Do my pistons look okay?

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old Aug 29, 2021 | 07:36 PM
  #1  
David Popoff's Avatar
Thread Starter
Honda-Tech Member
 
Joined: Oct 2020
Posts: 10
Likes: 0
Default Do my pistons look okay?

My engine was burning oil, so I pulled the head and this what the pistons look like.
Reply
Old Aug 30, 2021 | 07:10 AM
  #2  
DaX's Avatar
DaX
Honda-Tech Member
20 Year Member
Liked
Loved
Community Favorite
iTrader: (1)
 
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 7,118
Likes: 667
Default Re: Do my pistons look okay?

From a high level / single picture - nothing looks wrong to me. But you wouldn't know the full story without pulling them out of the block. Have you determined where the oil was coming from? Bad valve stem seals / worn guides? Or do you suspect rings?
Reply
Old Aug 30, 2021 | 07:58 AM
  #3  
David Popoff's Avatar
Thread Starter
Honda-Tech Member
 
Joined: Oct 2020
Posts: 10
Likes: 0
Default Re: Do my pistons look okay?

Originally Posted by DaX
From a high level / single picture - nothing looks wrong to me. But you wouldn't know the full story without pulling them out of the block. Have you determined where the oil was coming from? Bad valve stem seals / worn guides? Or do you suspect rings?
The headgasket has some signs of damage and I suspect the valve seals to be replaced also.
Reply
Old Aug 30, 2021 | 11:23 PM
  #4  
h1tman's Avatar
Honda-Tech Member
 
Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 38
Likes: 1
Default Re: Do my pistons look okay?

Pistons are cleaned at the outer edge what may be caused by the oil that was passing through rings.
Reply
Old Aug 31, 2021 | 06:36 PM
  #5  
NVturbo's Avatar
O.G. triple O.G.
20 Year Member
 
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 6,395
Likes: 324
From: south of Charlotte
Default Re: Do my pistons look okay?

that is some dark green coolant you have there.
Reply
Old Sep 1, 2021 | 09:15 AM
  #6  
starchland's Avatar
Honda-Tech Member
 
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 437
Likes: 19
From: Toronto
Default Re: Do my pistons look okay?

Mileage?
The bores will give you a better picture of what is happening without piston removal.
Reply
Old Sep 17, 2021 | 09:53 PM
  #7  
MotorMouth93's Avatar
Honda-Tech Member
10 Year Member
Liked
iTrader: (1)
 
Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 937
Likes: 43
From: Austin, TX
Default Re: Do my pistons look okay?

Take the pistons out and mic them according to the service manual. Everything else is just guessing.

Leakdown test can also give you a good idea of where the problem lies but you'll need to put the head back on to do that.
Reply
Old Sep 18, 2021 | 08:05 AM
  #8  
tiemze's Avatar
Honda-Tech Member
 
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 275
Likes: 3
From: Gaithersburg, MD
Default Re: Do my pistons look okay?

Originally Posted by NVturbo
that is some dark green coolant you have there.
He was running kool-aid

So there's two ways an engine can burn oil. Stem seals or rings. You can clearly see the burnt oil on the pistons. If you take the piston out you can inspect the oil control rings and I bet they're clogged up. The second ring is also an oil scraper. Behind the oil control rings are little holes. These are oil return paths and they can get clogged. Newer toyota's are burning oil due to low tension rings. Maybe your rings are losing tension with age. Auto's tend to get stuck oil rings because they don't decelerate in gear like a manual which sucks the rings out keeping them clean. Also now you have the head off you change the stem seals. Stems seals will burn on startup and decel I believe. Oil rings all the time.
Reply
Related Topics
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Tyree
All Motor / Naturally Aspirated
7
Apr 6, 2013 10:08 PM
ctr32
Forced Induction
5
Sep 2, 2009 10:37 AM
warrick
All Motor / Naturally Aspirated
5
Sep 15, 2006 08:43 AM
tegon-gsr
Forced Induction
3
Jan 2, 2005 04:09 PM




All times are GMT -8. The time now is 03:14 PM.