Posted that last post at 1115, after letting it cool I went out for grins and topped it off, and tried to start it. It struggled to start ran rough for a bit then to normal idle. So I'm figuring I'm still looking at cracked had or the head gasket. Right?

 

Maybe. Got a compressor? Pressurize each cylinder at TDC, see if there's any pushback through the radiator fill.

 

well it seems now, just since I put the 2nd fan in, even tho I put the new rad in the day before, that when it cranks it's hard to start.

It does this now only after replacing the 2nd fan (odd) but I can't deny that it's at the least a head gasket now... I get to spend my day tearing the head down. I don't get why the block test came up negitive tho. that really irks me.

I gotta get head bolts and a headgasket, one of the guys my brother works with was nice enough to send some gaskets (o-rings and valvecover and whatnot) so I'll have most of that covered it seems...


ok did all the calling searching for head bolts... no one in town has them... now I'm being told I shouldn't need them unless they are damaged... I can't remember why I had it in my head they needed replaced.

dammit. tips trick hints for the headgasket?

 

I reused the bolts with no problems. Wire wheel the threads then chase & blow-out the holes w/compressed air. Make sure the head and block are flat within spec. Follow the FSM's bolt tightening sequence to the letter. Barring glitches like broken exhaust stud(s) or a reluctant crankshaft pulley bolt, figure three hours to get the head off & five to put it back on, working on the ground.

As I recall you just got the car...do you know the timing belt/water pump replacement history? Easy to do both with the head off.

 

When you pressurize the cylinders, be careful. Either pressurize them at BDC, or figure out a way to lock the crankshaft in place. If you're just a bit off-center, the air pressure will try to drive the piston down and if that happens to spin backwards you risk skipping a tooth on the timing belt. Not to mention having tools or fingers in the alternator belt.

If you pressurize at TDC you'll apply pressure across the head and headgasket. If the piston is at bottom, you'll also pressurize the cylinder sleeve. Just in case THAT is what's cracked.

Some carmakers "traditionally" use head bolts that are tightened to yield. Those have to be replaced. Honda seems to use bolts that are still within elastic limits, so you can reuse them if they're not damaged. The Helm manual shows a certain way to measure their length to see whether they have been stretched.

 

Thanks Roader and Jim for your guidance. your input is greatly appreciated... I've already started tear down. so far one exhaust stud is busted. nothing else so far.


Currently I'm to the point of pulling the timing belt, I've got the tensioner loose and all the way backed off and I can slide the belt off the gear but I'm wondering about getting it back on...


Roader, supposedly the timing belt was done around the 120k miles, it just turned over 170k belt looks good to me, but lil brother (more exp. with belts than me) is gonna come check it out tonight. If it needs it even slightly, that 20bux will get spent. If I get a better view at the waterpump I'll make that call then.


Pic's thus far.

 

Got the head off. I'm calling it a night... I feel far older than I am.
anyhow the results...





thoughts?

 

I couldn't definitively tell where the coolant-to-combustion seal was bad on my bad head gasket, even knowing the results of the leakdown test. The head looks eroded where your finger is pointing but I can't tell for sure by looking at a pic. That area only needs to seal 16psi or so of pressure from the cooling system. It's cylinder sealing that's critical.

Is the head flat? Aftermarket or OEM head gasket? I found a Fel-Pro on mine and both the block and head were flat. I could only assume that whoever did the job before didn't do it right (torque/cleanliness/both) because the new (Fel-Pro) gasket sealed up just fine.

The belt can be put back over the cam gear by flipping the other end of the cam up, putting the belt over the gear, and tipping the back of the cam back down. I've done it. It works. But it's not per the FSM. And I never touched the tension because I had just done the belt <5K miles prior, so there was no need to remove the pulley or lower cover.

Were it my DD I'd put a new belt and pump on it; it's just so damn easy with the head off. If I were looking for 100K miles I'd spring for a ~$110 Aisin kit with all the goodies. 50K I'd go with ~$80 Gates kit.

You'll have an easy job replacing that broken stud with the head off. It's the same one that broke on my F23. I wasn't able to get the old stud to budge so I just drilled & tapped through the old stud.

 

Huh. I never thought of that. Are all the valves completely closed at BDC? If so then that's the way to go.

You do have to be careful @ TDC that the piston is all the way up. The old screwdriver-in-the-sparkplug-hole works. And bring the pressure up slowly from 0psi. I found the bad headgasket @ 50psi; really no need to go higher.

 

I think you're right about the valves being NOT completely closed at BDC. It's acedemic now because the head is already off. But for the education of someone else reading this thread...

F22 has 85mm bore & 95mm stroke. At mid-stroke, the tendency to turn the crank is the worst. Pressure of 50psi over 85mm bore gives 440 pounds pushing down on the piston. Crank length of 47.5mm gives 69 lbf*ft of torque which is possible to hold with a breaker bar, but it's not something you want to ignore & let it surprise you.