I let my dad drive my car today and when he came back it was firing on three cylinders! found wich cylinder is dead plug was soaked with fuel and it is getting spark. what could the cause possibly be ? valves or piston?
I was getting a misfire do to oil on my spark plug wires. Seems like valve cover gaskets are a common problem so i replaced those as well as the plugs and wires and it runs great again. Mike
^^^? OP question contained relevant data. As I recall he has a built engine that he has posted threads about in the past, but his question was not for particulars, just generally "What typically has the symptoms of dead cyclinder, wet with fuel, but getting spark?" RubberDuckwrx, I can't help with your question at all, sorry. Hope you sort it out.
Like Ronnie said, compression and leak down tests. Also, you could find someone with a fiber optic camera.
Thanks for the info! I will bring my compression tester home from work Monday and check each cylinder and see if that is the issue ! if it is real low on compression in that cylinder then should i just look at rings or could it possibly be valves also?
Low compression test numbers can be any thing from worn rings, valves, excessive ring gap or broken rings, improper valve clearance (too tight, way too loose), broken piston, head gasket leak, worn/damaged cam lobes and so on. A leak down test can help you to further narrow it down to a item in direct contact with the cylinder or some thing external like a damaged cam lobe for example. Other options would be a item/s related to the ignition. My first check would be(if there are no noises that raise a concern) to dry the cylinder out of the build up of fuel that is in there and then put in a new plug and go from there. A flooded cylinder even with spark doesn't ignite, the question becomes Why did it flood.
