Cody's 1996 Cavalier 2.2L

I understand, don’t worry about it.

I’m just paranoid of this engine, I’ve heard great and terrible things. Some say they’re unkillable etc etc, and others say “oh yeah they lock up all the time I had a buddy that this happened twice with two different cars”. I don’t want to modify too much with the engine and throw something out of whack, I’m already tossing a gaseous fuel down it’s gullet.

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Lack of lubercating oil will lock it up fast. Wood gas is good for it. But be cauious is the besy way to go if you are not sure about something.
Bob

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This car has about 180,000 miles, allegedly majority highway. Technically a 1 owner car, lady that owned it got old and couldn’t drive, son never drove it and my friend never drove it. No body rot or serious damage besides the hood and front bumper but it looks like it could have been done in transportation by a trailer hitch. I’m going to be adding MMO in the crank case to get any sludge that’s in there and make sure all the bearings are lubricated.

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I too have learned to love PCV systems on gasoline engines as long as they are truly full flowing Positive ventilating. You do need allowed in filter fresh air cross flowing to do that.
The imports, especially the Japanese mostly were never actually positively flowing. Just Tee connected to suck any positive crankcase pressures build up.
Again just on gasoline the high flow North American type can really foul you up at idle with either clogging, hose collapsing or hose off false air leaking.

My woodgas engine experiences are all with stationary.
We just remove the crankcase venting to outside of the intake and air cleaner boxes to NOT be over-pulled by always having to suck the gasifer system.
Another advantage with no oil vapors from the crankcase into the intake soots cake and cling much less.

Of course the oils then do blacken quicker. Lack of crankcase venting? Woodgas soot past the rings?
Doesn’t matter.
Woodgasing one of the sacrifices must be made is extended oil changes IMHO.
Just use the less expensive mineral or blended oils and change out frequently.
I like to actually see thru my oil. Get itchy when I cannot. Get it out. Get it OUT! Ha! Just my bug-a-boo.

Ahmm. Cody with your pristine engine bay habits . . . maybe long metal draft tube out the crankcase below and behind the firewall like some used to do.
Regards
Steve unruh

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Since Norman showed his oil issues I’ve stopped using synthetic in all my vehicles. I think High Mileage oil is semi synthetic, but I change every 3000 miles as if it were conventional. I also like to not have Texas Tea coming out of my drain on changing day.

If I have to separate the vent I’ll probably buy a catch can kit, at least then I can save that oil for my drill bits :joy:. Most are big enough that they’re ready to empty on a 3-5,000 mile interval.

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Correct RobW.
A tested tailpipe emissions cheating trick is to restrict the replenish air in to pull a nearly constant crankcase negative pressure.
Helps with rings oil burners and spark plug foulers too.
To much, too long, and I’ve created gravity sitting crankshaft oil leakers. Dirt and dust I figure sucked in past the seals lips. Then seals grinding down. Negative consequences bite.
S.U.

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I’m doing 2500 mile LOF now running Valvoline 5w30 synthetic blend, buying at bi-mart on sale bulk. I go with Steve, if I cant see through it I’m like immorten joe from fury road " Get it OUT!" I have in the past used the ventury effect with breather in the header collector, but that was when we still had emmisions testing and the testers were NOT happy with me… now rural county no emmisions I may just go back to it some day if change to a block hugger style header instead of the log manifolds. I have actually been meaning to ask Wayne what he did with the breather on the v10 on the driver side valve cover

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@Wayne what did you do with the breather hose on the V-10?
Bob

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I don’t remember but I will go right now and see :blush:

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Marcus and Mr. Bob .

The hose has been removed and the vent is vented to the atmosphere . I have about 50K miles now and many are hard farm and dirt road miles .

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The dakota’s have a place to hook it up the intake manifold so i just leave them on there now. when i sludged up the oil on the big trip it wasn’t hooked up so i leave them hooked up. I don’t know if it makes any difference but it just removes a variable.

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Hi guy’s, please have in mind the pcv system on a woodgased engine is one place you have woodgas under pressure, actually more of the slower-burning gases in woodgas (carbon monoxide) tests done by SMP? Showed 27-30% carbon monoxide in crankcase ventilation gases.
I personnally think the pcv system is probably the only risk of poisoning we have to have in mind, because there is a sligh risk of poisoning during driving :dizzy_face:
During ww2 there was rules that say’d that open crankcase ventilation should be extended to the rear of vehicle, as long as exhaust. (ofcourse during ww2 the most weared-out engines was the first to be woodgas-converted)
Please don’t take this like me trying to be a smart-*ss, im just caring, we dont need any poisonings!
Probably the best should be a closed system with a catch-tank of some kind, maybe filled with ss-shavings, steel scrubbers?

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I believe in WW2 crank case ventilation was just a tube that ran to the bottom of the engine, dripping oil and fumes on the ground so I can see why there was a Carbon Monoxide risk if it came from under the floor boards or through the firewall.

So basically with modern day systems you’re saying to either leave it connected to the air box where the engine can suck it up, or have it vent into a catch container that vents to outside of the car?

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Yes, it’s what i mean, and if one don’t like the crankcase gasses being sucked into the engine, making a mess, maybe a catch container inline, to sort out the water/oil slurry?
Some of my experiences with crankcase ventilation and woodgas; is there seems to be some more blow-by gases, probably because engine working harder, on my old woodgas-Volvo, 2 liter engine, raised compression ratio, i somewhat ignored/underdimensioned some piping crankcase to intake, wich lead to situations with to much pressure in crankcase, (shot crank seal, both front and rear :roll_eyes:)
Anyhow, what i think is priority is to avoid possibility of blow-by/crankcase gases entering passenger compartment, no fun thing, carbon monoxide. :smiley:

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Do turbo charged or other boosted engines experience more blow by than NA engines?

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Okay so a little update on the Cavalier.

The E2000 pump uses the same type of Push Connectors for the flexible portion of the line. I’m going to buy some shorter lengths of this type of hose to daisy chain from the solid line under the car and the solid line going to the fuel rail.

I will either do this, or take out the old one, split it, and hose clamp it down over the barbs of the fuel pump.

I don’t have rubber line under the car, there is a hard plastic line going from the original pump to the external fuel filter. I’ll try to set it up so all the rubber line is on the positive pressure side to prevent collapsing.

To get the old gas easier to ignite I’ve put 8oz of MMO and 2 bottles of HEET to absorb any water in the gas, but it smells halfway decent.

Edit: To mix the gas back up a little easier I might just let the fuel pump run for a little while.

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Hi Tom, i believe there are more blow-by in the boosted engines, therefore they often have catch-containers, and bigger ventilation piping, an extreme example: tractor pulling, look under those engines, there is smoke blowing out worse than a semi trucks smokestack.

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I think the worst part of any repairing of a car is when you are waiting on stuff to arrive in the mail. Needed push connect fuel line removal tools and none of the parts stores had any in stock. Amazon had a set but it’ll be Saturday when I get it.

Edit: While I’m looking, I’m seeing some halfway decent bumper hitch adapter kits. I think I like the idea of this, removable for sneaky trips to the inspector, and it’ll give the gasifier some jostling action for the grate. Can only find Class 1 adapters but the Curt brand one says it can handle a tongue weight of 200lbs. More than enough I’m going to build this as light as I can get away with. I’ll probably bias the gasifier to the passenger/starboard side so refueling will be less dangerous while on the road. I’m going to build my cooling rail to look like a luggage rack just like JO has done. If my budget allows I might just buy a roof rack so the cooling rail can be more easily detached and have a solid anchor to the car.

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Got the new fuel pump on.

Aaand of course it blew the seals on all the injectors. Great.
Probably already leaky from being dry. Going to let them soak up in the gasoline and try again tomorrow. I might put in a PWM for the fuel pump to make sure it isn’t just too powerful.

It did start up and run like a scalded dog though, so at least the car will idle.

Edit: I forgot that Timothy told me the car needed new injector and fuel rail seals. Ordered a set to be here Wednesday. The car ran just long enough to move from the gravel to my flat level pavement. Now my jack won’t sink into the ground when I try to pick it up!

She sounds mean with the cut off exhaust but I’ll need to rectify that soon, I have a tractor muffler for a 2 Liter engine and I’ll call it a day.

Edit 2: I probed the fuel pump wires into the fuel pump relay so it operates at the same moments the stock one would. Leaking is less intense but I’ll still not play around and actually replace the seals.

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I had one of them 2.2 chevy cavalere moters in my s10/ same motor other than the front cover on the motor block. It had about 200.000 miles and still ran great, other than it used quart of oil eavery 500 miles, it got about 28 mpg in my old 2000 s10. HOW is the wood gas or charco gasifier working out on the 2.2 project. It wood be nice too have a gas mizer running on wood or charco.

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