mrroot Posted March 14, 2006 Share Posted March 14, 2006 I've got a 1986 XT Turbo 2wd. I've ripped the engine apart doing various repairs and replacements, and I'm wondering if there's a blown head gasket. On the bottom of the driver's side cylinder head, about two inches aft of the exhaust connection, and right behind the EGR pipe, there is a small hole. Looks like a weep hole ( read about those in other threads ), except this one is weeping coolant. So that's the first sign of a possible head gasket failure. A friend of mine, exister99, recommended a head bolt re-torque. So, I started pulling out the head bolts one at a time and cleaning/re-torquing them. Well, I was going to. When I got to the number 2 bolt, I pulled it out and it was *soaked* in coolant. I already re-torqued the passenger side, which does not have a coolant leak, and none of the bolts were covered in coolant. So this problem is restricted to the driver's side, with the known coolant leak and suspected gasket failure. So the question is: should I continue with a retorque, put the whole engine back together, then hope it doesn't leak any more ( and risk head stresses from hot spots b/c there could be a gasket problem )? Or do these symptoms pretty much guarantee a head gasket failure, and I might as well replace it while I'm in there? Thanks for your replies! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rllywgn Posted March 14, 2006 Share Posted March 14, 2006 it may be more then just the headgasket. In overheating situations the heads are likely to crack, typically between the valves but also in alot of other places. your best bet may be removing the heads alltogether. If your finding coolant on the studs and coming out by the egr pipe (where it shouldnt) theres a strong possibility of the head being cracked. there is a coolant connection on the bottom of the head... is this leaking? how does your oil look? frothy? air bubbles developing in the cooling system? loosing coolant? sweet smelling exhaust? temp spikes or constant overheating? all symptoms of a bhg or cracked head. rllywgn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrroot Posted March 15, 2006 Author Share Posted March 15, 2006 it may be more then just the headgasket. In overheating situations the heads are likely to crack, typically between the valves but also in alot of other places. your best bet may be removing the heads alltogether. If your finding coolant on the studs and coming out by the egr pipe (where it shouldnt) theres a strong possibility of the head being cracked. there is a coolant connection on the bottom of the head... is this leaking? how does your oil look? frothy? air bubbles developing in the cooling system? loosing coolant? sweet smelling exhaust? temp spikes or constant overheating? all symptoms of a bhg or cracked head. Ugh.. I hope not. Looks like I'll be removing that head and taking a look for cracks. Didn't notice leaks anywhere else on the bottom of the head - just that weep hole. Oil looks ok. But that's not too indicative, as the car sat for over a year before I bought it and started overhauling it. Plus, I haven't had the chance to really look at things while the car is running. Didn't notice air bubbles in coolant, but again, wasn't looking during the short time I had her and she was running ( oil pump seized on drive home from seller ). Definitely loosing coolant, and it seems to be out of that weep hole. After I got her home, she continued leaking coolant for a week or two. Didn't notice anything particular about the exhuast. I watched the temp very closely on the drive home, and she seemed fine. I'm praying it's not a cracked head.. I'm actually fixing this car up for a friend, and it seems like we're spending more and more money as I get deeper into the engine. But what's new with an old car? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rllywgn Posted March 15, 2006 Share Posted March 15, 2006 not all cracks you'll be able to see, but looking down the ports both on the exhaust and intake you may be able to see something.. ive done about a half dozen heads now.. but never seen leaking from the weep hole. possible crack in the exhaust side.. do you know why they sold it or why it sat for so long? rllywgn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrroot Posted March 16, 2006 Author Share Posted March 16, 2006 not all cracks you'll be able to see, but looking down the ports both on the exhaust and intake you may be able to see something.. ive done about a half dozen heads now.. but never seen leaking from the weep hole. possible crack in the exhaust side.. do you know why they sold it or why it sat for so long? rllywgn He was going to fix it up, but never got the time. Pretty standard story. On the cracks, is there a procedure I can do to inspect it, or can I take it to a shop to be inspected? Or should I consider getting a new head right away? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subaru Jim Maple Ridge Posted March 16, 2006 Share Posted March 16, 2006 Usually cracks are visible between the valves. No sense looking for new ones until you know that you need them both. I probably have 30 left side heads kicking around just because the right side is always hotter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now