How to: 1994 Head gasket replacement / engine pull

[arco777]

I hate to make a negative post in this great thread but if it was me, I wouldn't soak them. They're an electrical item with a coil. It would be like soaking your starter. The coil may fare perfectly fine but then again it may weaken a coil that's seen millions of heat cycles.

No offense taken! IIRC it was a thread on this board that recommended soaking them in this stuff. I did it this way before on a previous X and was amazed at the amount of gunk that floated out of the injectors. I experienced an improvement in driveability and it fixed my hot start misfire issue.

Can't imagine soaking a starter causing much issue if it was dried out afterwards and regreased. That's just a big electric motor and they don't mind being submerged and running (wears brushes out faster, but can be used to seat new brushes to the commutator). I've run plenty of electric motors in water briefly to clean out the sediment before disassembly and rebuild.

I'm not saying for sure that this is 100% safe for the coil, but I would bet it is. With nearly 200k on the injectors I don't have much to lose and I don't mind replacing them if they fail. I do have a hot start issue from at least one of these injectors already.

 

[natenkiki2004]

No offense taken! IIRC it was a thread on this board that recommended soaking them in this stuff. I did it this way before on a previous X and was amazed at the amount of gunk that floated out of the injectors. I experienced an improvement in driveability and it fixed my hot start misfire issue.

Can't imagine soaking a starter causing much issue if it was dried out afterwards and regreased. That's just a big electric motor and they don't mind being submerged and running (wears brushes out faster, but can be used to seat new brushes to the commutator). I've run plenty of electric motors in water briefly to clean out the sediment before disassembly and rebuild.

I'm not saying for sure that this is 100% safe for the coil, but I would bet it is. With nearly 200k on the injectors I don't have much to lose and I don't mind replacing them if they fail. I do have a hot start issue from at least one of these injectors already.

Fair enough. I'd be curious to see how much crud comes out. I would agree that soaking would get the most crud loosened up. My concern wouldn't be for the soaking aspect but rather if the injectors body isn't sealed, letting harsh solvents into the coil and possibly damaging the insulation. I doubt Bosch would use an insulation that wasn't gasoline-resistant but I'm overly cautious that way

 

[jd4242]

I poke holes in a piece of cardboard box and stand them up in it..then fill with spray carb cleaner and let soak..after soaked for awile i dump them out and refill..i then take a 9v battery (like from smoke detectors) and run wires off it to the injector,activating it in pulses (on/off)..i spray cleaner into it wile its open..then flip them upside down and spray from the tip,again when they are open..dont leave them open for long tho,quick on and offs

 

[2stroke]

Injectors are completely sealed, and even if they were not, a little solvent is the least of concerns. I have soaked many sets of injectors with nothing but good results. pull them apart, soak them, then use a battery to spray through them. First I get the resistance spec and ohm test them to make sure they are good, but I have used plenty of junkyard injectors, and have always done well.

 

[arco777]

Injectors.
1. Disassembled. Metal injector body wiped off with carb cleaner to remove oil and paint. Old filters all pulled out. They were in great condition, on the last set I rebuilt the filters were falling apart.
2. Steal a tupperware container from the kitchen.
3. Soak in fuel system cleaner of your choice.
4. Hard to see but there is plenty of sediment that came out after two days. Last set I did turned the cleaner almost black.
(No picture). Injectors all ohms checked and matching. Cleaner blown out with compressed air while pulsing injector.
5. Painted and re-assembled, before/after.
6. Done.

 

[arco777]

1-2. Removing main cap bolts. You'll need some leverage. Note which ones are studded for later positioning. Before doing this I checked crank endplay and it was well within spec.

I'm unsure if these are TTY bolts.

3. Main bearing caps one through three removed. Gently tap on each side with a rubber mallet and they will come off without a hassle.

4-5. Main cap number four is the same way but will probably be a little tighter. It is heavier and shaped different for the rear main seal.

6-7. Rear main seal just pops right off. Mine had been replaced at some point evidently.

 

[shucker1]

I hate to make a negative post in this great thread but if it was me, I wouldn't soak them. They're an electrical item with a coil. It would be like soaking your starter. The coil may fare perfectly fine but then again it may weaken a coil that's seen millions of heat cycles.

Ditto,

B-12 may eat the lacquer that the coil is wrapped in causing a short \ bad injector.

 

[Alex7772011]

1. Removed coil pack bracket. 3 bolts, two of which go into upper intake and one into the head above the exhaust manifold. Unplug the connector first.

2. Unplug some connectors. We're going to get the wiring harness off this thing in preparation for removing the upper intake (and I'm washing the motor first so I want all wires outta here). Unplug the TPS, IAC, and DPFE. Don't force any of the connectors, there's a way each one unlocks. I already have to use a ziptie to hold my IAC connector on...:roll:

3. Undo the DPFE exhaust sampling hoses - just pull them off the fitting.

4. Unplug the IAT and EGR vac solenoid.

5. Undo the vac line that goes to the EGR valve, and the vac line pair that goes to the EGR vac solenoid.

6. On the other side of the motor, find where the vac line runs to the fuel pressure regulator and pull it off.

7. Now with some finagling, you can get the whole vac line setup out.

where can i buy those lines? my all fell appart when i changed my heads

 

[arco777]

where can i buy those lines? my all fell appart when i changed my heads

Auto parts store sells hoses by the foot for reasonable prices. Ask for the type that is rated for fuel vapor, as there are several different types and the wrong type would deteriorate.

 

[arco777]

An update. Heads are back from machine shop. They were warped but not cracked, so they've been milled flat. Three of the intake valves weren't sealing at all, and three exhaust valves weren't right either. Told it is a weird casting with soft metal and non-standard valve stem sizing (15 over), and the leaks were likely since new. Anyways, new valve stem seals are in and a full valve job was done.

Unsure if these valve springs are my factory 197k mile originals. Also unsure if that would matter.

Ordered and received a set of Morana Racing's valve cover support rails (Link, top item on list) and they are super trick. They are thick anodized aluminum and use studs to clamp the valve covers down.

Crankshaft is going to the shop next to determine if it is in good enough shape to re-use. If so, it will get cleaned and polished. I'm optimistic. Can't find anywhere locally to check if it is straight though - should I worry about that?

 

[jd4242]

An update. Heads are back from machine shop. They were warped but not cracked, so they've been milled flat. Three of the intake valves weren't sealing at all, and three exhaust valves weren't right either. Told it is a weird casting with soft metal and non-standard valve stem sizing (15 over), and the leaks were likely since new. Anyways, new valve stem seals are in and a full valve job was done.

Unsure if these valve springs are my factory 197k mile originals. Also unsure if that would matter.

Ordered and received a set of Morana Racing's valve cover support rails (Link, top item on list) and they are super trick. They are thick anodized aluminum and use studs to clamp the valve covers down.

Crankshaft is going to the shop next to determine if it is in good enough shape to re-use. If so, it will get cleaned and polished. I'm optimistic. Can't find anywhere locally to check if it is straight though - should I worry about that?

Could order a rock auto crank..its been turned and comes with bearings. .i found it to be cheaper than having a stock one done..

 

[arco777]

Could order a rock auto crank..its been turned and comes with bearings. .i found it to be cheaper than having a stock one done..

Was planning to up until today. Talked to my machinist and he's going to inspect mine. If it's not in good shape I'll get one from RockAuto.

Thing is, if my crank is in good shape, what's to say that a reman'd unit would be any better? I'd be spending an extra $130 to have a crank that could be already using undersize bearings. I already have a new set of stock size Mahle/Clevite bearings on hand.

 

[jd4242]

Was planning to up until today. Talked to my machinist and he's going to inspect mine. If it's not in good shape I'll get one from RockAuto.

Thing is, if my crank is in good shape, what's to say that a reman'd unit would be any better? I'd be spending an extra $130 to have a crank that could be already using undersize bearings. I already have a new set of stock size Mahle/Clevite bearings on hand.

Yours will need to be turned pretty much no matter what..no machinist is gonna tell you to re-use a crank outa a high milage motor..i sure wouldnt re-use one that hadnt been turned,unless i checked it good and still had the same bearings labeled where they came from

 

[arco777]

Way overdue for an update! Long story short, I had to put the project on hold due to having to emergency relocate the truck and parts. Everything is back on track now and the truck is back home.

Crank got a clean bill of health. Everything was within spec. Cleaned, polished, etc. Ready to roll with new stock size bearings.

New pistons and timing gears got sent off to California to get WPC treated. http://www.wpctreatment.com/
Not cheap (cost many $$$), but this should keep the timing gears from wearing down and the pistons shouldn't side-scuff like the originals did.

Pulled the cam out of the block and looked it over briefly. Still needs close inspection but it looks good. Unsure on changing cam bearings.

Unfortunately while packing everything up in a hurry, the lifters got jumbled a bit. I feel confident in the original position of 80% of the lifters...

Was going to have the block prepped by a local shop - hot tank to remove exterior paint and the gunk out of the cooling passages, new freeze plugs, and new cam bearings. I went as far as to fully strip the block and load it in the back of my Bronco. However, they couldn't be bothered to call me back. The first time I called for info their receptionist was rude, and now this. Guess they don't want my business. The only other engine shop is an hour away and their logo is the rebel flag; they would probably laugh and tell me "come back with a chebby 350 or don't come back at all" plus they never responded to my email.

I guess the new plan is to strip the paint off the block myself, somehow. Any suggestions? I am considering a pressure washer and a bristle brush but worry about grease keeping the new paint from sticking.

 

[natenkiki2004]

Pretty disappointing when businesses do that. Seems like I see that more and more. Oh well...

If I were you, I'd probably grab the angle grinder and a wire wheel (not knotted) and go to town. On the gasket surfaces, use a roloc bristle wheel either on a dremel, die grinder or angle grinder.

 

[shucker1]

Just make sure ALL of the oil passages are properly plugged.

Those little wires and paint chips can wreck your day!

When done everything needs to be clean enough to eat off of.

 

[arco777]

This project is not dead...

Starter (factory original!) was a uniform shade of grease color. Sprayed, scrubbed, and pressure washed it. Disassembled and cleaned, reassembled with fresh grease. Besides the brushes, no signs of wear. Once the new brushes arrive it'll be good for another 200k miles.

Ordered 3M Roloc discs in white and got to work cleaning the deck surfaces. Not done but it's a huge improvement. Still have to follow up with some brake cleaner and scotch-brite.

 

[arco777]

Removed freeze plugs. Pretty sure all this gunk is from 60k miles ago when I got the truck and put a bottle of BARS head gasket sealant in the coolant. To its credit the repair worked at the time. While I replaced the heads right afterwards, the remains in the rest of the system hasn't caused any issues since.

Do I need to replace the plug behind the camshaft?

Cleaned up timing cover gasket mating surfaces with Roloc. Removed cam again. Plan to make another attempt to get a local business to hot-tank the block. Ordered new Mahle/Clevite cam bearings and a set of freeze plugs so I can have them installed.

 

[arco777]

Block is back home. Hot tanked, painted, new cam bearings, new freeze plugs. Cylinders got touched up a little with a ball hone.

No way I'm lifting this thing by hand unless necessary.

 

[arco777]

Ditto,

B-12 may eat the lacquer that the coil is wrapped in causing a short \ bad injector.

Realized I forgot to respond to this. For what it is worth, it's not my first time soaking injectors in B12 fuel injector cleaner. I've done this on several sets and never had an issue. Always had slight idle and throttle response improvements after my cleaning process.
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Rebuild has started. Update coming soon.