Date: Fri, 23 Jan 2009 16:51:40 -0800
Reply-To: Scott Daniel - Turbovans <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Scott Daniel - Turbovans <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Subject: Re: Head gasket leaking. Bummer.
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no need to rebuild, unless that's what you really want to do.
the normal repair is .......
either one side or both :
new head gaskets and a minor valve job,
and check very carefully the gap between block and head.........where the
outer rubber water gasket goes.
You don't want that too small ( pinches the gasket after a while )
or too big ( won't seal after a while )
< I go for 1 mm of water gasket compression >
Also check that the head sits flat relative to the block ( it sits on the
cylinder barrels ) .
If you have AMC heads, be careful that the gap is the same all the way
across.
I am seeing AMC Heads that pinch about 2/3rds of the water gasket from not
sitting dead parrallel to the block.
if you have VW/audi heads., but all means, in my opinioin , do use those
again.
If I'm doing both heads I might take the whole engine out.
If I want to deal with just one side..........say your passenger's side one,
I'll 'seneak in there' and do just the one side for starters.
If you hvae very rusted exahsut nuts and bolts.........be careful there.
Sometimes they break off, requiring drilling and taping. If it's on a
head........you can deal with that with the head on the workbench, or have a
machine shop take care of it.
oh........this is Totally Normal..........the 'joke head gaskets' don't
usually work more than 8 years or so.....10 years, 100,000 miles max
etc..........
also...........another area to be careful about .....the cylinders getting
stuck in the head........be sure to pry the barrels out of the head, and
leave them in the block. There are bumps on the barrels that keep them from
rotating, and also make great pry points.
You sure would not want to pull a barrel or barrels off the
pistons........that wuold open you up to a whole other level of dealing with
stuff.
if miles are really high...........and you want to really get into
it........then I'd recommend taking off the pistons and cylinders, and
removing the rod bearings, insspect those, check oil clearance with new
bearings with Plasitguage..........perhaps put in new rings, or a new set of
pistons and barrles......
and new rod nuts or bolts too..........
that makes a quite freshened up engine.
or you can go even further, and split the cases and do a full rebuild too,
But you can really freshen up the engine without spitting the cases too, if
things are not too terribly old and trashed.
But new head gaskets and minor valve work..............that's 'normal' to
have to do, and isn't too big a deal either.
yeah, wish I had a DVD to offer with all my tricks and pitfalls to avoid.
Scott
www.turbovans.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "Mark A Kippert" <vanagon@KIPPERT.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Thursday, January 22, 2009 8:56 PM
Subject: Head gasket leaking. Bummer.
> I've been a Vanagon owner since last October and I've started to think
> I was slowly clearing up issues with my '86 GL, resolving poor
> grounds, rough idle, sloppy wiring etc. when I get hit with a coolant
> leak. I've noticed that the level has been dropping very gradually
> (maybe a half pint per tank of gas) when I just notice that it's
> dropping more quickly.
>
> This morning I notice a damp spot (about 6" in diameter) under the
> engine on the passenger's side. Not a puddle, just wet. I gave it a
> swipe with my finger and took a taste. Yup, antifreeze. I looked
> underneath but didn't see anything. I took it for a spin to warm up
> the engine, parked in the drive (with the engine idling nicely) and
> took a look underneath. There I see a very slow drip where the head
> and cylinder meet (passenger side rear). A drip about every 4-5
> seconds (I didn't really time it).
>
> I don't know if this matters but I had checked compression on the
> engine about a month ago. I got the following:
> 1) 115 (Passenger front)
> 2) 140 (Passenger rear) (the leak is under the cylinder)
> 3) 105 (driver rear)
> 4) 110 (driver front)
>
> Is it time to rebuild?
>
> Any thoughts on how long this will take to become a full blown gusher?
> Will it? Should I stop driving it? As far as I can tell no coolant is
> getting into the cylinder as there is no increase in white vapor in
> the exhaust (nor the sick sweet smell).
>
> I'm really bummed as I had hope to go to my first Vanagon outing in
> February, the Busses by the Beach BRR. I'm afraid to leave indy now,
> let alone drive two and a half hours.
>
> Mark K
> 1986 GL 2WD
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