What should I do while the head is off to prevent more problems??

[Figit090]

I have a BHG...quite common so i wont ask what to do about that, i'm taking off the head myself, purchasing parts, and putting it back together after the head has been machined. I am NOT going for big HP...if anything i'll replace the intake because the rubber on mine is cracking around the clamping points and if i'm not careful it may leak. nothing more.

Questions;

I have white gunk in my oil passages, so far i have only dissasembled minor parts on the intake and hoses and i've seen it under the oil cap, in the PVC pipe (metal part that goes from the intake to the valve covers) and in the main oil tube that comes out of the right valve cover and goes down...somewhere. it's the big one at the very front of the cover.
WHAT should i do about that, i have heard that moisture will or can cause rod knock and i do not know for sure if there is moisture in my crankcase but i've drained it and and the oil didn't have the white sludge in it. I was hoping i could do something to prevent rod knock after i fix my headgasket...maybe somehow flush the crankcase and oil passages....i dont want to pull the engine, i have NO engine lift... and no job so money is a bit tight to spend on a lot stuff...but w/e i have to do.

When this was discovered i was running Prestone super flush through my cooling system for a flush which contains sodium citrate (68-04-2) and a friend mentioned that it could have harmed my engine internals because i left it in overnight instead of the 10 minutes of running its meant for (ran into a time issue). The following morning it's puffing white smoke once warmed up...damn it! does anyone know if this crap could have damaged my engine or water pump etc...?? It seemedto either burn much better than coolant and was eaiser to notice than coolant burning, or it just made the BHG worse.

I am starting full head dissasembly today, i have the hoses off and the intake it ready to come off. While it's apart should i shell out an extra 100 dollars for a whole Fel-pro gasket kit that includes every upper seal, or should i just get a head gasket? whats the best brand? i was thinking a toyota original or a Fel-pro... i dont know whats best..

last question; what needs to be removed in order to remove the oil pan? i was thinking that if i remove that i could see what's going on in there...

that's all for now...

 

[acetmi]

Good questions, I am in the process of a BHG too, answers to these would help

 

[trydrew]

Good questions, I am in the process of a BHG too, answers to these would help

:withstupi

Straight up answers.

 

[supra90turbo]

Use a Toyota gasket set.

Replace your valve stem seals, as they tend to dry out at our old age. Get Toyota ones. They are made of Viton and are much better than rubber. They are expensive, but you get what you pay for.

Do all new hoses. All. Get what you can at autoparts stores, Goodyear makes a line of formed heater hoses for our application. but the rest, Toyota.
If it's a coolant line and it feels really soft, replace it.
If it's rubber but feels rock solid, replace it.
Do a full flush using distilled water until crystal clear water comes out. Refill with toyota red coolant.

the oil pan, there are two ways.
1) remove the engine, place on a stand and do it there.
2) or, unbolt from the subframe, and hoist engine up a bit. unbolt the subframe and drop it down. Keep engine floating in mid air, and you've got easy access from under the car

both are a bit involved. choose wisely.

Why are you pulling the oil pan? To flush the engine?
If that's the case, don't do all that work. Let the engine do the work for you. When you put the head back on, obviously drain the oil that's in the car now. Then, fill with new oil. drive for 2 days and change the oil. Top off a full tank of fuel, and next time you fill up with gas, change the oil.
Change it more if you'd like. Don't use "engine oil flush" stuff, just change the oil more frequently than 3,000mi.
do it as much as you'd like.
it's always better to err on the side of caution in situations like this.

LMK if i missed anything. it's late and i'm a bit spacey.

 

[1TuffSupra]

+1 supra90, I bought a whole new gasket set to replace everything on my jdm motor. Its better to do it now rather than have to do it later. You might want to ask the machine shop how much they would charge to do a p&p job on your head since your taking it to them anyway.

 

[Figit090]

thanks for the info supra90turbo, and 1tuffsupra...how much would a P&P help HP/torque? that way when i ask i can judge if the $$ is worth it...i did a search quickly and got around 500..way too much for me to spend, especially on an N/A... unless i'm wrong with that price.

question;
the toyota gasket set...what does this include, every seal above the block AND the headgasket? do you know how much $$ that would be? i'm scared to buy toyota stuff...stealerships are nasty! i'm guessing the toyota headgasket is also better than other non-metal headgaskets such as FEL-PRO?

in responce to your question supra90, that was the reason i was thinking of pulling the oil pan, to make sure the crank was clean and all (if there is any) the white gunk and other possible moisture are out of there...

but i guess the oil flushes will get it out..if you say so. i have no idea how much pressure there actually is in the oil system when running the car... unless the gauge is accurate and that's psi... i dont know.

Would it help to take out the dipstick and oil cap after running to let the steam come out? that is...if there is any? i dont have the head off yet so i'm not sure as to the extent of the gasket failure. more tomorrow on that i hope...

 

[supra90turbo]

Just keep changing the oil. It will wash out all of the coolant over time. Use QUALITY oil filters. i.e. not fram.
hastings, wix, acdelco, toyota are all good filters.
Toyota filters are a good choice. Call up Jay Marks for OEM pricing. It's cheaper than you think. I believe that Champion Toyota is in the Misc Vendor's section.

Yes. The Toyota gasket set will come with every seal and gasket if I'm not mistaken. This includes the Headgasket, but not the Headbolts. Buy ARP head studs to reassemble the engine.
The Toyota headgasket is much better than the Fel-Pro. While it isn't metal, Toyota revised it to make it better at some point IIRC.
Buy a tube of FIPG from Toyota also. It should come in the Gasket Set, but if it doesn't, Toyota dealers have that in stock.
You can usually get past the local dealer's list pricing by feigning association with a local garage. It's not like they ask. I've done it before on several occasions.

 

[IJ.]

Kurt: The rear main cover Gasket ISN'T in any 7M gasket set I know of....

 

[supra90turbo]

Really? well then, get yourself one of them as well!
thanks for the clarification Ian!

 

[IJ.]

No probs Kurt been caught out with this a few times!

 

[Figit090]

rear main cover... cover of what? i'm just doing the headgasket...do i have to take that off? (i learn as i go...so work w/me here)

thanks for the further replies.

questions;
headbolts or headstuds? i read that it's a bitch to get the head on and off once they are installed but i guess they have benefits? I'd need help deciding on that... studs might cost more if i remember correctly, but they dont stretch as much? i could research this more i think...

Are the OEM/toyota bolts/studs (if updated since OEM) bad?

Here are some pics and questions about them;

here's the junk...maybe not really bad...but its there...its worse in some places that it chose to collect...

Here's a shot of the plenum removed... oil in the intake? umm...

What's this thing? it was attached to the intake plenum, goes inside..covered in carbon.

covers off...doesnt look bad...no gunk...just oil that looks a bit dirty...

close ups...

 

[Figit090]

there was a tiny bit of surface rust on one of the cam lumps because it's been sitting a couple weeks...and i drained the oil about halfway through that point, but its barly any and before packing it in for the night i soaked it all in WD40 and sprayed a liberal strem down into all the cylinders...

i'm hoping what i've done is enough to prevent any drastic problems...

I covered the valves/engine with a towel as well to keep moisture off. but there's enough wd40 on there to last a while, and my garage is dry so i'm not to worried...

 

[supramacist]

so you think that engine parts that get oil as lubrication are going to be good because you layed the wd40 to them. I'm not sure about that one fig. TThink of pocket knives that have rusted, you don't keep putting wd40 on them. they just keep rusting. If you have a cam that is rusting , I would be inclined to think there is a bigger problem somewhere but I don't know. my supe keeps me on my toes. I have used this long weekened to play catchup.

 

[Figit090]

umm...it's just a bit of spots because i drained the oil and left the oil cap off...so it was exposed to fresh air for a while. WD40 dissipates the oil, and i can understand how rust could continue underneath...i didn't think of that but it's fine...its not serious. i barely noticed it. the wd40 is just to keep moisture from getting at the surface because the cams are completely exposed. i covered the engine with a towel to so it should be ok...as far as i can see anyway.... :-/

i'm going to remove the head if i can tonight...but i might not be able to get the bolts off until i let them soak in penatrant...i dont know. i might not have time today.

 

[kntmikado]

Since this is an NA engine and big power isn't in the plans, seems to me you could get away with running ARP head bolts instead of studs. They cost less, and it's easier to get the head on.

 

[Figit090]

Since this is an NA engine and big power isn't in the plans, seems to me you could get away with running ARP head bolts instead of studs. They cost less, and it's easier to get the head on.

ok, thanks. lower $$ makes me smile :biglaugh: :biglaugh:

 

[1TuffSupra]

Here is a link to the flow numbers that defiant 7m provided in the FAQs. If your tight on funds I wouldnt worry about it, since it is really just something to do if your trying to wring every bit of power out of the motor. Locally ive been told 250-300 for a p&p on the head.

http://www.supramania.com/forums/showthread.php?t=54

 

[supra90turbo]

lol you don't think WD40 will stop rust supramacist?
let's break this down.
what causes rust? air with moisture in it, water.
what does WD40 stand for? Water Dispersant (40th try)

It will work. just keep the vulnerable parts covered.


btw that engine looks pretty clean

 

[Figit090]

lol you don't think WD40 will stop rust supramacist?
let's break this down.
what causes rust? air with moisture in it, water.
what does WD40 stand for? Water Dispersant (40th try)

It will work. just keep the vulnerable parts covered.


btw that engine looks pretty clean

well said. this stuff is good for everything! In nitro R/C we use it as after-run oil to keep our little 2-strokes from rusting... the fuel is alcohol/oil/nitromethane mix and our engines are prone to rust if we dont use some wd-40 like oil before storing for a while...

 

[edi]

When this was discovered i was running Prestone super flush through my cooling system for a flush which contains sodium citrate (68-04-2) and a friend mentioned that it could have harmed my engine internals because i left it in overnight instead of the 10 minutes of running its meant for (ran into a time issue). The following morning it's puffing white smoke once warmed up...damn it! does anyone know if this crap could have damaged my engine or water pump etc...?? It seemedto either burn much better than coolant and was eaiser to notice than coolant burning, or it just made the BHG worse.

i was just about to use Prestone Super Fush to flush my coolant system till i read this. is using Prestone Super Flush a bad idea?