Date: Fri, 10 May 2002 20:01:47 -0700
Reply-To: Andrew <Andrew@VWMAIL.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Andrew <Andrew@VWMAIL.NET>
Subject: Re: Head gasket leak - does retorquing work?
Content-Type: text/plain
Retorquing my 84 didn't do a thing for me. It wasn't leaking on to the ground, it was burning it, and that spark plug was the cleanest one I've seen. I went on a 1000 mile trip with the head gasket blown, I stopped every few hundred miles to top it off. I finally put a '91 Jetta engine in it, no more coolent disappearing.
Andrew
1984 Westy "Speed Bump"
1996 VW Jetta Trek "Little Beep" (the wife's car)
The Basket Bus http://www.creativegifts2go.com/vw.html
--- Various <AllStuff@HANS-WILLY.MYIP.ORG> wrote:
>G'day one and all.
>
>I have a 1984 VW Canada refurbished 1.9 with probably 50,000 kms (I don't
>know for sure, previous owner did not have a very good log)
>
>It just started to leak a small amount at the head gasket, seems to come
>from the waterjacket side, on the front left top of my engine. Otherwise
>this engine runs fine. It seems to be almost a weeping rather than a leak,
>but twice I found a silver dollar sized spot on the pavement, after cooling
>down.
>
>I noticed several suggestions in the list archives that for small and new
>leaks, retorquing the head might do it. However, I never saw any posts
>claiming success in this attempt.
>
>It would seem to me that retorquing the head would break the seal of the
>sealing compound we are suposed to use on the nuts (maybe I'm nuts, but
>that's for another thread)
>
>So here we go for the big Vanagon list request:
>
>1. has anyone successfully stoped a head gasket leak only by retorquing the
>head (i.e. without removal)
>
>2. if so, any particular procedure recommended (loosen before retorquing;
>loosen all at once, etc.)
>
>3. If I have a water jacket leak, is it likely that I have coolant in my
>combustion chamber leak also? (as I said, otherwise it seems to run fine)
>
>4. Follow-up question, are there any particular signs of spark plug fouling
>by coolant?
>
>5. If I'm f***ed ("fouled", of course, ahem...), how long can I hold off
>before doing the big JB Weld job?
>
>6. Follow-up question, any damage to be done by driving it (assuming I have
>no combustion chamber leak and if I keep it topped up)?
>
>Thanks for all help and responses
>
>alias Fred (aka Bleu Schtroumpf)
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