hello scotty i have a 1998 honda prelude base model with the Manual trans. i recently swappped out the motor for one that i got off of facebook that had a rebuilt shortblock that was done at a local shop (the guy gave me receipts to the shop that did it) and the seller put the head that he had on it himself. after getting it all put in and driving it aprox 250 miles to let the rings seat ive noticed that when i sit at a stop light or at an idle for a period of time when i take off i big puff of smoke comes out and then it clears up. i know this is most likely the valve stem seals causing this to happen but my question is could a head that was dry of oil for a long period of time (unknown to me how long but i assume it sat for awhile off the motor) cause the seals to maybe dry out and not seal all the way? and is there any conditioners or oil treatments i could use to maybe fix this problem or should i just take the time to change them out which id rather not have to do since id have to get that tool and thats alot of springs on a dual overhead cam head to do.
-thanks
jake
If the smoke is white your head gasket is damaged. If it's black your running really rich. If it's white with a blue tint your rings are fried.
You might want to give a try with AT-205 - Scotty recommends it for refreshing engine seals, but apparently some BMW folks are using it to re-seal valve guide seals. I usually try the cheap and easy fixes before tearing into the hard and expensive fixes.
https://www.amazon.com/ATP-AT-205-Re-Seal-Stops-Bottle/dp/B000NVW1LM
If you suspect the valve stem seals, get a leak down test to confirm it's the valves, Did the guy get the head rebuilt or just put the old one back on?
