Changing Head Gasket
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From: Norhtern California
Changing Head Gasket
We've had a '92 Ranger XLT 4.0 for 4 years and it has just been sitting the whole time because the head gasket is supposedly blown. I decided to fix it a couple weeks ago and I am almost ready to take off the heads and change the gasket. I just drained the oil after I was well into tearing the engine apart, and noticed that it was black. There was no brown, nothing white on top or anything, which is what I was told would be in the oil if the head gasket had really blown. Is it possible that its just all seperated because it has been sitting so long, or do you think its not the head gasket at all. I also noticed that the spark plaugs had HUGE gaps, could this have been because of the blown gasket, or could it maybe be misdiagnosed as a blown gasket, I dont know how it could be, but who knows. Thanks for any help.
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From: N. Florida - The "No 4x4
A blown head gasket/ warped/cracked head can cause a large variety of symptoms;
water in the oil
oil in the water
combustion residue (exhaust) in the cooling system
. . or none of the above.
If you have established that there is no water in the oil or vise versa, I would recommend a compression test as a next step propr to pulling the head. Heck, you might even want to pressure test the cooling system before you pull that head too.
HTH.
water in the oil
oil in the water
combustion residue (exhaust) in the cooling system
. . or none of the above.
If you have established that there is no water in the oil or vise versa, I would recommend a compression test as a next step propr to pulling the head. Heck, you might even want to pressure test the cooling system before you pull that head too.
HTH.
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From: Connecticut
Hi murder4hire,
your symtoms don't describle a blown headgasket and that's what ctfuzzy is leading up to, correct ctfuzzy ?
We've had a '92 Ranger XLT 4.0 for 4 years and it has just been sitting the whole time because the head gasket is supposedly blown. I decided to fix it a couple weeks ago and I am almost ready to take off the heads and change the gasket. I just drained the oil after I was well into tearing the engine apart, and noticed that it was black. There was no brown, nothing white on top or anything, which is what I was told would be in the oil if the head gasket had really blown. Is it possible that its just all seperated because it has been sitting so long, or do you think its not the head gasket at all. I also noticed that the spark plaugs had HUGE gaps, could this have been because of the blown gasket, or could it maybe be misdiagnosed as a blown gasket
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From: Harrisburg USA
If the previous owner didn't give you any details or information, it's kinda hard to know exactly what's going on. If indeed a head gasket is blown between 2 cylinders, but STILL SEALING all the coolant & oil ports, then there would indeed be no exchange of oil, coolant, & exhaust debris. But, the compression check that ctfuzzy mentioned WOULD REVEAL IT (very low compression in 2 neighboring cylinders). If NONE of the cylinders reveal a compression reading significantly lower than all the rest, then CHECK OUT ALL THE CHEAP EASY STUFF FIRST, before considering pulling heads.
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Well, I'm already about to take off the heads, so I'm just gonna change it. I've already spent hours and hours taking everything apart, its getting a new head gasket whether it needs one or not.
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From: N. Florida - The "No 4x4
Here is to hoping!
Here is to hoping you don't have the same symptoms when you're done!
Good luck, and *please* let us know what you find.
Mike.
P.S. Do yourself a favor - while the head is off take it to a machine shop and have it magnafluxed. It's cheap and it may very well show you a surprise you didn't expect (but were happy to find before you remounted the head).
Good luck, and *please* let us know what you find.
Mike.
P.S. Do yourself a favor - while the head is off take it to a machine shop and have it magnafluxed. It's cheap and it may very well show you a surprise you didn't expect (but were happy to find before you remounted the head).
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From: N. Florida - The "No 4x4
Originally posted by wolfen
Hi murder4hire,
your symtoms don't describle a blown headgasket and that's what ctfuzzy is leading up to, correct ctfuzzy ?
Hi murder4hire,
your symtoms don't describle a blown headgasket and that's what ctfuzzy is leading up to, correct ctfuzzy ?
Given the lack of water/oil contamination I think the chances are just as good the head is cracked as that the gasket is blown. In *a lot of cases* a crack can escape casual inspection thus magnafluxing is mandatory. Fortunately it is still a relatively cheap process to have done (you can even do it yourself if you want).
Naturally, this is just one lazy guys opinion.
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From: Harrisburg USA
Murder4hire, put quite simply, the head is dusted with iron dust, then subject to a strong magnetic field. The magnetic flux lines will be concentrated at any spot where the metal is compromised, and so will the iron dust, revealing visually the compromise.
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From: Connecticut
Hi ctfuzzy,
I was actually agreein' with you all along ! Your diagnosis sounds correct!
A blown head gasket/ warped/cracked head can cause a large variety of symptoms;water in the oil
oil in the water
combustion residue (exhaust) in the cooling system
. . or none of the above.
If you have established that there is no water in the oil or vise versa, I would recommend a compression test as a next step propr to pulling the head. Heck, you might even want to pressure test the cooling system before you pull that head too.
oil in the water
combustion residue (exhaust) in the cooling system
. . or none of the above.
If you have established that there is no water in the oil or vise versa, I would recommend a compression test as a next step propr to pulling the head. Heck, you might even want to pressure test the cooling system before you pull that head too.
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Joined: Dec 2001
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From: South Jersey
Water and oil are not miscible so they would seperate and I believe the density of water is less than oil so it would come to the top. Now I'm not sure how much evaporation would occur in a pretty much sealed crankcase.
