Ignore the flakes off of the valley gasket for now, not anything to worry about. If you decide to change the gasket later, down the road, clean up those loose flakes before removing gasket. They can fall into the oil around the rotating assembly.

100% water not a problem as coolant, frozen water IS a problem. Add anti-freeze before cold weather.

 

Well I already ordered the gasket so am going to go for it. Better to get acquainted with the engine now while I have a reliable driveway to work in. Plus, I want to clean the engine thoroughly. I just got the Aux housing and PAS pump off, and boy is there caked up oil in there. 5-10mm thick of sludge, all over the front.

Is there anyway to clean the valves and top end without causing damage? Guessing pressure washing is a no-no here so I was thinking to just spray purple power onto a rag and wipe as much as I can and finally give everything a nice coat of fresh oil.

 

Your only problem with cleaning it is keeping the stuff out of your oil returns.

 

Makes sense. Got the inlet manifold off.. the area is definitely pretty knackered. I'll probably toss the valve covers back on, cover those 10 or so exhaust holes and give her a good power rinse.

Not sure what caused all this oil buildup on the front... seems a bit high to be the front main seal, but I guess it could have blowed upwards. Could be valley pan and valve covers? Funny that the front cover is really clean

 

Years of leaking valve covers and spilled oil fills.

 

Those holes are air intake from the manifold, not exhaust. The exhaust is opposite side of head. You DO NOT want any trash, bolts, nuts, or water entering those intake holes. You definitely don't want water in the compression chamber above the piston. Water does not compress, neither do bolts.

Where the head joins the block, just under the valley pan gasket, there is possible spot for a leak. When you replace that gasket you are to add a bead of gasket sealant there.

 

Thanks. Will do. I have them duct taped.

Dang, I pulled the injectors off in order to clean the manifold properly and guess I have to now replace the 16 o-rings. 10 bucks a pop... no thanks. miamibritish sells a set for $30 or I could just get the head gasket set from AB and save the spare parts for later.

 

I cleaned the lower inlet manifold. There was enormous carbon/varnish buildup in all 8 intake pipes. As you can see in above photo, the buildup continues down into the heads. What causes this? Is it cause for concern? Should I pull the heads and clean them, too? The upper plenum wasn't near as bad, and the only thing that changes as it goes lower is the fuel injection, however the pipes are dirty above the injectors - but the upper plenum wasn't too bad.

 

Jeff- before you go and spend that much money on injector O rings look at this:
Fuel Injector Repair Kit Fits Land Rover Range Rover 4 6L 4 0L | eBay
The kit contains everything you need to rehab your injectors.

 

Jeff,

For what it's worth, I would get the head gasket kit and have extra parts. That will give you the injector o rings, exhaust gaskets, valley gasket etc that you can use now or later. Waiting for parts versus walking in the garage and grabbing what you need is a no brainer. I will add that I have re used head bolts (that weren't on long) with no ill effects.

With all that you have taken off you could replace the head gaskets fairly easily. That would allow you to thoroughly clean those heads and rocker assemblies without risking getting trash in the cylinders or oil passages. The white smoke/steam you mentioned worries me and makes me think you have a head gasket issue or worse.

Just my. 02 cents.

Best,

Charlie V