I am replacing the head gaskets on my 99 disco II with 138k on it and i was inspecting the heads and noticed a valve guide slipping back and forth. There are a couple more that are not at the same height as the other but they are not slipping. The loose one will not slip all the way out either way, through the combustion side or the spring side. What should I do? I have checked both heads for flatness and they are perfectly flat. The valves look good too. I am lapping them with fine grinding compound to clean them up though. I want to make sure they seat well. I am just not sure what to do about the loose guide. Any comments would be appreciated.

 

Dude, I wouldn't mess around with that issue. I have not had it before, but I did have sticky valves on my D1 that required machine shop work. While you have the heads in your hands, I would take them out to a good machine shop and have them clean them and check them out. It's well worth the peace of mind. You don't want to have to pull those heads again. They can check the valve springs, valve seals, etc., etc. It's still a great deal compared to having the stealer work on it, and you'll have the peace of mind that it's been done right.

 

I agree with DiscoJag, take the heads to a reputable machine shop and have them checked out. With 138k a valve job probably wouldn't hurt anything and guides that have already started to shift out of position will more than likely continue to shift until the cause a problem.