Here are some pictures you can look at

Flickr: Landroverdude2's Photostream

 

All - Great comments! Got a kick out of "You some where along the process, screwed up." and "Well, the good news is it's only on one side!" Thanks for your input, very insightful.

Yep, new bolts, quality gaskets, heads milled at a well regarded machine shop. Globs (small pea size, I didn't go crazy with it) of black RTV at the corners of the valley pan and extending maybe 1/2" down the lip on which the rubber gasket fits. Torqued the head bolts in the RAVE sequence in three stages. I did the first just using ft lbs. The second and third going 90 degrees each. I marked the bolt with a paint pen at the 12 o'clock, marked 3 o'clock and 6 o'clock on the heads, and torqued. I have a torque angle gauge but found it way to difficult to use on the head so opted for marking.

Rented pressure tester on my way to work this morning - will be hooking it up first thing tonight.

I'm hoping Externet is right. It flows like a river, not like it's under pressure and it seems to originate above the level of the cylinder head. Those plastic tubes Rover uses for the overflow, etc. were brittle and I broke two of them. I repaired with rubber hoses and hose clamps. Possible source there. Not much I could do for diagnostics except look since it was Easter Sunday. It sounded good and temp was normal. The river of coolant coming down the passenger side of the motor just didn't seem right somehow...

If it is the head gasket again I will put on a new gasket and get new bolts.

 

hopfully the preasure test will point it out for you, as long as the head is above the block head line it should be bad to fix.

 

Thanks drowssap. I'm not too discouraged. It was a blast to work on - even had my kids help me out. The boys are way bigger than me and could really pull on the cheater bar. What's another few hours?

 

thats the right outlook, it's not like your ever going to be done fix the disco anyway

 

And the winner is...Exernet. Sort of. Big leak at the heater return pipe. I think that's what it's call - the pipe coming out of the heater core back into the head - single bolt, right below the alternator. Pressure tested - Advanced Auto rental - and it just poured into a puddle and the gravity took over. Should be an easy fix.

Thanks again to everyone for the input and the good humor!

 

Awesome! I couldn't image having to go back into the engine after doing a head gasket job. I don't think I'd even want to open the hood for few months after that, let alone turn a wrench on it.

 

One "O" ring and that is fixed!
That's good.

 

No leaks. Now we're getting somewhere. Right? Nope. Took the pressure tester off, button it up and went to start it. Cranks but no start. Check the voltage on the battery - 12.1. I charged it over night, throw it in, and it starts right up BUT M&S and Service Engine Soon lights start flashing at me and the battery light comes on. Since the battery was older I purchased another one - a Duralast (hey, I have three kids in private school so I have to cut some corners right?) and put it in.

Starts right up, battery light gone, M&S lights gone, flashing SES light still there and vehicle is still in limp mode. Tried several starting cycles but still no good. My wife should be taking it to Autozone this morning to get the alternator tested and get the codes read. I have to think it's tied into this since all was working well before the new head gaskets and the only thing I touched in all this was the alternator and battery. Do you think I'm on the right track here?

Man, I was all set to start working on the three amigos this weekend.

 

ha. that never, ever happens to me.