Need to replace Cylinder Head

[mkinttrim]

So just before we put my sons 99 4.0 up for sale the darn cylinder head decides to crack. Thought about ordering one off of Ebay and doing it myself. I have all the tools to do this (I think). Am I opening up a hornets nest or can I do this over a weekend? Any suggestions?
Thanks

 

[97RangerXLT]

That'll teach you to try to sell the Ranger.


One thing that could be the bane of your existence on this project will be the exhaust manifold bolts...although if you are replacing the head you can just break them and be done with it. you will also have to replace all the upper engine gaskets as you will be removing just about all of that stuff to get to the head. you will be putting a couple of hundred into this repair, and that may or may not address the reason for the cracked head.

you will want to check the cooling system over real good, make sure that it is properly filled. (Big Jim has a good post in here somewhere about the proper way to do that)

AJ

 

[Big Jim M]

????

So just before we put my sons 99 4.0 up for sale the darn cylinder head decides to crack. Thought about ordering one off of Ebay and doing it myself. I have all the tools to do this (I think). Am I opening up a hornets nest or can I do this over a weekend? Any suggestions?
Thanks

If ya don't have it off yet how do you know it is cracked??? WHAT are the symptoms that make you think you have a cracked head..
Big JIm

 

[mkinttrim]

Just got it back from the dealer, they did a diagnostic on it. Cracked cylinder head, was missing very badly especially under load. Was thowing "lean" codes.

Selling the truck because I have a 14 year old that is actually 24. Refuses to pay for insurance and I had to make several payments for him. I now have title and its now in my name.

 

[Big Jim M]

New things every day!

Just got it back from the dealer, they did a diagnostic on it. Cracked cylinder head, was missing very badly especially under load. Was thowing "lean" codes.

Selling the truck because I have a 14 year old that is actually 24. Refuses to pay for insurance and I had to make several payments for him. I now have title and its now in my name.

I didn't know there was a machine that could find a cracked head while the engine was all together.. That's new to me.
Are you sure they didn't say something like...it MAY have a cracked head?
Is the thing loseing coolant? Is there coolant in the oil?
I have always taken the head off and THEN found the crack! Your description so far could easily be a simple burnt valve..
But I guess you should TRUST the dealer...
Big JIm

 

[trail B2]

If things don't go bad you should be able to do them in a weekend I was able to but I am a big fan of air guns and air ratchets.Big Jim has a good point what your really doing is taking it apart and seeing what you got might just be a gasket.When I did mine I just left the exhaust manifolds on the head took it off at the pipe.I wouldn't go out and buy a head until I saw the crack first hand.

 

[btgwynn]

If you can't get compression it's a good sign that the head is cracked. The dealer checked this out when it happened to me, and was correct. Weakest (thinnest) point on these heads is between valves (the location where my heads cracked, both times), so poor compression is a good indicator.

It's a big job, took me several days the first time I did it, the second time only a weekend. Lessons learned, replace them both at the same time, since the second one happened <5000 miles after the first. Change your Crankshaft position sensor while you're in there, mine went out a year later and I had to do that deep dive again.

Good luck and have fun.

 

[Big Jim M]

Compression???

If you can't get compression it's a good sign that the head is cracked. The dealer checked this out when it happened to me, and was correct. Weakest (thinnest) point on these heads is between valves (the location where my heads cracked, both times), so poor compression is a good indicator.

It's a big job, took me several days the first time I did it, the second time only a weekend. Lessons learned, replace them both at the same time, since the second one happened <5000 miles after the first. Change your Crankshaft position sensor while you're in there, mine went out a year later and I had to do that deep dive again.

Good luck and have fun.

A simple burnt valve will lower the compression zackly the same as a cracked head!!! Ya gotta LOOK at the thing to see what is the matter.
Big JIm

 

[mkinttrim]

They did a dye test, apparently there was coolant in the cylinder and on the plug.

 

[Big Jim M]

Yep!!!

They did a dye test, apparently there was coolant in the cylinder and on the plug.

And that could be a burnt head gasket!!
Big JIm

 

[mkinttrim]

Thats true, for the last year and a half he's been throwing lean codes on that bank. I've also noticed that his anti freeze is a little darker than normal. And also we had to replace a plug twice because the porcelin around the elecrode was chipped off. So something is going on there. I thought that since the head has to be removed anyhow, even if it is just a gasket, might as well order a new one. Will cost just as much to have a valve job done.