Coolant leak

Vmax xtc 1997

Member
Joined
Jan 6, 2018
Messages
147
Location
Quebec
Hi

does an opticool gasket installed up side down/ wrong side..... wrong way.... but still torqued to spec and proper pattern followed, caused a coolant leak in the cylinders.


I have pics in the build log if need be!

Thank you
 

You sure you have a leak ?
Guessing you may have gotten a lot of coolant in the bottom of the case when you removed the head?
Now maybe it’s pushing it out the exhaust.
 
You sure you have a leak ?
Guessing you may have gotten a lot of coolant in the bottom of the case when you removed the head?
Now maybe it’s pushing it out the exhaust.

Well I purchased it with the middle cylinder blown. I wanted to learn how to rebuild a engine. Found out that a bearing on the crank was toasted. So got the crank rebuild, rebuilt the water pump since I was in there. I did cleaned the base clean.

I initially noticed that grey smudge in the middle plug and clutch side one after several remove and put back because I was purring a bit of mix gas in there for my initial start.

if it was coming from the base, would it not be equal in all cylinders?

I have install an opticool gasket, was not sure which side goes up.... could that cause a leak? but I respected the tork spec as well as the pattern....

The head as a tiny pit in it but the guys at the yamaha dealer here told me that it should not be a concerned, they have seen much worse.HEAD HOLE RED.jpg
 
Last edited:
That pin holes defiantly not the cause of the coolant leak.The Walls are almost a 1/4 inch thick between the coolant side of the wall to the other.
 
I will be doing another attempt at starting it tomorrow. I have 2 manuals and 2 different torq spec.

I was torq at 17 and the other manual said 20.... so I re-torqed it tonight and installed another header since I found that the one on it was cracked/leaking....
 
UPDATE

tried to start with the rope and was not able to pull as if something was blocking.... tried with the battery (dead) but the battery was able to make a turn once, then I begun slowly to be able to make it turn with the rope. Took a few time and started to run but very poor and stop 1-2 second after.

Removed the plug and the same liquid was still on the top of the cylinder.

I opened the coolant cap and the level was extremely low. Was full last week. I suspect the head/combustion chamber was full which was making it hard to pull the rope and now the base is probably full of coolant????

back to the operation table :o|
 
Well I purchased it with the middle cylinder blown. I wanted to learn how to rebuild a engine. Found out that a bearing on the crank was toasted. So got the crank rebuild, rebuilt the water pump since I was in there. I did cleaned the base clean.

I initially noticed that grey smudge in the middle plug and clutch side one after several remove and put back because I was purring a bit of mix gas in there for my initial start.

if it was coming from the base, would it not be equal in all cylinders?

I have install an opticool gasket, was not sure which side goes up.... could that cause a leak? but I respected the tork spec as well as the pattern....

The head as a tiny pit in it but the guys at the yamaha dealer here told me that it should not be a concerned, they have seen much worse.View attachment 65738

While unlikely, I would not rule out porosity at the location you highlighted. It will cost you nothing to put the head on a level surface and fill the coolant passage and see if you get any liquid seeping through the pit. Or put the straw from a can of carb clean into the pit and look for spray in the coolant passage. The pit looks deeper than typical pitting from the shrapnel created during a burn down. It's a cast part, it can happen.
 
While unlikely, I would not rule out porosity at the location you highlighted. It will cost you nothing to put the head on a level surface and fill the coolant passage and see if you get any liquid seeping through the pit. Or put the straw from a can of carb clean into the pit and look for spray in the coolant passage. The pit looks deeper than typical pitting from the shrapnel created during a burn down. It's a cast part, it can happen.


Good idea, I did not thought about doing that! Will try that for sure. thx
 
So I removed the head yesterday and it looked like that;

head.jpg

opticool.jpg

bucket.jpg

In the bucket is coolant that was in the pipe, approx 3/4 of a pint. The head was torqued as per specs in proper order.

When I look at the water rails in the cylinders they are all full off coolant and equal in all three.

Should I be concerned about coolant going down in the bottom, crankshaft area?

Thank you
 
Inspect that head closely. It may be warped and they are cheap to replace. I would drain the coolant prior to before taking the head off. Go slow when
pulling off the head off next time and try to isolate which cylinder is the leaker.

No concern with coolant down below as long as its not long term.

Below are the specs. I would torque a few extra pounds on that head and try again.

torque.jpg

gasket.jpg
 
Last edited:
Inspect that head closely. It may be warped and they are cheap to replace. I would drain the coolant prior to before taking the head off. Go slow when
pulling off the head off next time and try to isolate which cylinder is the leaker.

No concern with coolant down below as long as its not long term.

Below are the specs. I would torque a few extra pounds on that head and try again.


View attachment 65801

View attachment 65802

I did place a straight edge across the head at various area and it look in good condition. Did the same on the top of the cylinders, all good to. Putting it back today,will see what happens....Will add more torq!
 
I use a lot of 1 layer head gaskets, so I find myself over torqueing head bolts all the time just for my own peace of mind.
If it asks for 27, I may do 35, maybe more, just depends how ornery I'm feeling that day. Lol
You can kind of "feel" when its enough, IMO.
 
I was thinking of putting a original gasket on instead of the opticool.... could the greater restriction caused by the smaller holes in the opticool forces more the coolant to leak or it should not be a concerned if torqued more?
 
I doubt the opticool had anything to do with your troubles. I would suggest a good coating of copper spray. It helps to seal as well as helps to preserve that gasket for future disassembly.
 
Will go for copper. Did not thought about that.

Was putting it back together half hour ago with the torq wrench and one bolt stripped.... My torq would *click* on all bolts except 2... and one of them broke.

Whats odd about it is that when I attempted to drill into the broken part in the cylinder to remove it, it was completely loose. I was able to remove it just with my finger tips....

stripped 1.jpgstripped.jpg
 
The Viper has long bolts, and short bolts that are used in the head.
Did you maybe use one in the wrong spot ?
Easy way to tell which one goes where, is to just drop them all in their holes, they should all be sticking out about the same amount.
 
The Viper has long bolts, and short bolts that are used in the head.
Did you maybe use one in the wrong spot ?
Easy way to tell which one goes where, is to just drop them all in their holes, they should all be sticking out about the same amount.

Yup did that before beginning! 6 long bolts that goes, 2 per cylinder on each side and the 12 others are the short one that goes in the other holes around....

Dont know if they are a bit ruined because of the heat of all those years, maybe have stretched a bit.... really out of idea.... but I just ordered all brand new.

That sled is making me go crazy!!!!
 


Back
Top