Engine Issues

The following information is derived from the FAA's Service Difficulty Reports and Aviation Maintenance Alerts.

Friday, October 19, 2012 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Paul Loschiavo soloed at 16 years old in a Piper Cub, flew helicopters off carriers in the Marine Corps, currently owns and flies a Bristell LSA in South Florida. Joel Kimmel

Key Takeaways:

An intake valve failure in a Lycoming IO-540-AE1A5 led to catastrophic engine damage, possibly due to a manufacturing stress riser.
A Piper PA-31-350 experienced a right engine power loss during climb due to a broken fuel injector line in a Lycoming TIO-540.
Multiple new Champion REM38S spark plugs failed after low hours due to mis-manufactured, open-circuit resistors, causing difficult hot starts.
A Slick 6310 magneto failed due to a missing contact point, suspected to be an improper manufacturing crimp, resulting in engine roughness and stalling.

See a mistake? Contact us.

Lycoming IO-540-AE1A5 – Failed Intake Valve
Inspection of the cylinder removed from a Robinson R44 Raven II showed catastrophic damage to the piston and combustion area from multiple (piston/valve/head) contacts. Fractured valve parts became wedged in the induction tube and in the common manifold area. The top portion of the valve stem above the ‘keepers’ was the area of separation/failure. In the submitter’s opinion, the failure may have been caused from a stress riser created during manufacturing.

Part Total Time: 381.0 hours