When I went to pick up my heads from the machine shop I was talking with the guy about my gasket woes. When I mentioned that the valley pan gasket was bulging and pouring oil down the back onto the bell housing he thought I had a crankcase breather problem.
When I got home I checked the intake and the sure enough I could see some oil where the left hand breather tube connects to the throttle body. Flip open the throttle and the inside of the plenum is just covered in oil residue.
I tried to get the oil separator out of the right valve cover but it wouldn't budge. Had to take the inner baffle off and knock it out from the back. It was completely plugged, one solid chunk of gunk.
Good call machine shop dude :-)

One PCV kit from AB and that should fix that. What's the best way to get the gunk out of the throttle body and intake plenum? Carb cleaner?

Thanks,
Mark

 

Yes, carb cleaner.
Run the drivers side front wheel up onto a 2x4, a curb, anything to keep the t-body side higher than the rest of the engine so that all the carb cleaner will run into the engine and not onto it.
Use a whole can, drive for a couple of days and then repeat if need be.
Do not do it all at once, you will severly flood the engine and set off CEL codes.

 

I've got the whole thing apart so I can dump as many cans in it as I need too :-)
It's really turning into the never ending saga... I'm itching to get it back on the road again.

Mark