Head Gasket

[steve8895]

Hi All,
Quick question if anyone can help ?
I am in the middle of renewing my head gasket and noticed that the gasket I removed has small holes ( 5mm ) for the water flow. Does this not restrict flow of water across the engine and is it supposed to.
I found it strange as the shape on the head and cylinder is is more of a slot ?
Any advice would be great
thanks
Steve

[andysd1]

the gasket should sit flush with all the holes on the block, have you got the new one yet, no over laping of the holes,

[4x4 bobby]

There are a few types of gasket as i found and you must get the correct one I had to use chassis number to get the right one.

Good luck mate.

[steve8895]

Hi Andy and anyone else out there
I have attached pictures of head and cylinder,
I have not bought the gasket kit yet but have been quoted £70 incl VAT. This includes new bolts and is from a small company round the corner from were I work. They have been recommended to me and have been there donkeys. They also pressure test and skim heads. i also need a couple of new exhaust manifold studs as previous owner had it repaired and they did a catastrophic repair that I did not know about when I bought the car 3 months ago and they will not give any warranty.Let me know what you think. underneath the gasket on the cylinder picture the slot is one long slot on each side of bore.
Cheers Steve

[4x4 bobby]

You could do with having the head skimed if its not been done allready.

[steve8895]

Hi again,
head was skimmed previously and do not think it will cope with another so hoping it is ok
Steve

[BUMPTJ]

Hi mate, £70inc vat for the head set and bolts is a fairly decent price but you should be able to get them down to £60. There is only 1 set listed on that year and engine, and comparing the pics of the one we stock to the one on the car they look the same. The reason for the difference in size on the holes in the head to the gasket is that if the holes were the same size then the water circulation aRound the engine would be too slow, so by restricting the flow with the gasket the water flow is increased. Italso stops cavitation at the water pump

[steve8895]

Cheers for info to everyone,
Really appreciate all your advice.
Steve

[fogman]

hi mate the gasket looks exactly the same as that on mine, you said that the head had been skimmed when the gasket was changed quite recently by the previous owner so judging by their bodge up of the manifold studs wouldnt it be prudent to get the local company who are going to supply the gasket set to check the head before reassembley ? if your heads shot then it would be better to know at this stage because it will only go again ! ! !

[Spike]

I would never take an alloy head off an engine without having it checked and skimmed prior to refitting... Any decent mechanic would advise that........

[jcv1968]

I always make sure the mating surfaces are absolutely spotless before fitting new gaskets. If you use a metal scaper you must be very carefull not to dig the aluminium. There are now plasticscrapers available that do an ok job but takes longer than traditional methods but doesnt mark the metal. I have a 500mm engineers steel rule that I use to check for any distortion, Its not fool proof, but is a cheep method of checking. Does the gasket kit come with all the other gaskets? If not it can get quite expensive by the time you've got all the others. I paid £65 for the last one I did and that came with everthing. Good luck anyway.

[steve8895]

Hi Alll,
i am having the head pressure tested monday and hopefully as mentioned it does not need skimming. And all exhaust studs replaced that need to be.
they are providing me with full gasket kit so should be able to do a proper job after these cowboys.
cheers for advice everyone

[fogman]

you will find that theres loads of air that is reluctant to leave the so called "self bleeding system" make sure your heaters in the hot position when refilling & we found that gently releasing the heater matrix pipe allowed the air to escape but it did take quite a long time , also make sure you get the correct antifreeze/coolant, red coloured, hope all goes well

might help - viewtopic.php?f=2&t=92

anyone know how much the system takes ? its handy to know how much has gone in i cant remember & i know A friend posted it for me but im buggered if i can find it

[steve8895]

Cheers for info Fogman,
let you know how i get on
cheers
Steve