4.0L head gaskets???

[cappin90]

im going to be replacing my head gaskets, piston rings, lower/upper intake gaskets and oil pan gasket within the next 2 months, most likely rocker arms and push rods too while i have it apart. is there anything else i should look at while i have the engine out that might need fixing?? i was thinking i should probably just rebuild the entire thing since im going to the effort to pull the engine anyways but does the bottom end really need it?? it has 184k miles on the clock and still runs fairly strong apart from the occasional miss. what do you guys think?

 

[AllanD]

If it's still "running strong" why take it apart and potentially screw it up?



AD

 

[Big Jim M]

AllanD plus 1! Why mess with a good engine? For one your cylinders aren't completely round anymore.. so when reringing it you will install round rings in an out of round cylinder.. what hapepns then is the rings or/and the cylinder must wear some more to make a good precise fit... it they ever do!
I think I would leave a good running engine alone a untill it needs everything done to it.
Putting just parts of a rebuild in there will get everything out of sink.. Now, in the near future you will have to go back in there and do the bottom end.. and so on and on.
Big JIm

 

[Yellowsplash]

Are you replacing rings because it has high milage, or because it has low compression on a certain number of cylinders?

I would only break into the bottom end if you have low compression. Replacing rings requires a honing of the cylinders, or boring if bad enough.

If you feel the need to have a completely new engine, go for it. But, if your just wanting to freshen it back up for 50K more miles or something I would just replace the oil pump and gaskets and do the upper end... Head gaskets, head bolts, intake gaskets, valve seals, other gaskets, etc...

 

[mosher41]

For all the time and money it would cost to do all of that...you can just go buy a Jasper or other re-man motor.

 

[cappin90]

fairly certain i have a blown headgasket, blows antifreeze out of the exhaust and misses untill it heats up then it stops both so i was going to do a compression check and if i have low compression in any cylinders i was going to go ahead and rebuild it. just put a new transmission in it and decided i dont really want to have to buy a new engine if it decides to letgo, rather just put the money in it and make sure its going to last.

 

[Big Jim M]

So you are loseing coolant? How much and how often? Does the radiator puke when you drive around the block? Could that antifreez coming out the tail pipe REALLY be condensation?
Big JIm

 

[cappin90]

my radiator isnt cracked or leaking, the hoses arnt either and the smoke coming out of the exhaust doesnt stop for 5-10 minutes, i drive it everyday and if i dont let it warm up i can make my own fog bank. so im fairly sure i have some sort of water leak in the engine somewhere.

 

[Big Jim M]

Nope! Not a chance! What you have is condensation.. If you have coolant in the exhaust you will overheat from the lack of coolant..OR from compression getting into the coolant passages.
Big JIm

 

[mosher41]

i have to agree Jim, mine does the same thing, but only when its cold out, now that it has warmed up it has nearly disappeared. the cooling system on mine is crazy it acks strange some times and looses coolant, then it will go 200 or 300 miles completly normal. be sure it is coolant before tearing into it.