Blown Head Gasket....Yes/No/Ideas :)

[MDK87]

Hi guys,

I have a problem with my stocko 1990 A-Spec GVR4.
I bought the car not running, the radiator had brown gooey crap (looks like baby shit) in it. The previous owner said he was just driving normally and then it stopped.
Myself and brisvr4 suspected a blown head gasket.
I took the cylinder head off this morning, but I couldn't find any evidence of the gasket failing. It all seems ok...

When I drained the sump, the oil seemed ok. i.e it wasn't the same crappy stuff we found riddled through the cooling system.
Just wondering, is there any other way for the oil/coolant to collide apart from a bust head gasket?
Could it simply be a stuffed up oil cooler or something? It's an A-Spec, so it has a water cooled oil filter housing rather than an air cooler. Maybe that has malfunctioned?
Do you guys have any other ideas? Or should I just replace the head gasket as planned and just be happy?
I am taking the oil filter housing off anyway, as I'm going to stick a J-Spec oil cooler on it. Is there anything I should look for?

Thanks for any advice guys.

This is the gooey crap (heater hose).

Here you can see some of that stuff on the gasket, but there doesn't seem to be any signs saying that the gasket has given way.

 

[EVO-00X]

Well it definitely looks like oil in the water system. And by the look of the pics it looks like number 2 and 3 were the culprits.

 

[MDK87]

Well it definitely looks like oil in the water system. And by the look of the pics it looks like number 2 and 3 were the culprits.

Thanks for the reply.

What leads you to say that Rob?

EDIT: I can get a close up of any area in particuler for you if you like.

 

[EVOCPE]

Looks like 2,3 and 4

You can see the dark area on the head and block where the headgasket has let looser and let the water flow in to the oil and vice versa

 

[MDK87]

Oh, you're right. There shouldn't be any oil on the gasket itself hey.
Hmm, I'm not good at this sort of thing.

Well thats good. At least I didn't pull the head off for no reason.

Thanks heaps for your help guys!!

 

[VR-4Squid]

The yanks reckon the watercooled oil filter housings are quite easily damaged by screwing the filter on too tight and crushing them, which causes oil in the water, so it's probably a good idea to swap to an air/oil cooler while the cars in bits.

 

[GVR40]

mo try stirring the oil that you pulled out, it might go milky, maybe someone put too much stop leak in and it went gluggly and ceased the water pump and it overheated?

 

[Marc]

Oh noes, the dreaded caramel sauce

 

[MDK87]

I took the cylinder head to my local maching shop who told me that the surface was warped, the cam tunnels weren't straight, and the alloy had softened and didn't pass the hardness test.

He must've put a fair bit of heat into it or something!!

 

[EVO-00X]

Yep, more often than not people still drive around knowing too well that they are blowing smoke out the exhaust due to a blown headgasket. Sadly it heats up the engine and warps the head.

Looking at the pics even more closely now you can see that the head was reconditioned not too long ago actually, mostly by the clean faces on valves in number 1 and 4 cylinders, plus the outside of the head looks like its clean and spotless in one of the photos. Looking at the underside of the head and on the deck surfaces in between the gasket holes, both look like nicely milled surfaces. Number 2 and 3 cylinders show signs of water leaking into the bores plus the corrosion on the valves in number 2 and 3 are a dead giveaway of water in the combustion chamber.

It was either not torquing the headbolts down properly that caused it, or simply running the engine without water/oil and way too hot that warped the head.

 

[MDK87]

Yep, more often than not people still drive around knowing too well that they are blowing smoke out the exhaust due to a blown headgasket. Sadly it heats up the engine and warps the head.

Looking at the pics even more closely now you can see that the head was reconditioned not too long ago actually, mostly by the clean faces on valves in number 1 and 4 cylinders, plus the outside of the head looks like its clean and spotless in one of the photos. Looking at the underside of the head and on the deck surfaces in between the gasket holes, both look like nicely milled surfaces. Number 2 and 3 cylinders show signs of water leaking into the bores plus the corrosion on the valves in number 2 and 3 are a dead giveaway of water in the combustion chamber.

It was either not torquing the headbolts down properly that caused it, or simply running the engine without water/oil and way too hot that warped the head.

Far out, I'm glad someone knows what they're talking about!
I couldn't tell a thing, and I've been looking at it up close for ages. Lol.

Anyway, I gave them another head to fix up, which also needed straightening, but they reckon that one is all sweet. It's looking real sweet right now, you could eat dinner off it! haha
I'm now worried that maybe the surface on the block isn't straight. Myself and brisvr4 checked it with a steel rule, but I dunno how definitive that test is.........fingers crossed!

Btw, thanks EVO-00X.

 

[cblancergsr]

try also checking the block with straight edge and feeler gauges too make sure the block is even

the head studs on mitsubishis are toque to yield soo they should be replaced everytime a headgasket is replaced or when the head is off

 

[EVO-00X]

Also once the surfaces are nice and clean give both sides of the new headgasket a very light and even coat of hylomar spray just to make sure.

 

[JAP63]

Also once the surfaces are nice and clean give both sides of the new headgasket a very light and even coat of hylomar spray just to make sure.

Whats that stuff do? aid in sealing?


My First GGSR head blew(coolant to compression) duet o a poor rebuild and incorrect torque settigns on head bolts..

 

[MDK87]

Also once the surfaces are nice and clean give both sides of the new headgasket a very light and even coat of hylomar spray just to make sure.

Really? I looked at Craig funny when he told me to use that stuff on the head gasket. I was under the impression that there was to be nothing other than the head gasket between the block and head, as anything else could compromise the seal. Thanks for the tip EVO-00X.

Hey Tait, are the head bolts really TTY? I didn't think the stock ones were.

 

[rob323]

Measure the length of the head bolts, see if they are stretched. Did you do a comp test before you pulled the head?

 

[JAP63]

Measure the length of the head bolts, see if they are stretched. Did you do a comp test before you pulled the head?

Both good points, and for the cost of it, just replace them, you dont want the same thing happening again right..

 

[coop1er]

So why did it stop running? A blown head gasket is unlikely to stop an engine unless it has caused some other damage.

 

[JAP63]

So why did it stop running? A blown head gasket is unlikely to stop an engine unless it has caused some other damage.

It will stop if it runs out of water and seizes
Or runs low on oil and seizes.

 

[Dean]

Correct.
It will still crank over with a blown head gasket.