Does this headgasket look blown to you? Just pulled the head off (PICS)

[BlueOvalStangGT]

Just got done pulling the head off( took about 3-4 hours total) and to my newbie eye, it doesnt exactly look blown. Then again last time I had a blown headgasket it didnt look blown either. Here are some pics

Heres my symptoms:

70psi compression
Oil getting blown out the dipstick
Car runs fine
Coolant looks good
Did a comp. test and then added oil and was no change
Lower Intake bolts were loose

Whatcha think? It doesnt look blown to me Can I take out my #8 piston without pulling the shortblock? Think my rings are gone?

 

[rocketcarx]

you kow what it is, don't doubt what you know. go with what the tests tell you.

its time to rebuild that bottom end. 306...

 

[mootang]

if it is blown there should be a burn mark on the gasket and i don't see any in the pictures.

 

[Trick95]

Doesn't look blown to me? cough...347...cough

 

[BlueOvalStangGT]

Cough..im..so..friggin..broke..and..need..money...for..college..cough

Plus if I did that I would have a 347 with stock heads and cam. Sounds pretty pointless. I think I am gonna buy a cheap car and take the insurance off the stang for a while until I get the money to afford stuff like this. Unless I could find a shortblock for cheap.

 

[94GTLaserRC]

Kevin...If you sell the Vortech, you could build a good 306/331/347 that will run stronger than 12.61, and cost you much less because of acquiring funds for the blower...Just a thought.

RC

 

[yellow1995Cobra]

Kevin...If you sell the Vortech, you could build a good 306/331/347 that will run stronger than 12.61, and cost you much less because of acquiring funds for the blower...Just a thought.

RC

Or he could just buy a stock bottom end for 200-400 bucks and get it running again.


I didnt know RC was the track time master

 

[94GTLaserRC]

I didnt know RC was the track time master

Im not but I DO know that a 12.61 with a "reliable" N/A car is easily attainable
RC

 

[bimmertech]

just a thought, have you put a staight edge and a feeler guage on your head and block to make sure that neither of them are warped. you can mill a head alot cheaper than a toatl rebuild.

 

[Jack's95gt]

On the last picture showing the cylinder head there is a difference in the color of the exhaust valves. I don't know if that means something. From what I seen of the head gaskets there wasn't any damage from denonation, but it is still possible that there was leakage.

If you just drain down the radiator you won't remove enough coolant from the block and coolant is going to flow into your cylinders when you pull the heads.

 

[yellow1995Cobra]

Im not but I DO know that a 12.61 with a "reliable" N/A car is easily attainable
RC

easily? How many h/c/i cars on this forum have went 12.6 or faster? How about 114mph in the 1/4?

He has a low 12/high 11 second car with practice, cool weather and the right tune. I would NOT get rid of the blower for a n/a combo. The n/a combo will cost him alot more then just buying some stock bottom end or changing the pistons/rings.

 

[yellow1995Cobra]

i had not even read the last part of his post. If he added the weighted oil, then tried the compression test again, and there was no change, that would = not the rings.

Maybe its one of the valves. DId you mess with the rockers at all before?

 

[stang_dan]

if the oil isnt milk then i would say your getting plow by the rings arent good and letting compression into your crank case case the oil to shoot out the dipstick had it happen on my buddys 350 eventy oil even shot out his carb.

just an thought

dan

 

[94-302-vert]

on the 2nd from the last picture what is the discoloration at the top of the cylinder ring on the head gasket. Looks like something was getting by there.

Check for a straight surface as it almost seems that you have a warped head or deck.

Chris

 

[Jack's95gt]

on the 2nd from the last picture what is the discoloration at the top of the cylinder ring on the head gasket. Looks like something was getting by there.

Check for a straight surface as it almost seems that you have a warped head or deck.

Chris

Good eye, I agree it looks like sometime was getting by there.
If everything is straight it's just new gaskets and new bolts.

 

[Big Jay]

Your gasket looked good. Your problem was the intake bolts. I bet your boost blow by has more to do with your loose bolts than anything. After torqueing the head torque the intake to 18-24ft/lb. Not just once. Like 10 times. Do it till they are all tight. And follow the torque sequence.
Next get some valve covers that have multiple breathers. Put K&Ns on the valvecovers. Either disconect the PVC valve or run a new one out to a nipple installed somewhere before the MAF. I would suggest just blocking it off. It will make the car stink a little but you will live.

The breathers will allow the crankcase to breathe (most stock valve covers won't cut it) and the PVC delete will reduce un-metered air to get into the engine (making the car idle better).

 

[Big Jay]

I would also suggest using ARP bolts. USE MOLY LUBE when torqueing them. And DO NOT over torque them.

 

[BlueOvalStangGT]

RC, I will not be going N/A anytime soon. Hopefully before 2006 I will have swapped to a turbo.

Yello95cobra- When I did that add oil test I didnt use very heavy oil(10w30 i think) and was unsure on how much to use so I dont know about that test. I found a explorer longblock for $800 with 63k miles on it. I figure I can sell the gt40p heads for 300 and the intake for 100 and then I would have a low mileage shortblock for 400. Wether or not thats gonna happen I dont know. About the valves, yes I did mess with the rockers, last time when I swapped headgaskets but that was ~5-6 months ago.

Big Jay- You really think my only problem here is the bolts? How would you explain the 70 psi compression in #8 then? I plan on swapping to ARP bolts/studs for the rebuild anyways but I would like a tell tale sign saying thats what it is before I put the car back together and I still have low compression. ANy other tests I could do?

 

[94gts]

did you reuse factory head bolts?

 

[Joes95GT]

Kevin,

Without actually seeing the gasket, it doesn't look like it's blown. Is it abnormally "wavy" (i.e. is the gasket still flat)? Also, since it looks like you have a good camera, try to get a few really good pictures of the number 8 cylinder. If the rings are chunked, we should be able to tell.

And, no, you can't pull the piston without yanking the shortblock.

Joe