My Heads are off anddd.....

[EJB90]

So I got the heads completely off today.

Both head gaskets looked fine, no obvious imperfections or blow outs. All the cylinders looked equally dirty, none of them cleaner than the other. The passenger side cylinder closest to the firewall had some coolant in the cylinder but that may just have been from removing the head.I inspected that cylinder closely but it didn't seem like there was a crack in the cylinder. I should also mention the valley gasket appeared to be fine however there was a mouse nest on top of it.

My car over heated a few months ago. I was driving down the street, light came on, I slammed on my brakes and turned off the motor while still moving. It sat over the winter until it got warmer so I could fix it. I had it towed to the dealer where they did a compression test and said that they believed it was most likely a head gasket.

I purchased the car with 82,000 miles on it. I know that the car had a 75,000 mile warranty. It appears that the head gasket may have been replaced once already. I found a ground on the engine head disconnected. The head gaskets seem to be made out of a composite and its my understanding that the original ones are metal (?).

My theory is I could have a cracked block or cylinder. Or maybe the dealer is full of shit and the leak was in the valley gasket. Or maybe the heads were replaced under warranty, but the dealer being a dealer didn't have the heads resurfaced to save money leading to another leak.

Anyone have any advice here?

 

[p m]

Since you have the heads off already, replace the head gaskets, reassemble it, and drive.
In my miserable experience, I've finally given up after the 3rd head gasket replacement... Two subsequent owners didn't have much better luck with this truck.

 

[EJB90]

Is it worth dropping the $400 on getting the heads resurfaced?

 

[eliaschristeas]

400 bucks to resurface heads?! oh - connecticut. nevermind. thats cheap i guess.

yes - send em away to the machine shop. get the works done on them. they will also pressure test them to see if they're cracked. unlikely but possible.

94 and on i think was the changeover to composit. earlier models had metal gaskets -

just remember - this truck can overheat for a variety of reasons, recommended strategy:

- rod radiator
- change waterpump and t-stat
- change your condensor fan if non-op or the relay or both
- change the temp sensors - one on the plenum and one on the radiator.

 

[EJB90]

Yeah its close to $400, I'm in the Farmington Valley too so everything more expensive. I know of another place that's cheaper but its not worth the drive. If anyone from CT or southern MA has any recommendations let me know.

I should also mention that there was coolant in the oil, a lot of coolant, thats was the real give away to a head gasket, valley gasket, or cracked cylinder. I had vanishing coolant before that.

I bought your video Elias, great stuff, really gave an inside look of what I was getting my hands into.

I had a friend talk to his friend who is the head mechanic at CL&P and spends all his free time working on cars. He said that its possible with aluminum engines for head gaskets to leak but not have obvious signs on the gaskets.
---

I think I will resurface the heads, replace the head gaskets and all the other gaskets, and see how it goes.

Head gasket kit- $200, head resurfacing- $400, putting it back together again without forgetting something- priceless.

 

[eliaschristeas]

Hey thanks! Your buddy is right. My current truck has a leaky hg with no critical symptoms. You can see coolant slop and seapiness on the front of the block where they meet the heads...

 

[Ed Cheung]

So I got the heads completely off today.


My car over heated a few months ago. I was driving down the street, light came on, I slammed on my brakes and turned off the motor while still moving. It sat over the winter until it got warmer so I could fix it. I had it towed to the dealer where they did a compression test and said that they believed it was most likely a head gasket.

I purchased the car with 82,000 miles on it. I know that the car had a 75,000 mile warranty. It appears that the head gasket may have been replaced once already. I found a ground on the engine head disconnected. The head gaskets seem to be made out of a composite and its my understanding that the original ones are metal (?).

My theory is I could have a cracked block or cylinder. Or maybe the dealer is full of shit and the leak was in the valley gasket. Or maybe the heads were replaced under warranty, but the dealer being a dealer didn't have the heads resurfaced to save money leading to another leak.

Anyone have any advice here?

Have you check the flow of the radiator, the fan, water pump, T-stat, are they in good working order?