Oil change after cylinder head removal/replacement

[WA1DH]

Hi all,

New member here. I've browsed the forums here before and found them to be quite a great resource. I've done one used oil analysis with Blackstone Labs on my last car and found it to be very beneficial (it helped me detect an intake gasket leak).

Now I have a 'newer' car than my old beater which I'm trying to take care of. It's a 99 Ford Escort 2.0L SOHC, with about 109,500 mi on it now. I've been running Mobil 1 Extended Performance with the Mobil 1 Extended Performance filter (M1-209). To avoid the dreaded dropped intake valve seat problems these cars have, I'm swapping out the cylinder head this weekend for a rebuilt one. My question is in regards to coolant entering the oil when I pull the head. If I lower the coolant level below the water housing before pulling the head off, and then change the oil after the new head is reinstalled, should that be OK? I want to keep any coolant out of the oil because I am going to be sending a sample off to Blackstone again after 10-15k mi to see how the Mobil 1 Extended Performance is performing in my engine. I don't want any added coolant to mess up the results.

One other question: What's the general recommendation for running a used oil analysis? I drive a lot of highway miles (>75%) so I was planning to run the Mobil 1 Extended Performance to ~10-15k before sending off a sample. Is that too long for this oil (Mobil claims it's good for 15k)?

Thanks.

 

[Herz]

Your going to get coolant regardless of what you do, what I would do is drain the coolant into a container, or if it is too old just drain and replace when done.

But like I said, your going to get some coolant in the oil and best is to replace it with a cheap conventional for 3k and then hit your regular OCI and used oil analysis again.

 

[WA1DH]

Should it be OK to switch from synthetic to conventional and then back again?

 

[PT1]

Originally Posted By: WA1DH
Should it be OK to switch from synthetic to conventional and then back again?


No problem. Run some Walmart SuperTech conventional for 500-1000 miles with a cheap Supertech filter just to clean it out.

 

[Herz]

Yeah, you will be fine. You may see some slight oil burning but it will subside quickly. Its better safe than sorry running it with contaminated oil. That can do massive damage, water and coolant arent good lubricants!

I did my best when replacing my LIM on my 4.3 and I pulled block plugs and drained the radiator and I still heard a "SPLASH!" when I jammed my screwdriver into the LIM lol.

 

[WA1DH]

Got it, will do. I'm glad I posted here, as I was all set to do the head swap and put in the good oil this weekend. I know how bad coolant in the oil can be as my last car had that problem. Trace coolant sent the metals sky high (I was running regular M1 at 7500 mi).

 

[Herz]

Let us know how it goes, and good luck

AND PHOTOS!

hehe.

 

[WA1DH]

One more thing.. while I'm at it, and since this is just going to be a short OCI, should I run any type of additive to 'clean' the enigne? Like Marvel Mystery Oil or Seafoam (or do you guys swear against those)?

Thanks.

Edit: Yes, there will be many photos. I always take tons of photos when I do engine work

 

[Herz]

Nah. If you want, but if the engine is well maintained (sounds like it is) its clean already.

 

[tomcat27]

ditto what they all said.
73's

 

[Colt45ws]

What I did was dump in some cheap oil and ran that for about an hour or so, then dumped it, then ran the next fill 1000 miles. Currently its on a 2500 mile Auto-Rx clean.

 

[lipadj46]

I ran autozone dino for a week then put in mobil 1 when I did my head gaskets.

 

[mechtech2]

That's a good idea.
Use anybody's cheap oil for a short OCI after your work.
I would add MMO to the crankcase for this flush. It DOES clean things - things you can't see. 1/2 qt to a qt.

 

[WA1DH]

I've got a jug of Supertech, a Supertech filter, and a quart of MMO ready to go! I was actually going to grab some Seafoam but MMO was $3 and change versus $8 and change, and I know Seafoam is solvent-based (ie. not the greatest for lubrication). Is MMO solvent-based too, or is it a mystery (hence the name..)

By the way, I'm running 5w30 for oil, so should I stick with 1/2 quart of the MMO to avoid thinning it out too much? Thanks.

 

[Herz]

a full quart should be fine.

 

[lipadj46]

Originally Posted By: WA1DH
I've got a jug of Supertech, a Supertech filter, and a quart of MMO ready to go! I was actually going to grab some Seafoam but MMO was $3 and change versus $8 and change, and I know Seafoam is solvent-based (ie. not the greatest for lubrication). Is MMO solvent-based too, or is it a mystery (hence the name..)

By the way, I'm running 5w30 for oil, so should I stick with 1/2 quart of the MMO to avoid thinning it out too much? Thanks.


You don't want to be driving around with Seafoam in your oil whereas mmo you can replace up to 20% of the oil for an entire OCI. 1/2 quart is fine if you want to play it safe.

 

[WA1DH]

I think I'm going to go with the 1/2 qt and experiment with the rest in the gas (like the bottle says). Just curious, not to get too far off topic, but does Seafoam 'strip the bearings' of oil as some say it does (when used in the oil)? I figured the worst it could do was thin the oil out as the stuff was a lower viscosity versus the oil, but if used in moderation it would just dilute into the oil and slightly lower overall viscosity. Do I have the right idea or is there more to it?

 

[lipadj46]

16 ounces of mmo will treat 80 gallons of gas. Start off with 1 oz per 5 gallons of gas.

 

[WA1DH]

Originally Posted By: lipadj46
16 ounces of mmo will treat 80 gallons of gas. Start off with 1 oz per 5 gallons of gas.


Nice.. I hear MMO can improve gas mileage too. That's what I plan to test it for - see if it improves my mileage. The top end should be plenty clean considering I'm putting a new head on.

 

[lipadj46]

Most people don't see a mileage increase but they use it as an upper cylinder lube. If you overdose on the stuff you will lose mpgs so it will take a little experimentation to find the sweet spot. A scan gauge will help.