Leaky Head

[Fermion]

In need of some help msf.

I blew a head gasket roughly 2 years ago and finally am getting back to getting the car up and running (this is a whole other story that I don’t want to get into). I got the head off and took it to a machine shop. He said it was very warped and needed 0.012 machined in order to get it flat. I didn’t expect this much and am sure now I’ll run into clearance issues.

He also said the chambers are seeping quite a bit and that I should probably get the whole thing reworked with the cams. I need a further explanation on this matter, but that was the message I got. What do you think he means by this?

Would it make more sense to just get a new head? Hell, it might make more sense to throw a whole new engine in at this point.

[2ndGenM$3]

Originally Posted by Fermion Would it make more sense to just get a new head? Hell, it might make more sense to throw a whole new engine in at this point.

Define "new".

Id get a new engine. If your cylinder head is warped then you'll find other problems along the way of the rebuild. Just get a reman, wipe your hands, call it a day.

I've seen long blocks selling reman $2200 no core needed up to $4xxx for built. Found myself in similar situation just the past couple weeks.

Pm me if you feel like ranting. I got a similar story sounds like same time and like you didn't start looking into it until later...

[Fermion]

Originally Posted by 2ndGenM$3 Define "new". Id get a new engine. If your cylinder head is warped then you'll find other problems along the way of the rebuild. Just get a reman, wipe your hands, call it a day. I've seen long blocks selling reman $2200 no core needed up to $4xxx for built. Found myself in similar situation just the past couple weeks. Pm me if you feel like ranting. I got a similar story sounds like same time and like you didn't start looking into it until later...

It might be the smart thing to do tbh. However, I feel like all he is talking about is that it needs new valve seals though, which isn’t a huge deal. Honestly I can probably put everything back together in a few days thanks to this forum and hope for the best. If it doesn’t work out, then I’m back to needing a new engine anyway.

Nothing looks too bad other than the cylinders sitting in a little remaining coolant. Bleh.


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[Jeff23spl]

These engines aren't prone to head gasket issues unless it is rebuild while keeping warped surface or maybe if someone run into serious overheat.....
i won't bother you with past details but make sure that you clear the reason why your specific engine blew the gasket first....

Yes it need to be milled, it isn,t a scam, aluminium heads almost all warp each time. check the bloc linearity just in case too.

I wouldn't bother much for 0.012'' unless you plan to use a thin gasket. (If you are afraid, you can source a thicker Cometic one...

our valves tend to get very dirty so being at it, i would get it fully re-manufactured with cleaned and grinded valves and seats with new valves and injectors seals

inspect you VVT for bad locking pin and make sure to follow the proper timing install process explained in the thread ''how to vvt'' with required new parts and tools.

I agree with the above that getting a complete rebuild isn't so far from all this just for the head gasket...

[Fermion]

Pretty much spot on with my thought process. I have new vvt and chain already. Timing tools are obviously purchased. Sounds like this will be worth doing with the existing head as is...I guess.

I had a thread about how I blew it 2 years ago.

Basically really dumb egr delete where I lost a lot more coolant than I originally thought and rushed getting back on the road with what I thought was a full coolant tank, but in fact was just air in the radiator lines that made it appear full on refill. The second it started blowing cold, the head gasket was already toast and the car died. No real catastrophic blowup. It just shut off. I bought a truck and family stuff came up so I’m finally getting back to putting this together to have a 2nd car to drive since the truck is racking up the miles.


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