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Date:         Fri, 29 Mar 1996 23:05:05 -0800
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@vanagon.com>
From:         dakhlia@wuecona.wustl.edu (Sami Dakhlia)
Subject:      Re: Head Replacement Questions

Tom,

I'm not sure I would go for larger intake valves unless you plan to race your engine. My understanding is that the smaller valves increase turbulence at low rpms which homogenizes the air-fuel mix. Can anyone confirm this theory?

Rebuilding the engine yourself is a big time committment and spending $4-500 on labor is easier in my opinion. If you want a quality job, though, then you may be better off doing it yourself. Plus you'll get the chance to do more than just replace the heads: clean the engine compartment, treat rust, repaint the tin, replace all gaskets, fuel injector O-rings, *fuel lines*, etc.

I think you said your compression figures are good and even, so I wouldn't necessarily change the piston rings. As David Schwarze told me: it's a whole new can of worms (things can go wrong, jugs must be rehoned, too, adding to the cost, then oil consumption will be high at first and frequent oil changes become necessary). Just make sure the cylinders do not separate from the case when you pull a head or else dirt will slip twix case and cylinders which will cause leaks. If that happens, you'll need to pull the cylinder, too, to get to the gasket and it's a pain to put back on, with the rings needing to be compressed, etc.

Sami


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