about to replace head gaskets advice needed

[Yah's 87]

87 bgn, have a minor white smoke and am under the impression indicates head gasket needs R&R. this is my first BGN and have torn apart many diesel motors and havent been that deep into this motor style. I understand it is recommended at the same time heads are off, have the timing chain replaced as well. as well planning on port and polish heads on this otherwise stock car and will order headers as the original ones have 123k on them. Is there a how to link on here or an overview i can study on before i begin wrenching? thanks , Ronjon

 

[mr84ss]

Have you checked the turbo?

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[Yah's 87]

ive only done the research and learned that possible there is a seal on the exhaust side that could have gone bad. here is what the factors are: I bought this car last year with 121k on it, motor was said to be rebuilt with about 1000 miles on it, although it was sitting inside a garage for 8 years. Previous owner said that the current turbo that is on it now is from a 29kmile car. Anyway it does use a little bit of coolant while driving. Only thing to mention is that if i rev up the motor the amount of white smoke does increase. So getting to the turbo, when inspecting it, or even removing it what are the indicators that the seal is bad, id be happy to throw another turbo on it anyway, thanks

 

[Yah's 87]

ive only done the research and learned that possible there is a seal on the exhaust side that could have gone bad. here is what the factors are: I bought this car last year with 121k on it, motor was said to be rebuilt with about 1000 miles on it, although it was sitting inside a garage for 8 years. Previous owner said that the current turbo that is on it now is from a 29kmile car. Anyway it does use a little bit of coolant while driving. Only thing to mention is that if i rev up the motor the amount of white smoke does increase. So getting to the turbo, when inspecting it, or even removing it what are the indicators that the seal is bad, id be happy to throw another turbo on it anyway, thanks

 

[Nick Micale]

White smoke is not normal from a turbo seal?

If you think is is a bad head gasket, do a compression check first.

Also, when you want to post a reply, only hit the "Post Reply" button once, then leave it alone or go to another forum, it will post shortly.

 

[Yah's 87]

i dont know what smoke is like from a bad turbo seal, thats what im asking. i can remove it although what would be evident if the seal is bad?

 

[WH1]

Take it to a good mechanic who can do an exhaust snif test. If the head gaskets is even barely seeping it'll show it. Costs about $40 the last time I had it done.

 

[m3x1c0]

Take it to a good mechanic who can do an exhaust snif test. If the head gaskets is even barely seeping it'll show it. Costs about $40 the last time I had it done.

I'm a fan of the chemical tester that goes into the radiator. So far I've correctly diagnosed 4 bad gaskets using that method. Costs about 10 bucks for the chemicals (enough for about 5 tests) and I just rent the tool from autozone.

 

[mr84ss]

Whats the name of the chemical and name of the tester at autozone

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[m3x1c0]

Whats the name of the chemical and name of the tester at autozone

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It's got a bunch of names from different places. Most call it a block tester, which doesn't make much sense to me. Looks like this:

 

[earlbrown]

Pull the spark plugs and see if one of them stands. out. DO NOT buy new headers, just have the crack on the DS header welded up. A small triangular gusset will help avoid future cracks.


Yes, the car does need a new timing set solely due to the fact it's over 30 years old. At the point, mileage doesn't matter. You also need new valve springs (and a fuel pump and a hot wire kit and new injectors with a matching modern chip...)


These car's don't respond to the 'standard hot rod' things other cars do. You'll just spend a bunch of money and go slower... or grenade the engine and go much much slower.


Test what's wrong and fix what's wrong. If you tear into the engine for the hellovit, you're going to learn to hate your car.

 

[turbofabricator]

I agree with earl except, if posted earlier is FACT about only 1000 miles on rebuild, that the timing chain and springs need replacing. As said, check everything. Sellers lie out their ass every day.
White smoke and loss of coolant indicate a coolant leak into the cylinder. As said, pull plugs and have a look. One plug being cleaner than the other will show where the water leak is. Compression test may not show a bad cylinder if it is just a seeping head gasket. A cracked cylinder can also cause your condition. I just had a .020" bored 109 block crack a cylinder half way down the bore. That particular block had such bad core shift we could not sleeve it. It did make around 700 HP like that, though. A cracked head can also cause your symptoms, but I rarely see cracked heads. (Unless they are aluminum).

 

[turbo89]

ive only done the research and learned that possible there is a seal on the exhaust side that could have gone bad. here is what the factors are: I bought this car last year with 121k on it, motor was said to be rebuilt with about 1000 miles on it, although it was sitting inside a garage for 8 years. Previous owner said that the current turbo that is on it now is from a 29kmile car. Anyway it does use a little bit of coolant while driving. Only thing to mention is that if i rev up the motor the amount of white smoke does increase. So getting to the turbo, when inspecting it, or even removing it what are the indicators that the seal is bad, id be happy to throw another turbo on it anyway, thanks

What Earl Said X 2 !

Plugs tell you alot ! If you wanna double check the turbo.. just take the down pipe off.. usually if the seals are bad you will see oil on the turbine.