Accepted Answer

Hi randle,

 

This problem was common back in the day and the most probable cause is that there is sludge build up in the engine and the oil return passages are clogged. What happens is that the oil does not drain back to the oil pan and it stays up in the heads. As it builds up, it accumulates around the valve stems and the valve seals are not made to handle this kind of volume. Also the seals may be dried out and not working to capacity either.

 

The fix for this is to remove the valve covers and use a coat hanger or the likes and poke the dried oil through the returns to unclog them. The negative of this fix is that you end up pushing the sludge down into the oil pan and then the oil pump sucks it up and causes the oil pump pick up to become clogged.

 

First step is to warm it up and then shut it off and quickly pull one of the valve covers and see if there is oil up there.

 

Thanks,

Vinny