FoolishDog

I have a 1997 Cherokee xj with a 4.0 straight 6 engine.
I've been collecting parts for a while now and decided to get a bunch of work done at once, of course that just means there's more places for things to go wrong.

Currently there is
- A notable air sucking sound from the engine bay
- A rapid and notable clicking sound that seems to be coming from the area around the fuel injectors
- white smoke coming from the back of the intake/exhaust manifold area
- white smoke from the air box/oil filler cap
- I also feel like the engine is physically hotter than normal although this could be my imagination, the temp gage is normal but some of the radiator lines are very hot to the touch, hotter than I feel like they were before.

As a quick rundown,
-I replaced the head gasket (and valve cover, thermostat) with the upper engine set from felpro
- replaced the motor mounts and motor mount engine brackets with the set from Brown Dog
- replaced the exhaust manifold with the Banks "revolver" manifold
- replaced the metal fuel line with a rubber fuel line as well as a new steel fuel rail.
- replaced all six fuel injectors with 4 hole injectors
- replaced both the air lines running from the valve cover with new gromets, valve elbows and I couldn't find the hoses online so I just used a bit of hose I had on hand that fit snug.

Things did not go totally smooth,
- First when bolting the cylinder head back in place I used a new set of head bolts, I put anti-seize on the bolts, I later learned that this was probably a mistake. When torquing down the bolts the #1 bolt broke before the torque wrench clicked at 110fp, oddly enough I was able to remove the broken bolt from the head easily by hand. I also bent the head gasket slightly when removing the head to get at the broken bolt, as I didn't have another gasket on hand I smoothed it out and replaced it, there were no notable creases or bends in the gasket when I replaced the cylinder head. I tightened the rest of the bolts to 90fp (in the proper spiraling order) and then gently snugged each bolt just a bit more.

- the second notable issue is the far back, bottom stud for the exhaust manifold stripped. I knew this one was going to be an issue as soon as it happened but I think it's going to be enough of a chore to fix that I finished replacing the removed engine parts so that I could start it and see is there would be any other issues to fix. I do not actually know if the threads in the block are stripped of if the stud broke.

So I figure I definitely need to sort out that broken exhaust manifold stud but I feel like the smoke from the oil filler cap is probably not related to that? I would be super appreciative of any advice in diagnosing these issues.

Also other than the obvious physical tells the engine seems to be running fine, holding good at idle and revving up appropriately.

97grand4.0

Did you go by the FSM? That's a must. Yes that is a no no to use antisieze. ugh. All I can think of is that stuff oozed up to the head and is now holding the head off. If you bent the gasket yes replace it, but it might be ok but might not. I think there are beads of sealer on the gasket? If so you should have replaced it. Did you have work done to the head? Did they mill the head as most are warped?
There are. I think without looking it up, 3 distinct torque sequences, as well as a specific pattern order to follow. I do know you go through the pattern 3 times, increasing torque each time. #1 bolt to 110? I dont recall that being different but the 11 bolt gets coated with something to keep coolant out and torqued differently. Only 90 for the final torque? Is that right? Seems low. I would grab the fsm. Mine was a 97 also so I have been there just last year.
One thing that does happen to some who aren't too careful is the intake doesn't seat properly and the engine will race, but that doesn't sound like your issue. -

FoolishDog

I did reference the manual regularly while working on it. I used a pretty thin layer of anti-seize, unfortunately I don't have a good way to clean it out of the block threads but my main concern is that that it could have messed with the torque value, I was thinking that nay have been what caused the #1 bolt to break? I don't remember the exact sequence without checking the book but I think it was something like, all bolts to 20fp, all bolts to 45fp, 1-10 to 110fp, 11-14 to 100fp, 12-14 to 110fp.
I was worried that the anti-seize caused the #1 bolt to break before reaching 110fp so I tightened it to 90 and then tried to estimate another 10 or so fp by hand; I guess I was also suspicious that my torque wrench wasn't accurate even though I checked it against a different wrench. Having that head bolt break rattled me a bit and I was pretty nervous about yanking those bolts down more. I did coat the 11 bolt with water sealer.

I did not mill the head. One thing to mention is that I initially didn't have any signs of head gasket failure. I've had the Jeep for about 3 years, it has 210,000 miles on it, about 45,000 from me. Leaks a good Amon of oil from who knows where, which has kept the frame remarkably rust free. My thinking was to throw a new gasket on now, seeing as I was going to be digging in the the engine anyway for all the other crap I was adding.
I guess that's why they say, if it ain't broke, don't fix it 😁

97grand4.0

There is nothing I know of that would cause a bolt to break at 90 that is supposed to be torqued to 110. Other than a defective bolt, which is what I am leaning to.
That beings said, idk why you would try to run the engine, if you know the head isn't torqued all the way on. White smoke in the exhaust sounds like water. It is probably from condensation sitting in the muffler while you did the work, or, could be something worse. What you could do is a radiator pressure tester on the rad to see if you have any leaks. If so then try cranking to 110 and test it again. If still leaking then pull the head again and do the gasket, and this time torque it right.
Antiseize may have oozed up through the threads of the bolts and is holding the head from going on right. I cant see where it would cause the bolt to break. 90 lbs is 90 lbs, it clearly should take that no problem. Or it may have been forced downwards, and the bolts are reaching torque before they are holding the head at torque. You say you consulted the FSM, I don't think the fsm says put antisieze on the bolts.
I would try to clean it all off, though. If it oozed back up, it could have got on a piston and is effecting compression and or is trying to burn itself off. Not to mention no allowing the head to seal.

FoolishDog

Quick update,
The smoke issue seemed to be tied to the two vacuum hoses coming from the top of the valve cover gasket. Turns out the scrap bits of hose I used to patch them weren't as tight as I'd thought and air was getting by. I ordered replacements and put them on yesterday.

The engine being hotter was probably because I skipped a step burping the antifreeze when I refilled it and I was about 2 gallons short. Brain fart, seems okay now but haven't driven it far.

Honestly the jeep seems to be running okay at the moment. I've driven it around my neighborhood a bit and it seems square.

I'm going to reorganize myself and drive the Jeep around town a bit to get a better feel of where I'm at before I try and tackle the broken manifold stud. If it seems like I can push it off for a while then I'll probably do that.

97grand4.0

Thanks. Just curious, what kind of 4 hole injectors did you replace with?

FoolishDog

I bought a set of rebuilt Bosche injectors off eBay for $70.
Seemed to be the way to go from my research.