Well the head gasket went on the way to school this morning. I had to keep driving and had to drive home. I kept it around 30mph the entire way so it wouldnt overheat. It doesnt look like much antifreeze is in my oil so i might have got lucky but i am going to try to pull the head this weekend and see how much damage i have done.

 

Make sure you take a real close look at the injector ports to the valve seat to make sure the head isn't cracked. All in all the job isn't that bad with the exception of the head weighing a ton.

 

i definitely know the feeling. it's aggravating for sure. you wanna blame yourself but really, you couldn't help it. just be proud of your beast of a machine that it's given 600k miles of service. the job is pretty involved, no doubt about that. but it'll be a huge sense of pride. cuz when you're done, you can tell everyone you did all the work. other than that, i'm sorry to hear it. i've been down that road before. maybe my progress thread can help you out in what to look for and may have some good info in it in general. i'll link you to it. and hey, maybe you'll be one of the lucky few, along with me, who doesn't have injector bore cracks either! stay optimistic!

progress update: 9mm head, 500K+ miles... no cracks?!

 

I'm with jimbo I hope you are one of the lucky ones. That $450 is money you could put towards a good port and polish

 

that head will have to be machined for sure. that is, if you have no cracks extending into the valve seats. if you lived near me, i could point you to the machine shop that did mine. $395 for disassembly, hot tanking, magnafluxing, machining, valve job and new valve seals.

 

well i have been working on it slowly since i have school then diesel mechanics after that. I have got the ac condensor out the grill off and the lower valance off. Does anyone know an easy way to drain the radiator? Im going to kill the kdp while im in there. Thanks.

 

easy way? take the bottom rad hose off

 

There is a drain wingnut screw in the bottom driver side corner of the rad facing aft on non i/c trucks.

 

Hey Jimbo,
Not that I need it right now but just where is this shop you speak of and what is the turn around time on just such a job?

I am sure that I have asked you before but what part of the OC do you live in?
Just had a job in Costa Mesa last week.

Jim

 

i saw the drain wingnut but i dont see the drain port from where it comes out of. I want to avoid from spilling alot. I have pets that can easily get to my truck. And one more question do i have to remove the injection pump to take the head off? Thanks

 

the coolant should just come straight down from the wingnut. i used a 5 gallon bucket to catch mine. Nope the pump can stay on the truck. The injector lines must come off though.

 

Thanks. Im gona go drain the fluids and try to remove the turbo without snapping bolts.

 

if you have not already seen this it might be of some use.

 

well i got the front clip pulled, turbo off, heater lines off, radiator off, transmission cooler off and the exhaust manifold off so far without breaking any bolts. Im getting ready to pull the valve covers so i can get ready to pull the head.

 

i'm only about 15 minutes NE from costa mesa. i'm centered around los alamitos, buena park, anaheim and la palma. actually, about 1 mile north of the los alamitos air force base.

the shop i had my machine work done at is in santa fe springs.

L&R Automotive Supply Co. (Engines, Kits & Parts / Domestic & Foreign)
13731 Bora Dr.
Santa Fe Springs, CA 90670

PH: (562) 802-0443
Fax: (562) 802-8684

derek ranney is the man in charge. he's very nice and knowledgeable and he'll work with you. as for turn around time... i dropped the head off late morning tuesday, august 11th and was told they'd have it done by wednesday of the following week. i got a phone call on friday the 14th and it was done! that was all disassembly, hot tanked, magnafluxed, machined, valve job (recession to factory specs), valve springs checked for proper installed height, .060" shims under the springs, all new valve seals and a coating of gray 800* paint. all that for $395. i don't know if you'll have a choice of colors when painted. but had i known, i would've asked for black. oh well, the gray is a primer coat now . i'm happy with their work and because of the quick turn around and fine work, i promised as many referrals as i could find. if/when you need to pay a visit, call him and tell him jim cecil referred you.