While my mech was installing my crower springs/retainers, he accidently dropped a few keepers (the little keys) into the motor. He installed spares ones he had and said that there was no danger of anything happening as they would work themselves down into the oil pan.

Has anyone ACTUALLY dropped a few in there without anything happening ?
( This mechs got me worried. I gotta find myself another one. )


[Modified by Mover, 11:09 PM 7/16/2002]

 

dude...those lil' ole keepers could cause plenty of damage! you best get them outta there ASAP!

BTW.. time to find another mechanic!


[Modified by BreakStuff, 11:11 PM 7/16/2002]

 

Your tech must be one the good drugs. Remove the oil pan and fish them out. He just doesnt think theyll make it up the oil pickup tube. While they may not get sucked into the oil pump it can still block very important oil flow through the pickup. That can cause oil starvation problems.

Any good tech should know that you need to put rags in the oil drain back holes when you're doing valve springs, just in case. Any GOOD tech anyway. I wouldnt let that guy touch my car again if I were you.

 

come to think of it, did you visually see the keeper drop into a place of no return? I say this because if he dropped a keeper then it could not access the block unless it slipped down a valve port, coolant passages are blocked, oil passage is blocked with the oil jet intact.. if it slipped somewhere in the upper head assembly then there may still be hope of retrieval taking off the valve cover gasket and poking around the head assembly to see if you see the keeper(s) bouncing around.. Do yourself a favor and pull the spark plugs to check the spark gap and any signs of unusual signs of wear and tear.. do not start that motor without a complete inspection....GL

 

I saw the keepers drop in somewhere close to the valvespring. Its hard to replace the springs on an H22. He kept screwing up. He said that they'd make their way to the oil pan, oil filter, or oil pump screen.


[Modified by Mover, 9:54 AM 7/17/2002]

 

Please name your wrench so if I am ever in his shop I can smack him upside the head, do not start your motor til you find the keepers, check with inspection light in the cylinder thru spark plug hole, use a magnet to sweep the head, unless stainless or Ti keepers were used.

 

Gilman Auto.....Raymond

How do you guys figure it they may have gotten into the chambers ? The springs are alot lower than the inlet to the spark plug hole. (unless the guy is really trying to screw my motor up)

 

What a fucktard! After that statement I wouldn't let that dued work on opening my hood, let alone anything near my valve train.

I mean the keepers are magnetically attractable and the oil pan does have a magnet or magnetic drain plug in it. But I wouldn't want the keepers roaming around free in my engine. My best friend and I just got done installing Crower dual valve springs on my LS head, and after the first one shot off and threatened to go down an oil passage we blocked all of'm off with paper towels.

Piece of advice, if you take your car to be worked on somewhere. Make sure at least a one or 2 of the mechs are ASE certified. That way somebody will kow what the hell they're doing.

 

Thanks for all the input guys....




[Modified by Mover, 9:42 AM 7/18/2002]