Misfire, Slightly lower compression, black soot on spark plug...HELP only car

[jesse1984]

ok so heres the deal. had a misfire. changed the spark plugs changed the wires. tested the wire and i have sprak all the way to the plug. so i did a compression test. i got 175, 174, 174, and then 168....the 168 is the front cyl i know that is the problem cyl. Any ideas on what could be wrong? i just bought the car and it ran fine...then all of a sudden i have bought a new battery, starter, 2 fuel injectors, plugs, wires, and now it has an exhaust leak. is there ways to test to help narrow the problem so ill know what i need to do to fix it and how much its going to cost? i dont have another car and im running out of funds. please help. thanks.

[Darren]

So is it running now, but with a misfire, or is it not running at all?

Also, what motor? ... KA24e?

[jesse1984]

oh sorry. yes its running, but she's a 3 cyl at the moment....gas milage is just gone...im trying not to drive it. it is a ka24de. 1992...i dont know how many miles as the guy i bought it said it was a lesser milage engine. the bead looks brand new...but i am finding little things about the swap that make me question their engine swapping abilities.

[F20cS13]

Why did you replace only two injectors? Did you replace the injector on the low comp cylinder?

What do your spark plugs look like?

[jesse1984]

only replaced 2 injectors because only 2 were bad and also i am running out of money. i didnt have enough to replace all four.

I took the exhaust manifold off and sprayed some carb cleaner in there and took the valve cover off and looked around. in the front cyl and a lil on another you can see some wetness on the valve. and all that shiney stuff is metal on top of the flat black build up. also on the timing cover you can see where the shain has been slapping it. the top guide is gone, but the tensioner is stuck and i couldnt get it to move. please check out the link below and look at the pics and tell me what you think is going on.

240sx pictures by jesse1378 - Photobucket (http://s459.photobucket.com/albums/qq320/jesse1378/240sx/)

[jesse1984]

Also, i did an oil change and put in valvoline max life and a can of engine restore. idled last night and this morning, nothing on the spark plug but still nothing in front cyle....how long does that stuff take to work?

[jesse1984]

max life was 10w-30 and i just read that carbo build up on plugs could be caused by a bad pcv valve....is there a way to test it to see if its good. i know its a pain to get to. could that cause the build up on just one cyl? also this last time i took the plug out it was a little wet so i am hoping the engine restore isnt too late.

[jr_ss]

Take the PCV out and try to blow through it both ways. It shouldnt allow you to blow through one way. If you can blow through both ways, replace it...

[jesse1984]

sounds good..i found a how-to on how to take it out...looks like a PITA. ill give it a shot thank you.

[F20cS13]

Bad as in? Were the injectors making you run lean? And the spark plug is "wet"? cylinder one?

Can you take a picture of the spark plugs, especially the one in the bad cylinder? Is the spark plug wet with fuel or oil? you could be having blow by in cylinder one causing oil combustion in that cylinder. It could be bad enough to soak the spark plug and not combust properly.

What cylinder is that valve on in picture 6? The wet ones?

1/3 a can of seafoam in the brake booster, and a 1/3 of a can in the oil fill will help with ALOT of that carbon build up. I would try that, but remember to THOUROUGHLY change the oil. (hour or more)

Your tensioner shouldnt move (u cant even see them on f20). You could take a socket to the crank pulley and spin the motor slowly and look to see if you see anything completley out of the norm.

[jesse1984]

ill run take a pic in just a sec. yes pic 6 is the fron t cyl which the one im having problems with.

seafoam....well i have already done some seafoam, thats actually what started the problem. it unclogged the fuel injectors and the fuel injector in the front cyl (the one with the problems) would just pour gas when i clicked the key forward, the next would drip and the last two were dry. it is looking more and more like that gas ate a little of a ring in that cyl. i put the restore in there and im still under the 500 mile mark to see if it will help. the engine smoked but it wasnt all that bad when i did the seafoam....maybe i didnt do it right or i didnt put enough through the tp end by means of the brake booster vac hose...yes i used the right end lol. let me go get a pic of the plug and ill post it in the next couple minutes

[jesse1984]

plugs.....the single is the one from the cyl thats acting up, the other three arent in order. it was mentioned to check my timing....will autozone do that? i dont have the light or the money for one..or how t use one for that matter.

[Darren]

have you tried changing your spark plugs... if you have, does it run ok for a little while after, and then get worse again?

[jesse1984]

i have changed a couple times. and the front never seems to fire at all. always running on the back 3. i can unplug the front spark plug wire and it never changes the idle, but the plug will spark when grounded....

[herbieS13]

which injectors did u change? also did you replace the o-rings? check all your injector o-rings make sure theyre not frayed, i had a bad o-ring once and it caused my car to miss and sputter

[Darren]

has this motor ever run correctly? or has it always run like this in your possession?

[F20cS13]

plugs.....the single is the one from the cyl thats acting up, the other three arent in order. it was mentioned to check my timing....will autozone do that? i dont have the light or the money for one..or how t use one for that matter.
That is fuel wash. Your pinn in your injector was stuck open washing your cylinder walls with fuel.
Your plugs look likea mix of unburnt fuel and oil detonation. I think a much further inspection is needed

[jesse1984]

i changed the front 2 injectors. those were the only 2 that were leaking when i turned the key forward. i did not change the oring i just bought new ones and the back two i didnt change any o rings either. also. i couldnt smell anything but sitting at idle my wife could smell gas....and my gas mileage sucks a$$....i also just noticed that my temp gauge isnt rising at all and the heater isnt blowing warm air.....is something not working that is causing the computer to think its trying to warm up so its just running rich to try and warm the car up?

[jesse1984]

forgot to answer...it ran fine until i did the seafoam....thats when the injector did its thing with the gas and its been down hill from there.

[F20cS13]

i changed the front 2 injectors. those were the only 2 that were leaking when i turned the key forward. i did not change the oring i just bought new ones and the back two i didnt change any o rings either. also. i couldnt smell anything but sitting at idle my wife could smell gas....and my gas mileage sucks a$$....i also just noticed that my temp gauge isnt rising at all and the heater isnt blowing warm air.....is something not working that is causing the computer to think its trying to warm up so its just running rich to try and warm the car up?
So just to get it right? You bought just new o rings for the injectors instead of using the existing ones?
Does the car have a hard time starting? Like its starving for fuel? Have u looked around the intke manifold for pools of fuel?. Tried a leakdown test yet?
I don't mean to keep asking questions im just having a hard time understanding what ezactly your explaining.

Pm if you would like and I can try and help you further-

[jesse1984]

well i just had my timing checked..it was spot on...he also found the problem with cyle #1.....i feel like a complete jacka$$ but i am soooooo relieved. apparently i did not have the plug all the way in on the injector. let this be a lessen....if you are ahving a problem and just cant figure it out..invited a buddy over. those fresh set of eyes are a big help. the car is running great now. thank you for all your help.

[nightsauce]

happy you found the problem but -__-

[F20cS13]

well i just had my timing checked..it was spot on...he also found the problem with cyle #1.....i feel like a complete jacka$$ but i am soooooo relieved. apparently i did not have the plug all the way in on the injector. let this be a lessen....if you are ahving a problem and just cant figure it out..invited a buddy over. those fresh set of eyes are a big help. the car is running great now. thank you for all your help.
:bigok::2f2f:

[slydin240sx]

WINNING! lol

[jesse1984]

yeah winning is right. i still cant believe it was that simple. i need to find some people local that work on cars. all my friends got orders so its just me out there working on the car.