I would never trust that headgasket. You don't want to be doing this job again. If you are mechanically inclined, just do it yourself. I spent about 300-400 putting a toyota headgasket with arp's in my car, had the head machined, checked, and cleaned, replaced all gaskets and hoses too. The job will go very smoothly and is pretty easy if you take your time, and there are plenty of people on here to help you if you get stuck.
Seems my head gasket is going...
- Thread starter Doat
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I would love to do it myself but I don't trust myself to do a job this major. I was thinking of buying this kit and getting an oem gasket, what do you think about that? The shop I know plans on machining the head to make it smooth and such for $1,500 roughly. I was also thinking I could take the car to my friend's place early in the morning and we spend all day doing it, can it be done in a day with someone who knows what they are doing? My other friend recommended I take it to a shop for the warranty.
Just to let you know, there is a chance that your head may get warped if you keep driving it. I would be safe and get the head machined. Keep reading more and more about rebuilding the 7m if you want a healthy and reliable ride. I'm still learning as I go, just to let you know.
Well I won't drive it very much if at all until I get the gasket and other seals replaced, so I should get that kit and then buy an OEM head gasket?
Well that company has the same kit on their website they also use ebay to sell it. Also a friend of mine said his friend bought that kit and said it was great for his MK3.
Also do the cams block the head bolts?
Also do the cams block the head bolts?
Alright guys I am going to do the job with a couple of friends who have done it before, so I can learn and save a lot of money lol. I will have the head checked out by my friend at his shop to see if it needs resurfacing and such but my question is about cleaning all of the parts. How and what should I use to clean the turbo, EGR valve, intake manifold, throttle body, etc.?
Doat;1833960 said:
$1500 for labor only on a full HG job isn't bad if they do everything right...
Doat;1834019 said:
Ebay gasket kits like that are ok, but I'd never use the headgasket and probably not any of the exhaust gaskets either.
Doat;1834045 said:
While this is a smart idea if you dont know what you're doing or if you dont have the tools, I'd start looking into getting the tools and experience yourself. Owning an old turbo'd sporty car like the mk3 can be a HUGE burden if you have to pay shops for work. Not to mention, that almost invariably, you will put more care into the work than a paid mechanic ever would.
Yea as I said in the post above I am doing the work myself to gain knowledge and such also I just love the idea of working on the car in the garage late at night.
remove head and send to a well known machine shop
have them check for cracks and warpage
more then likely they're going to say you'll need a valve job
have it done and make sure they replace your valve seals
FYI every lifter cup you remove needs to go back into the same place it was pulled from
so a good clean work area is ideal
as far as cleaning goes
i normally use brake cleaner...do not and i repeat do not spray brake cleaner on any seals or orings
it will just make the seals swell and leak
have them check for cracks and warpage
more then likely they're going to say you'll need a valve job
have it done and make sure they replace your valve seals
FYI every lifter cup you remove needs to go back into the same place it was pulled from
so a good clean work area is ideal
as far as cleaning goes
i normally use brake cleaner...do not and i repeat do not spray brake cleaner on any seals or orings
it will just make the seals swell and leak
I just wanted to add this because i almost lost a small important part white doing mine a few weeks ago. When you are removing cam gears, dont lose the pins that align them on the camshafts. they should be in the center hole and will probably stay on the cams. when you remove the cams they will likely fall out and will not be noticed. pull them when you pull the gears and put them in a safe spot!!
you can use that ebay gasket kit but get Toyota OEM gaskets for 1) the head gasket 2) the egr cooler plate 3) the throttle body
the rest will work well enough, especially if you improve their sealing qualities by applying copper spray and/or hylomar blue (depending on gasket application).
also, make sure you have a TSRM, or refer to the online one. get your torque specs right.
the rest will work well enough, especially if you improve their sealing qualities by applying copper spray and/or hylomar blue (depending on gasket application).
also, make sure you have a TSRM, or refer to the online one. get your torque specs right.
Thanks for the info everyone, the only con I have read with graphite gaskets are that they don't like oil but otherwise they are great, handle high heat very well and seal great. I won't use the ebay kit head gasket I am going with Felpro that is close to OEM if not the same. I don't plan on doing a deep clean and disassembling the entire head just clean out the EGR valve, clean the surface of the head and block, things like that. I do have a TSRM and will have that on my laptop next to me when I start working on it and I will follow ARP's instructions when I torque the head studs down and to do it all in sequence and slowly. I actually will do more than the 3 passes it says in the TSRM when removing and installing the head to ensure no warping or anything like that.