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Date:         Thu, 29 Apr 2010 11:32:34 -0400
Reply-To:     Ken Wilford <kenwilfy@COMCAST.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Ken Wilford <kenwilfy@COMCAST.NET>
Subject:      Re: Leaking head nut
Comments: To: Roger VanTill <motelvw@gmail.com>
In-Reply-To:  <y2i152e292b1004290823o16e4f48dp8f9ef2b8f859483c@mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed

Roger, how do I know? Been There Done That. I feel your pain. Maybe someone has a good used AMC head they can sell you.

Ken Wilford John 3:16 www.vanagain.com

Roger VanTill wrote: > And the winner is............Ken Wilford! I took a good look at that > area and I can see the hairline crack. I'm f*cked! Due to unemployment > and a future Zetec install I couldn't afford to get new heads. They > looked fine and were only seeping at the gasket. > > Time to cry in my beer and figure out what's next. > > On Thu, Apr 29, 2010 at 8:08 AM, Ken Wilford <kenwilfy@comcast.net > <mailto:kenwilfy@comcast.net>> wrote: > > Roger, if you reused your old heads then what you have is a > hairline crack at the head nut. This is a common failure with the > OE VW heads as they have a thin spot right there and can crack > upon retorqueing. That is why I very, very rarely ever use them. > I always use the AMC heads which are brand new, but also they are > beefed up in this area to avoid this problem. Most of my > customers come here from at least 2 to 3 hours away. I don't want > them to have any problems because unlike a local shop, I just > don't have the "luxury" of taking chances and having people come > back. So I decided a long time ago that if a customer comes in > with heads that have any cracks between the valves, and we are > doing a head gasket replacement, I will always recommend new AMC > heads. I have never had one single problem with them over the > past 12 years of doing head replacements. Many happy Vanagons out > there still purring down the road. > > Just my opinion. > > > Ken Wilford > John 3:16 > www.vanagain.com <http://www.vanagain.com> > > > Roger VanTill wrote: > > I rebuilt my 2.1 this spring. Was very careful, read > everything I could, > watched Ben's videos, etc. Got the motor and new tranny > installed. Filled > the system with coolant this afternoon. It's sitting there, > not started yet, > unpressurized. I've got a coolant leak coming from one of the > upper center > head bolts on the driver side. Tears are still falling as I > write this. > > Yes I sanded the bolts flat and cleaned up the mating surface > on the head. I > used the yellow goop that came with the gasket set. > > Should I just drain it, remove the leaking cap nut and reseal > it? Do I trust > the other 15? > > Looking for advice and a pat on the back to tell me it'll be > alright. > > > >


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