Asking for help to figure out what's going on, white exhaust valves?

[Tech-GeeK1500]

So I got a code for a lean bank 2 (P0174) and my truck was running terribly. I could barely get it backed out of the drive, ran rough, pinged and stumbled, no power at all. I pulled the intake to find the spider leaking, lots of raw fuel in the intake runners which confuses me about a lean code. After breaker my heater outlet and cracking the lower intake, I just decided to pull it along with the heads. My passenger side valves are decent looking but black with carbon build up. I pull the driver side and my exhaust valves are white with an odd build up on them. The truck is a 1998 K1500 with the 5.0L engine. I didnt notice any blown areas of either head gasket. Also when the truck would run there was some white smoke on start up and it always smelled of raw fuel strongly when running.

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[df2x4]

It could just be the way the light is reflecting in the pictures, but it almost looks like the head in the bottom picture has different exhaust valves than the one on the top... The bottom ones look more flat.

Do they look the same in person?

 

[Tech-GeeK1500]

Yeah they're the same, just colored much differently between the different heads. I thought bank 2 was the passenger side, so when I got a lean code I was surprised to see it the driver side valves that look this way. From my understanding white exhaust valves are running too hot due to a lean condition.

 

[Jack Schneider]

Smoke on start up is blown valve seals. I know that much at least... My ‘92 1500 only has 87k miles and sufferes pretty badly from it

 

[Schurkey]

lots of raw fuel in the intake runners which confuses me about a lean code.

The truck has an oxygen sensor, not a hydrocarbon sensor.

If there's misfire, the oxygen doesn't combine with the fuel. The oxygen is read by the sensor as a false "lean" indication.

 

[skylark]

The side with the white valves is the normal side. The side with the carboned valves is running rich.

 

[c1500deathtrap]

The side with the white valves is the normal side. The side with the carboned valves is running rich.

He is right the white indicates the valves are reaching a self cleaning temp and burning off deposits. Sounds like the spider injector is the root of your problems. But with the heads off i would get them cleaned and consider a valve job (seals,guides,grind if neccesary)

 

[Tech-GeeK1500]

Awesome guys that's exactly what I was wondering. Now to see how much getting the heads done will cost me. Thanks!

 

[L31MaxExpress]

Depends on what the heads need. Figure a normal machine shop charges about $100 for a valve job, $60 to surface and that is assuming you don't need any parts. If the heads need guides or seats replaced it can get exponentially more $$$ quickly. You will probably put $300 into the pair pretty quickly. The chalky looking white/tan valves look pretty normal to me after having pulled many of these engines apart.

 

[MIHELA]

Tan valves are normal. The darker valves are rich. Its not unusual to have the fueling on one bank be different then the other and have the O2 sensor wrongly compensate when you have a mechanical issue like that, remember there is only an O2 on one bank.