending on the price of the engine, they might be able to order it for you and install it, could be cheaper in the long run. Good luck.

[sik68]

Hey Alonso, since we share the same last name and I live in Walnut Creek, I'll make you a deal:

I have a pair of stock 327 heads that I pulled off my engine about 3 years ago (not the heads that were making milkshakes in my picture above). Shelved, but perfectly OK...I ran a 14.6 @94 mph in my 68. We could make quick work of a gasket swap in a morning/afternoon, and if it still leaks you can have yours surfaced flat or I could sell you my pair of heads.

We'll need some tools, especially a torque wrench, to get the job done. My weekends tend to be booked and since this is your DD I can't guarantee it will happen super soon, but if you want some help in the next few weeks I'm sure we can make it happen.