Blown Head Gasket... Oh Crap!!
Thread Starter
Le Mans Master
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 8,735
Likes: 412
From: WV
Blown Head Gasket... Oh Crap!!
Well, coming home the other day my 89 with the 383 motor starts missing real bad and the farther I drive the worse it misses... I get home and let it idle and there's white smoke coming out of the tail pipes, car has never overheated.I also noticed the coolant didn't get sucked back into the radiator after it cooled down overnight.... I have to run a compression test but I'm almost certain it's a head gasket, ( hopefully not a cracked head)...My question is, since the cylinders are bored 30 thousands over do I still use a stock size head gasket, I believe I do, but I just wanted to make sure?..I also have to mic the head gasket to see how thick it is, then take the heads to have them checked out...How many times do you retorque the heads after the install , and when do you retorque the heads?...This is a job I really didn't need right now, I think the 89 may be pissed off because I bought another Corvette a while back....
.....Thanks WW
.....Thanks WW
Burning Brakes
Joined: Nov 2016
Posts: 761
Likes: 79
From: Buchanan GA
Well, coming home the other day my 89 with the 383 motor starts missing real bad and the farther I drive the worse it misses... I get home and let it idle and there's white smoke coming out of the tail pipes, car has never overheated.I also noticed the coolant didn't get sucked back into the radiator after it cooled down overnight.... I have to run a compression test but I'm almost certain it's a head gasket, ( hopefully not a cracked head)...My question is, since the cylinders are bored 30 thousands over do I still use a stock size head gasket, I believe I do, but I just wanted to make sure?..I also have to mic the head gasket to see how thick it is, then take the heads to have them checked out...How many times do you retorque the heads after the install , and when do you retorque the heads?...This is a job I really didn't need right now, I think the 89 may be pissed off because I bought another Corvette a while back.........Thanks WW
.....Thanks WWOuch! A woman scorned. You take her out on a date and this is the tanks you get?!?!
Wish I could help. Very interested to see the answer though.
Thread Starter
Le Mans Master
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 8,735
Likes: 412
From: WV
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 3,482
Likes: 196
From: folsom california
use the stock size head gasket, you would think that a head gasket ID would be the same as the cylinder bore, but no they're considerably larger...in any case just look at the old gasket when you get the head off...all will be revealed
mic the head gaskets ? no. There are some thinner gaskets available, but no, the common head gasket .041 inch or so should be fine; with a stroker engine I wouldn't think that a thinner gasket would be beneficial and more likely deterimental, but then again I don't know the volume of the cylinder head combustion chambers that you're using
retorque? most modern head gaskets do not require retorquing...aka felpro permatorque... but again you should follow the manufacture's recommendations.
mic the head gaskets ? no. There are some thinner gaskets available, but no, the common head gasket .041 inch or so should be fine; with a stroker engine I wouldn't think that a thinner gasket would be beneficial and more likely deterimental, but then again I don't know the volume of the cylinder head combustion chambers that you're using
retorque? most modern head gaskets do not require retorquing...aka felpro permatorque... but again you should follow the manufacture's recommendations.
Last edited by mtwoolford; Apr 1, 2017 at 11:01 AM.
- 1986 Original Owner -
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From: North Yorkshire, England
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Wayne,
Sorry to hear about your problem. I'm pretty sure when Pete built your engine, he used Felpro 1003 gaskets which are .041" thick. Have you checked with Pete?
Sorry to hear about your problem. I'm pretty sure when Pete built your engine, he used Felpro 1003 gaskets which are .041" thick. Have you checked with Pete?
Le Mans Master
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 7,098
Likes: 378
From: Las Vegas - Just stop perpetuating myths please.
Your still diagnosing this. Leak could be gasket, head, intake even block. That compression test is very important. My advice is don't get ahead of yourself with this.
My sympathies and let us know what you find.
My sympathies and let us know what you find.
Thread Starter
Le Mans Master
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 8,735
Likes: 412
From: WV
...Nice to hear from you Ray....
...WW
Last edited by WW7; Apr 3, 2017 at 09:42 PM.
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Thread Starter
Le Mans Master
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 8,735
Likes: 412
From: WV
... But, I'm in no hurry and I do have my C6 to drive until the 89 is fixed.......WW
Heel & Toe
Joined: Jan 2017
Posts: 21
Likes: 0
From: Boise
Thread Starter
Le Mans Master
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 8,735
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From: WV
Well, it's all back together and running like new...It was a head gasket ( thank goodness) but I had the heads completely checked out and milled a few thousands just to make sure they were flat... I could see from the old head gasket that the number 7 cylinder had a crack in the metal band that seals the combustion chamber..I put new ARP bolts back in along with a Felpro 7733-TC2 gasket.. I really hope I never have to do this job again any time soon , but I did save myself about $2,000 from what the dealerships charge. This is not a hard job but very time consuming, and you have to make sure everything is very clean when reinstalling the heads. I had about 4 complete 8 hour days in the job total, but stretched it out over many weeks because of the many other things going on in the last 3 months.....WW
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..WW.
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Last edited by WW7; Jun 26, 2017 at 07:49 AM.
Oil Producer
Joined: Apr 2014
Posts: 9,375
Likes: 2,736
Well, it's all back together and running like new...It was a head gasket ( thank goodness) but I had the heads completely checked out and milled a few thousands just to make sure they were flat... I could see from the old head gasket that the number 7 cylinder had a crack in the metal band that seals the combustion chamber..I put new ARP bolts back in along with a Felpro 7733-TC2 gasket.. I really hope I never have to do this job again any time soon , but I did save myself about $2,000 from what the dealerships charge. This is not a hard job but very time consuming, and you have to make sure everything is very clean when reinstalling the heads. I had about 4 complete 8 hour days in the job total, but stretched it out over many weeks because of the many other things going on in the last 3 months.....WW
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..WW.
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well done!
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 2,269
Likes: 142
From: Ottawa Ontario
This is not a hard job but very time consuming, and you have to make sure everything is very clean when reinstalling the heads. I had about 4 complete 8 hour days in the job total, but stretched it out over many weeks because of the many other things going on in the last 3 months...
Drifting
Joined: Mar 2015
Posts: 1,275
Likes: 165
From: Utah
I dunno if it's to late, but make sure you get the head gasket thickness right.
very important due to quench in the SBC engine design.
If i had gone with a standard off of the shelf head gasket, my engine would not run as well as it does now.
If needed there is a whole thread talking about quench on the grumpys performance garage forum.
Just google "grumpys performance quench" should bring it up.
For my engine i needed a "shim" style head gasket, i ended up using a copper gasket.
Apparently they are supposed to be pretty tough.
very important due to quench in the SBC engine design.
If i had gone with a standard off of the shelf head gasket, my engine would not run as well as it does now.
If needed there is a whole thread talking about quench on the grumpys performance garage forum.
Just google "grumpys performance quench" should bring it up.
For my engine i needed a "shim" style head gasket, i ended up using a copper gasket.
Apparently they are supposed to be pretty tough.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 6,528
Likes: 752
From: South Dakota
Congratulations!
It is always a good feeling to get a job finished and working great.
To me that makes the car feel more like it is mine than if I didn't do anything to it or someone else did it. I (almost) always like working on cars and think it is fun especially when I save some money too.
Good job.
Thread Starter
Le Mans Master
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 8,735
Likes: 412
From: WV
Congratulations!
It is always a good feeling to get a job finished and working great.
To me that makes the car feel more like it is mine than if I didn't do anything to it or someone else did it. I (almost) always like working on cars and think it is fun especially when I save some money too.
Good job.
...WW
Safety Car
Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 3,842
Likes: 230
From: SANTA CRUZ CA
Thanks, Saving the money was great, but I agree that doing the job myself gave me a sense of accomplishment...I can almost guarantee you I did a better job then most of the shops would do , mostly because I took my time and made sure everything was perfect when putting it together..If a shop took the time to get everything perfect as I did , they would probably go out of business in a short time... ...WW
...WW