Phillip Posted March 12, 2005 Share Posted March 12, 2005 I need to replace the left head gasket in an '86 Turbo Wagon - bad oil leak. Has anyone done it without removing the engine? Any advise will be greatly appreciated! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rallyruss Posted March 12, 2005 Share Posted March 12, 2005 no I have not done the left(drivers side) and would never consider doing it in the car. the right side was bad enough. the motor is not that bad to pull. and if you do one side you should do the other too. pull it out and save yourself some frustration. are you sure its the head gasket and not the cam housing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phillip Posted March 12, 2005 Author Share Posted March 12, 2005 No question about it being a head gasket. I'm not set up to pull the engine; what was so difficult about pulling the right head? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rallyruss Posted March 12, 2005 Share Posted March 12, 2005 pulling the right head is not so much the issue as reinstallng it in the car. so I can only imagin that the left would be a real pain as space is tight. all you need to do is rent a chery picker and pop it out. but if you happen to do it in the car let us know how you liked it and how long it took. I would guess you will not save any time. might actually take longer and leave you with an aching back and nuckles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phishy75 Posted March 12, 2005 Share Posted March 12, 2005 I've done it a couple of times on the passenger side with the motor in the car. Didn't have any real trouble at all. The toughest part is getting the cam tower back on without getting gasket goo all over the place. Have done the cam towers on the drivers side too (with motor in) and that is not really fun, but still possible. Once the cam towers are off, the head is easy, so it is possible if you don't have the gear to pull the motor. I'll ask it too... are you sure it's not the cam tower o-ring? That is by far the most likely spot if it is just an oil leak and not coolant loss/use. Just have to check:grin: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phillip Posted March 13, 2005 Author Share Posted March 13, 2005 Actually, I thought it was the drivers side cam tower leaking and resealed both sides without removing the engine a few months ago. I also replaced all the front seals and timing belts while I was there. I didn't pull the heads beacuse the exhaust pipe and turbo attachment nuts were badly frozen and I was out of actelyene to heat the nuts. Perhaps I dislodged the cam tower 'O' ring when I reassembled the engine? It's really difficult to see exactly where the leak is comming from, but it really leaks! I get a burnt oil residue buildup on the drivers side exhaust pipe flange where it bolts to the head that smells awful. FYI, pulling the cam towers in the car wasn't that hard to do. If I understand you correctly, the head is a piece of cake once the cam tower is removed. Thanks for the reply; I'll post again when I tear it apart, but that won't happen for another month (when it's warmer). I've done it a couple of times on the passenger side with the motor in the car. Didn't have any real trouble at all. The toughest part is getting the cam tower back on without getting gasket goo all over the place. Have done the cam towers on the drivers side too (with motor in) and that is not really fun, but still possible. Once the cam towers are off, the head is easy, so it is possible if you don't have the gear to pull the motor. I'll ask it too... are you sure it's not the cam tower o-ring? That is by far the most likely spot if it is just an oil leak and not coolant loss/use. Just have to check:grin: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phishy75 Posted March 13, 2005 Share Posted March 13, 2005 I had a really bad oil leak on the passenger side of my EA82T a while back and it was the oil passage o-ring in the cam tower. I could actually see the oil dripping out while it was running - right on to the exhaust crossover pipe. If yours is that bad too, you should be able to tell - run it up on some ramps, climb under and with it running look really closely. I'm not saying that it isn't your HG, but I'd make good and sure before you go and change it out. It should be obvious when you pull the cam tower if the oil passage o-ring is shot, or not seated properly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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