Yellow gas

vetteset8087 · 11-02-2009, 01:33 PM

I have another post up about glowing headers. I am finally digging into this problem. I started with taking out the fuel filter. After the fuel filter was out I put a hose on the tank side of the fuel filter connection. I cycled the fuel pump a few times and caught the fuel in a clear container. the fuel was extremely yellow kind of like piss after a hard nights drinking. it smelled kind of funny too but not like piss. will seafoam make gas turn yellow and smell kind of funny or could this just be bad gas. When I put fuel in it I did it with a gas can because I did not want to drive it with the headers glowing. I dumped the yellow fuel out of the container and poured what was left in the gas can into the container it had a yellow tint to it but it was not nearly as yellow as the other. any ideas?

raidmagic · 11-02-2009, 03:22 PM

Weird, I don't know what could make it yellow. Did you get known good gas and try that?

vetteset8087 · 11-02-2009, 05:19 PM

I called seafoam and they said that gas will turn a dark yellow when it goes bad. They also said that seafoam will not make it turn yellow. I replaced the fuel filter drained all of the old gas from the tank put new gas in with some seafoam. It still runs like crap and headers are still glowing. so tomorrow I will do a compression test on it if that doesn't tell me anything I will start taking it apart to try and find out what's going on

raidmagic · 11-02-2009, 05:38 PM

What was the verdict of getting the injectors cleaned? I wouldn't tear into the motor before doing that.

vetteset8087 · 11-02-2009, 06:37 PM

with my injection system ( SDS- EM4 ) I can turn up the fuel timing as high as 50% more when I turn it up nothing gets better So I think I am getting enough fuel. I can't find any vacuum leaks. My vacuum is down to 3.5 - 4 inches so that's getting worse. I can get the motor to rev up if I paddle the throttle back and forth once it gets some vacuum stored and stops farting out the intake and today it started fating out the exhaust it will rev just fine but the headers get hot quick. something is going away in this motor. I have not checked the dist or the dist drive gear yet I will do that before I do anything else tomorrow. The odd thing bout this problem is first the idle dropped from 950 rpm to 5 or 600 rpm. I had to turn up the idle to get the idle in the normal range. I would think that if I had a vacuum leak the idle would have went up and I would have had to turn it down to get it in th normal range not up. Ths whole thing makes no sense to me I think I may have damaged valves or a cam going away. This motor has less than 2,000 mles on it so this frustrates me to no end. If you can point me in a direction it would be greatly appreciated

BonneRisque · 11-02-2009, 06:50 PM

Red hot headers are a sign of leaking exhaust valves. Most commonly, "burnt" "bent" from over-revving, or the adjustment is off, keeping the exhaust valves from closing. Also push rod too long or rocker interference and valve guide misplacement. can do this.

Bon

Texdentist · 11-02-2009, 06:55 PM

Couldn't valve or ignition timing being off cause red hot headers? Sounds to me like the exhaust valves are partly open when ignition takes place.

vetteset8087 · 11-02-2009, 07:21 PM

The motor ran fine for about 2,000 miles so I don't think the push rods are too long. I did not over rev the motor the motor is built to run to 6,500 rpm my my shift light is set at 5,500 my msd rev limiter chip is 6,000 and I cut my fuel at 6,250. The last time I drove the car I drove it down the freeway for about 20 miles when I got off the freeway I drove in own for 2 or 3 miles and stopped at a light the motor stumbled and the idle rpm dropped and I thought to myself that felt like a fuel pump going bad but it kept running. The motor was down on power but it was still running and driving good enough to get me home. If it was a valve problem why would it be doing it on all valves al of my header tubes are glowing not just a couple. Ignition timing makes more sense to me but it would be too far retarded that would cause it to fire when the ex valves are open right and if anything I am too far advanced I am running about 18-20 degrees at idle. Wait that just made some sense to me maybe this is a timing problem. Too much advance would make my vacuum drop and make it pop through the intake right.

dryrot · 11-02-2009, 07:30 PM

had the same problem with a jeep that had a " mildly modded" motor in it when i bought it. put about 400 miles on it and the motor stumbled and never ran right again. ended up being the cam. the guy who built the motor did not respect the clearances and killed the motor in short order.

Dipstick · 11-03-2009, 07:41 AM

Try doing a compression test or a cylinder leakdown test both hot and cold. Also pull the valve covers and do a visual inspection of the valve train looking for broken springs, bent pushrods, etc. While the plugs are out check distributor making sure it is on #1. What is base timing set at and how does it run with the brown wire unplugged? Maybe the ecm is causing the timing to fluctuate. Try checking out the knock sensor too. It could be bad and that might be retarding the timing. Just some food for thought. I hope it helps out.

vetteset8087 · 11-03-2009, 08:03 AM

Dryrot what happened to the cam in your jeep?

Dipstick I am not running the factory ecu I'm running an aftermarket ecu it's a crank triger system so the tan wire has no function in this system. My initial timing is 12 with a total of 37 all in by 3,500 rpm. An ignition problem makes sense to me because every cyl is having the same problem I would think if it was a mechanical problem 1 or maybe a couple cyl's would have a problem but not all of them. But then again a vacuum leak and a fuel system problem made sense to me also. I plan on doing some more digging today. I will keep checking with you guys to see if anybody has any ideas.

Dipstick · 11-03-2009, 09:00 AM

I do agree. A timing or vacuum problem does make the most sense. I just suggested the compression test to rule out any type of mechanical problem. It seems like late ignition timing to me. Just curious, Does this car still have cats on it? That could cause the intake popping and slow to rev if it is restricted but I'm not so sure about the glowing headers. Keep us posted on what you find. Good luck

redmen031 · 11-03-2009, 09:11 AM

What is the condition of the gas tank, any rust?

vetteset8087 · 11-03-2009, 09:39 AM

Redmen The gas tank was pretty clean when I looked inside it about 2 years ago and I flushed it out yesterday the fuel filter was also replaced yesterday.

Dipstick Yes it still has a cat on it but the pre cats have been removed and the hi flow cat thats on it now is about 4 years old ( maybe 3,000 miles )

Dipstick · 11-03-2009, 12:44 PM

Only 3000 miles, thats new. I really don't know much about the aftermarket crank trigger system but I would put my efforts into that. It just sounds like some sort of ignition or timing problem. I'll do some research and see if I can find anything.