water in spark plug chamber

[nyckanny]

Hi in my friends 95 s14, there is moisture in the spark plug chamber. I found this out after the car was rought idling. it would not have a steady idle in neutral, and bounces around. additionally the engine was shaking like crazy under the hood. so i pulled the plug wires out to see that there was moisture around the spark plug wire shaft. we cleaned that up with a towel. as well as put a screw driver with a dry towel inside to clean the channel in the engine head. so we started up the car after this, bang, idles great now. so i leave it on idle a little, drive around the block. then shut it down. a few minutes later, restarting the car, the idle is bad again, not as bad as before but still bad. check the plug wires again, same thing! theres water/moisture there again. there is only moisture in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th plugs, when ur standing in front of the car with the hood open. strange thing that the water came back and the idle is funky again. so i dont have a plug socket right now. so i just pulled the wires out and left it there to air out overnight, we will see what happens tomorrow. where on earth could the water be coming from, maybe theres a coolant leak somewhere into the channel for the spark plugs?

thanks

[Silvia007]

Did he wash his engine bay? If he did, that would be a good explanation. I'd take out the plugs and stick a towel down there. If a little water goes into the combustion chamber, it won't do any harm. There's really no other way coolant or water could of gotten there.

[[Zero-S]]

Remove plugs, spray a bit of wd-40 in the shafts. With the plugs out, crank engine (you should see the wd-40 mist out...if not oh well). Replace plugs, start engine. Everything will be fine.

[nyckanny]

why do i need to use wd40 in there, and how long do i crank the engine?

[rivetapproved240]

WD-40 = Water Displacment - 40th try ( it took them 40 diffrent attempts to come up with wd-40) or so i am told

[[Zero-S]]

You just crank it once or twice, make sure it cycles at least once through all four cylinders.

[sactos13]

If you have a air compressor handy I would air out the plug tubes with an airgun, that'd be the best option. Otherwise wd-40 works good in a pinch...

[nyckanny]

so wd-40 is suppose to absorb water or something? will wd40 getting into the cylinder ruin anything? if i crank the engine without the spark plugs, wont the the cylinders flood?

thanks for all the advice

[Silvia007]

WD-40 Displaces water so where WD-40 touches it lifts the water up and it'll pretty much end up going into the cylinders. WD-40 in the cylinders does nothing to harm it. If you crank the engine without the plugs, no it won't flood it. People do compression testing all the time without the plugs.

[TrunkMonkey]

If you crank the engine without the plugs, no it won't flood it. People do compression testing all the time without the plugs.

the engine doesn't flood when doing a compression test because you're supposed to pull the fuse to the fuel pump or the fuel injectors and run the engine until it shuts off and won't start again. THEN you pull the plugs and crank the engine over.

-demetrius

[Silvia007]

Oh yeah, ahaha forgot about the fuse thing, well, it would flood if you crank it forever. Just crank it for like 3-4 seconds. More then enough.

[nyckanny]

thanks, thats what i thought about the flooding issue. how many "injections" of fuel would it take for a KA to flood anyway. also, i had drove this car around for at least 15 mins with the water issue, and stumbling engine vibrations and idle. should i just go ahead and replace the spark plugs anyway. i was just woindering if any damage to the plugs have occured. i'm not sure what caused the rough idling. maybe some of the pistons weren't firing certain times because of the water. and only one of the pistons didnt have the water in the channel, is one piston firing enough to keep the engine going. at times, the idle would drop to about 200 and almost stall out. i am also pretty sure i could smell some fuel in the exhaust.

thanks for everything, u guys are knowledgable