Head Gasket Job Going Well Enough
 

Hey everyone,

A lot of you gave me some really good advice when I was experiencing some condensation in my oil, and I ended up ordering parts and decided to take on an HG job. Everyone had pretty well convinced me to do the timing chain/front cover/oil pan gaskets and change the oil pump gear as well, but it was apparent early on that time constraints were going to limit us to just doing the HG.

So I thought I would post some pictures and thoughts from the job and see what you guys thought.

I ordered the HG kit from Atlantic British, along with E3-48 spark plugs, Bosch wires, a nice new thermostat, a new belt tensioner/timing belt, and a new oil temp thermometer because I'm a dummy and broke mine. The heads are currently finishing up their trip to the shop. I'm getting overcharged on them, but I don't live in Tulsa (where I'm doing the work) and lack the time or local knowledge to find a better deal.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5R...it?usp=sharing
Everything looked pretty good on the surface..
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5R...it?usp=sharing
Check out how nasty this is: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5R...it?usp=sharing
I wish I would have gone back through these images when I was ordering parts... looks like I could use a new throttle body heater too.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5R...it?usp=sharing
This is the oil temp thermo I broke:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5R...it?usp=sharing

I didn't take as many pictures at the end (and my dad ended up having to get the heads off without me as I had to go back to work) but everything looked pretty well gunked up. My dad told me he was surprised the engine was running with how bad the spark plugs looked.

Anywho, I plan on cleaning everything I can while it's all apart and I look forward to getting it back together. I hope it all works again. After this job, it's a miracle that any car runs at all in my opinion.

Let me know if you all have any thoughts/advice!

EDIT: Pictures aren't working.. I'm trying to link from Google Drive.. Here's the link to the whole folder (it's public).
https://drive.google.com/folderview?...2c&usp=sharing

Those heads were dirty! That's why many of us run diesel oil; it helps fight that carbon buildup.

If you haven't researched the head gasket job, you should. I haven't done HG, but as I recall it's VERY important not to over torque. You can easily strip out the threads in the block with the head bolts. It's also very important to be sure the head bolt holes are cleaned out and have no water left in them, which will also cause stripping. This is why many people choose to use ARP studs, which drive the cost up but are somewhat less likely to have problems.

Did you buy the 180 degree TD5 thermostat? If not, you should. Many of us believe the high temp thermostat contributes to HG failure.

With the throttle body heater, I'd clean it with a wire brush and then RTV it back on. That repair will probly last longer than the truck.

Good luck!

PCV system also contributes to that gunk. If having heads done by a shop they will come back pristine. If not, you may be wasting your time, flatness spec is .002 inch, please at least have them checked.

have to heads hot tanked while the are at the shop, they will look brand new.