Rebuilt my '88 22re 11K ago. Ran like a charm until a few months ago when it began occasionally running VERY rough for about the first minute after start-up; then it would always smooth right out. Then noticed I'm losing a lot of coolant but even with a pressure test there are no leaks. Yesterday, I noticed coolant dripping from a slightly broken weld in my exhaust pipe just in front of the catalytic converter. Did I blow the head gasket? Nothing odd looking in the oil, no overheating and it still runs fine.

Sounds like either HG or a head crack is leaking some coolant into a cylinder when you shut it off and the collant temp goes up and pressure in the system gets higher. Then you are fouled with coolant in that one cylinder at startup 'till you clear it. Pressure test would probably show a leak if it was done hot and long enough. It could be leaking a tiny amount at all times during running and burn it also. Obviously you do have an internal leak if there is coolant dripping out of the pipe, unless it is dripping from somewhere above and it just appears it is coming out of the crack...and the rough run at startup is another issue... but it sounds like you will pulling that head at some point in the future. Hope it is not the case, that you find an external leak but sounds like a bummer, as it sucks to have to go through that after only 11K.

Thanks. Did a compression test and all cyls. look pretty good. Started to take things apart and there was anti-freeze in the pcv valve, so I think your suspicions are correct. Any way to tell whether internal damage has been done?

What does the oil look like? Got any creamy beige buildups anywhere? If not it sounds like maybe a small weep if anything while the engine was running was burning and going out with the exhaust and after shutting down, the accmulation in a cylinder was blowing out through the exhaust and the cylinder was clearing. The PCV/rocker area collant is strange to me though... The good compression numbers are encouraging but checking the crank bearings may be in order at this point. If EB is around he could tell you his highly regarded opinion on this and what to look for in detail with the bearings. EB has not been on the board as much lately as he used to be but maybe post a new thread asking him by name so will flag it for him if he scans the threads. Hope someone else chimes in on this. If you don't get some more help here, try the Pirate board. I think things are a little more active there right now. Good luck. Sorry I cannot help you more. If you get help on the Pirate board maybe post it here so we can learn also.

Pull your plugs; if they are white, coolant is/was present.

Compression test with low adjacent numbers point to a head gasket.

Was your head pressure tested and checked for warpage during the rebuild?

Other stuff to test might be the coolant pipes where they wrap around the back of the head; BUT with A/F in your PVC valve--- that's unusual.

>>>*Evening! I have been out hunting Coyotes, they ate one of my Sheep. Funny thing is when I hunt them I never seem to see one, when I am unprepared, there they are..!

Where were we?

Oh. Coolant leak. That rough running when cold that smooths out later is a warning sign of coolant in the combustion chamber. A fairly fresh engine that is nice and snug keeps coolant from getting into the oil in large volumes, but it can weep in during cooldown and cause roughness until she warms up. Once warm, it's just steam and out the tailpipe it goes, unless thare is a LOT of coolant.

Then you have brown oil when it's a lot of it..

When the engine gets hot, the coolant turns to vapor, yep! She can show up in the PCV valve, and often on the filler cap, although on the filler cap that can be perfectly normal since there is always moisture present when the engine cools off. Not much, but enough to show up in damp weather.

Sounds like a head gasket let go, typically we look for a cylinder running hotter than it should for some reason when we see an early failure.. Gaskets fail not because of heat but because of a difference in temperature, so an air lock, poor injector, out of time, advance not fully working, no end to the possibles, you need to find it or it can repeat.

One other thing to look for...We see a lot of the older heads with pinholes in the exhaust port of #3 or less often, #4, right at the paste line about an inch or so in. Darned hard to see, look for the telltale washed streak. Pressure test will usually show that......*EB