I stripped the intakes and stuff off the engine, I also pulled off most of the cooling stuff.

I tested the AAV and absolutely no air at all passes through it when cold, if you heat it up it becomes almost full flow at 80 degrees C - I thought that this should be the other way around - what am U missing here.

All the descriptions I've read and watched describe the port being closed when hot, I don't see how the hot idle bleed can possibly have any impact whatsoever the way mine is functioning, when cold you cannot blow through it at all - when hot there is pretty much no restriction and you can easily blow through it.

 

Answered own question - it ain't no good - oh well more spending, small spend given the current scope of this project.

 

BenKenobi, you may want to consider having it rebuilt by Jonas Loda. I just found out about the rebuild option while revisiting the youtube channel of Living with a classic.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/3503...er/1226014170/

 

It is already booked with him and packaged

I've ordered some other bits off him too - the teflon throttle spindle bushes, the aluminium half moons for the back of the cam box, the timing chain adjuster plug for the 'hole' at the front of the engine and a full set of 'modified' and corrected banjos for cooling and oil.

My cam covers are a mess - surface corrosion but they are totally dry with zero oil leaks so I don't know whether to disturb them or not - the OCD says to pull them off and clean them up but I'm getting a little brassed off with thew way the completion target keeps moving - there's only so much I can do in a day and that is getting less and less as the weather becomes less predictable and the nights draw in. Going to need to check all the electrics though, some of the connectors came off way too easy, the insulation is rock hard and a lot of the little vacuum pipes are well past their sell by they too are hard and I doubt they are sealing particularly well.

May buy new cam covers just to speed the job along.

Glad I took the manifolds off - a lot of the nuts were loose - barely finger tight - previous owner must have been having tickover issues, for certain there were air leaks, there is also a bodge on the distributor and there is a terminal through connector and one of the wires pilled out with no provocation - so that's something else to fix.

 

Just bought these bad boys ...

 

Ben
With the oil feed banjo bolts, if you are considering replacing the the main supply one where it exits from the crankcase towards the cams feed tower (which i would not do unless it is leaking) make 100% sure the new one is better. Years ago I bought a set (not from your guy) and that one was a far worse fit into the banjo than the OEM one, which turned out to be fine.
Second, and apologies if you already realise this, the point of the replacement cam feed banjo bolts is to engage more thread into the head casting than the OEM ones do, as well as a possible alignment improvement into the banjo; BUT be VERY careful when tightening them up, as even with more threads it is all too easy to strip the block threads.
As to the cam covers, they look lovely, but if no leaks right now, you are being very brave! But good luck. Slightly longer than OEM cam cover fixing bolts are a good plan too, as the Great Palm taught us all..
By the by, loose manifold nuts are a well known V12 thing, so note to everyone else, an annual tightness check is worth doing.

 

The only reason I was considering the banjo's for oil is to improve oil flow, if the flow isn't an issue with standard ones then I'm happy to leave well alone, just want to do everything I can in one hit.

What would you recommend for cam cover bolts?

I looked at SNG but they only seem to have standard - I do plan to use washers even on flanged bolts so that I don't mar the finish and start the corrosion in the new covers all over again. I do recall reading that the cam cover bolts were poor as they used a self threading bolt / set screw that isn't perfectly round to aid self threading. If that's the case then these should be regarded as items to replace whether the previous owner / service did or not.

 

Is there a special grommet for the AAV? It has always just flopped around in there which doesn't seem right.

 

If you're referring to the 'SAV' valve on bank A in the back of the air intake mine also flaps around like it's lost. The part number is a simple rubber bushing that over time is bound to droop C16398 according to the book but this pulls up nothing on SNG Barratt. post note - found the grommet under part C16393 but the valve is no longer available. I believe this valve adds additional air when the compressor runs

I plan to address mines limp nature, probably 3D print a mount for it (no I won't be using PLA) - polycarb or PETG - I'll figure this one out while I have the airboxes off and let you know how (if) I can resolve but some sort of rigid item with an internal O ring or two that is a reasonably tight fit on the valve.

 

Ben
Flow is not an issue, only leaks and you have not got any which is a huge piece of good fortune. Also the B bank cam feed banjo is impossible to remove, engine in car, as it cannot be withdrawn because the bulkhead is too close.
I used Allen headed bolts on the cam covers of a normal, not self locking, thread, but about 1/4 or 3/16th inch longer than OEM ones, together with spring washers and washers. It has held up perfectly for over 10 years. I foolishly did not buy stainless bolts though, and the ones i buy did have surface-rusted rather annoyingly. So I would buy stainless if they are around.

The orange gunk is to seal gravity leaks from the join between the cam carrier and the head. This was unsealed at the factory and weeping is a common fault leading to smoke of the manifold soon after startup. The join will be loctite flange sealed when the engine is rebuilt (which will be when i am too old to drive it!). believe it or not, the gunk has sealed perfectly for over a decade too.

 

My cam covers aren't near as pretty as yours currently but as you can see int he images below I have no oil leaks - well I hope that you can see - no I've not cleaned anything up yet. I shall shelve the oil banjos as I have zero intention of disturbing without a darn good reason and even less intention of removing the engine.

You should be able to spot the previous owners wiring bodge near the distributor - a breakdown waiting to happen - it is actually clearer in to the right in the bank A image.

Hopefully you can understand why cam covers in this state I cannot ignore - given the hassle needed to get into this location. I wish I could find the decent Ford redesigned gaskets for these (the rubbery sandwich types but all I can find are paper


Bank B

Bank A

 

My understanding of the way the AAV works is that due to spring pressure from above the little piston inside lives, when cold, at the BOTTOM of the cylinder... Wax bulb and wax driven push piston below it,,, holes in the sliding piston facing up. At cold, the opening (see photo) should be wide open allowing air into the system, as the coolant and wax bulb heats the wax driven piston will slowly (if not gunked up and covered with corrosion) drive, against spring pressure, the cylinder UP. Thus blocking that little geometric opening seen in the picture, where the AAV is in the vise below. When cold that piston should be in the bottom almost out of site, geometric shapes opening - wide open...

Is it possible someone took that thing apart before you got it and put it back together incorrectly?

Piston down (out of site) being pushed down by spring to the bottom of the cylinder.

Spring from top, seated on the stop which doubles as the top hats opening...

 

Manners will supply the Goretex gaskets. I do see about the cam covers!

 

Don't know but even though it looked closed it was still full flow, looked like the images when cold for sure - looked pretty much the same at 80 degrees although the hole was a tad smaller, the hot idle screw was pretty much closed, it is now on its way to Lithuania either way, for what it costs to get it refurbed I can more effectively spend my time on other things.