[T.P.Crockmier]

Hello All,

I've been looking at this hole for a while now, but I keep forgetting to ask about it. I first saw it when the block came back from the machine shop. The block was so unbelievably filthy when it was removed that it doesn't surprise me I never noticed it until it was clean. It's on the looker's right side of the block, behind the timing cover. Fishing an engine brush through the hole indicates that it's connected to the oil passage that supplies the first cam bearing. I cannot remember anything being in that passage or coming out of it when I pulled the engine out and disassembled it. I went back through pictures I had of the removal and various steps of the disassembly, while none clearly show the area, nothing appears to be obviously near it either. Vehicle is a manual trans, and does not have an oil cooler.

What is this passage for?

Thanks,
T.P. Crockmier

 

[gregaust]

Should be a plug in there . It is just where the galleries are drilled I believe

 

[dacofa]

Where the oil galley was drilled. Some are plugged some use it for a oil pressure sending unit instead of in the back of the block. Good pipe plug is all it takes. But use it to clean your oil galley. Never trust that the machine shop cleaned your block. I've found lots of garbage after they "cleaned it".

 

[T.P.Crockmier]

Where the oil galley was drilled. Some are plugged some use it for a oil pressure sending unit instead of in the back of the block. Good pipe plug is all it takes. But use it to clean your oil galley. Never trust that the machine shop cleaned your block. I've found lots of garbage after they "cleaned it".

That’s pretty much what I was thinking. I wasn’t too concerned and was going to get a plug for it, provided it wasn’t a feed for something crucial. And yes, after the block came back from the machine shop I did use an engine brush kit and went after the oil galleries with rubbing alcohol and then clean engine oil to remove anything left over from the hot tank.

 

[dacofa]

Clean the cylinders with papertowels and ATF, you'd be surprised what you find.

 

[bbfjet]

Be careful, some of those plugs are J thread which appears to be pipe thread but it is not. Only way I was able to find the correct plugs was to order a complete freeze plug kit from my machine shop with the galley plugs in it.

 

[karlar]

Clean the cylinders with papertowels and ATF, you'd be surprised what you find..

hahaha. That's true

 

[T.P.Crockmier]

Be careful, some of those plugs are J thread which appears to be pipe thread but it is not. Only way I was able to find the correct plugs was to order a complete freeze plug kit from my machine shop with the galley plugs in it.

I had some spare gallery plugs hanging around from this project. I found one that threaded in and would tighten up, put some ultra black on the threads and snugged it up. Seems like it should work.

 

[JJU9507]

Make sure plug u used seats at TOP of hole, not bottom, or oil flow and scored bearings
will result -ask me how I know!

 

[T.P.Crockmier]

Make sure plug u used seats at TOP of hole, not bottom, or oil flow and scored bearings
will result -ask me how I know!

I'll bite. How do you know?

Secondly, when you say the "Top" of the hole, are you able to clarify that a little bit more? The plug I used had a slight taper at the business end. One of the things I checked, and looked okay was the depth of thread vs the depth of the plug. It appeared that too long of a plug would block one of the oil passages, but the plug I used, based on my ultra accurate eyeball-based measurement, appeared to be short enough to not interfere with the passage at the end of the threads. It's not too late to remove and evaluate again, which it sounds like I may want to do that tomorrow.