ok guys, the problem its that there is re-occuring water in the oil pan. :wtf: I have an oil catch can and that seems to get water in it fairly quickly. When i change the oil it runs poorly off and on for a few days and then gets it out of the system and runs smooth til the next oil change. I thought blown head gasket or cracked block, but there is no smoke or power loss. Motor is a B16 head and B20 block w/ stock internals. Let me know what you think.

 

you might want to post this in the hybrid section

 

D3LSLO,
Uh, so what do you mean by "the oil catch can seems to get water in it fairly quickly"? Does this mean when you driain the oil there is water in it?
If there is water or coolant in the oil, I'd run an oil analysis at at place like Blackstone Labs. A friend of mine was suspecting a head gasket leak due to a slight coolant loss and erratic idle. He sent a sample to Blackstone and the actually *called* him to say "you might have a problem"...wow...where do you find that kind of customer service? In any case, a $20 analysis would confirm that it's coolant...but you might already know that...
A leakdown test could also help you pinpoint the source of the problem. But offhand it does sound like a head gasket problem.
Bogatyr

 

What headgasket are you using?

 

when i say the catch can fills up quickly i mean that while the motor is fussing the can seems to be filling w/ the water/oil mixture that only lasts for a day or two and then there are no visible problems. As for the head gasket im not sure whats in there now.

 

D3LSLO,
Ah...I just searched Google for oil catch can...now I see what you're talking about. It seems that this can's purpose is to trap oil and moisture blowby. Heh, never heard of such a thing. Does the tubing come from the PCV system? Uh, depending on where you live, I'll bet that it's against emissions regs to install such as device as the blowby should be vented back into the intake.
So you are getting excessive moisture in there...hmm. Tell me this, before you put that contraption in there, did the car run poorly after an oil change?
Bogatyr

 

Before the can was installed I have a simple b16 setup, however as i had the b20 block swap the shop doing the work added the catch can, this problem w/ water did not exist as soon as i got the car back though, it a few months before i noticed anything.

 

When you empty your oil pan is there water there too or just in the catch can?

 

its hard to tell. in the catch can it separates but in the oil pan, its so little water and so much oil that r mixed it tough but after a close look it appears hat some water is in the oil pan.