Another Coolant Loss Thread 1FZ

[crawlin40]

HG

A radiator cap fixed my problem when I lost coolant a year ago. Don't worry about it. Drive it enjoy get AAA when/if the HG goes on you so you can get it home. This list and the people on are AWSOME and will support you through the process. Factor in the cost of the repair (well documented here on MUD) whether you do it, or otherwise and in the meantime start saving some cash for two things: A good beater which can be had for $1k or less these days, and the parts/mechanic to do the head. The beater is cheap insurance so when the HG goes you will evaluate the situation and approach it with a clear mind and not rush the repair as you will have a backup DD. Remember what any repair costs, think of it in terms of new car payments and you will feel better about putting that cash in the 80. 6 months of $400 car payments gets you a new HG or add 78 months of payments and have a new rig! That is even more queezy to think about than a HG. Good luck.

 

[85badger]

A radiator cap fixed my problem when I lost coolant a year ago. Don't worry about it. Drive it enjoy get AAA when/if the HG goes on you so you can get it home. This list and the people on are AWSOME and will support you through the process. Factor in the cost of the repair (well documented here on MUD) whether you do it, or otherwise and in the meantime start saving some cash for two things: A good beater which can be had for $1k or less these days, and the parts/mechanic to do the head. The beater is cheap insurance so when the HG goes you will evaluate the situation and approach it with a clear mind and not rush the repair as you will have a backup DD. Remember what any repair costs, think of it in terms of new car payments and you will feel better about putting that cash in the 80. 6 months of $400 car payments gets you a new HG or add 78 months of payments and have a new rig! That is even more queezy to think about than a HG. Good luck.

As stated above, it's blowing coolant, I think it'll stay in the garage until I get the HG replaced. We've got two other vehicles to drive, so I'm covered one that...

 

[firetruck41]

That camera work pretty well? Decent picture? I saw it at harbor freight, would be a kinda cool toy to have. Don't know that I would use it much, but when you do, it would be invaluable.

I just replaced my HG, kind of a long job, I was apprehensive about removing the cams, screwing up the timing/chain, distributoretc. In the end, it was not rocket science, pretty straightforward. I labeled everything with blue masking tape/sharpie, and put every nut and bolt in labeled ziplock bags, and took a bunch of pics prior to disassembly. I had a machine shop pressure test the head (for cracks), vac test the valves (good, did not need valve grind), and resurfaced the head for ~$100, if it needed a valve grind, it would have been $350 total. I should have had them install the valve stem seals that come in the HG kit, but instead I spent a whole afternoon/evening doing it myself. I got my parts from cruiserdan, it was painless and they shipped the next day.

 

[85badger]

That camera work pretty well? Decent picture? I saw it at harbor freight, would be a kinda cool toy to have. Don't know that I would use it much, but when you do, it would be invaluable.

I just replaced my HG, kind of a long job, I was apprehensive about removing the cams, screwing up the timing/chain, distributoretc. In the end, it was not rocket science, pretty straightforward. I labeled everything with blue masking tape/sharpie, and put every nut and bolt in labeled ziplock bags, and took a bunch of pics prior to disassembly. I had a machine shop pressure test the head (for cracks), vac test the valves (good, did not need valve grind), and resurfaced the head for ~$100, if it needed a valve grind, it would have been $350 total. I should have had them install the valve stem seals that come in the HG kit, but instead I spent a whole afternoon/evening doing it myself. I got my parts from cruiserdan, it was painless and they shipped the next day.

firetruck41: The camera worked great! It took sometime to figure out what I was looking at or for. I ended up using the little mirror attachment that allowed me to see the back of the head. I figured the $70 was worth it, so I could actually see the coolant seeping out between and it might come in handy down the road....my 10yr son thought it was awesome and I can see him using it in his spy gear stuff!

I too am a bit apprehensive about replacing this, but I don't want to take it to a shop (got screwed big time on a 3.0 v-6 HG replacement), so I figure if I take my time, get the HG DVD and hopefully get it done right! I'm going to tear into it on monday.......

 

[robertaleon]

It can be done and good excuse for more tools - probably some more trips to HF for some little stuff like extensions -you ned alot along with a gasket scraper and bottle brushes if you're going all in and cleaning the intake, TB, etc.

My $0.02 - get, beg, borrow, steal (not really) a good torque wrench. I have a couple HF ones for torqueing wheels and compared with my father-in-law's SnapOn 1/4, 3/8, and 1/2 wrench and they matched pull for pull but feel much better with a quality torque wrench.

Depending on your experience some can do this in 2 full days while others take a couple of months. My point - take your time; life comes up, watch the video, read the FSM and research here and ask folks here - they're all great, helpful folks. HG is fresh in my mind as well as FireTruck's.

It's a great learning experience. And post lots of pix!

Good luck

 

[BrotherRob]

If you can, post the pictures from the camera. It might make for some interesting viewing and forum fodder.

 

[85badger]

Update:
The tear down has gone well so far, not really too much to it just a lot of stuff that has to come off. I still have the lower intake, fuel rail and fuel injectors to come off. I've probably got about 3hrs into tearing it down.

I'm really on the fence as far as replacing the timing chain....

I also have a few casualties:
1. Air intake rubber tube has a huge crack in it, its toast so I need a new/used one.
2. One of the little clips for the fuel injectors broke how do I fix this? I doubt it will stay put. Wire it onto the injector or replace the whole thing?

 

[firetruck41]

Update:
The tear down has gone well so far, not really too much to it just a lot of stuff that has to come off. I still have the lower intake, fuel rail and fuel injectors to come off. I've probably got about 3hrs into tearing it down.

I'm really on the fence as far as replacing the timing chain....

I also have a few casualties:
1. Air intake rubber tube has a huge crack in it, its toast so I need a new/used one.
2. One of the little clips for the fuel injectors broke how do I fix this? I doubt it will stay put. Wire it onto the injector or replace the whole thing?

1. If you can swing it, I would get a new one, only because it is common for these things to crack over time, so a used one will have the same vulnerability, having been subjected to underhood temperatures/chemicals for more than a decade.

2. Not sure what you mean, do you mean a clip on the connector on the harness? if so, I think you can buy the connector and replace it, the EWD has info on that. You can remove the wire and the posts and then re-insert into a new connector, IIRC. This is from memory of some dash connectors, so I assume you can do the same... I would want to make sure the injector wiring/connections are as good as possible.

 

[85badger]

1. If you can swing it, I would get a new one, only because it is common for these things to crack over time, so a used one will have the same vulnerability, having been subjected to underhood temperatures/chemicals for more than a decade.

2. Not sure what you mean, do you mean a clip on the connector on the harness? if so, I think you can buy the connector and replace it, the EWD has info on that. You can remove the wire and the posts and then re-insert into a new connector, IIRC. This is from memory of some dash connectors, so I assume you can do the same... I would want to make sure the injector wiring/connections are as good as possible.

I guess, I need to call CDan to get a new air tube sent with all the other stuff

Yes, its the connector that clips to the fuel injector, you have to press down on this, it "clicks" or in my case breaks off! That would be great if I could replace the whole connector.

 

[firetruck41]

Pretty sure you can replace the connector, if you have the EWD manual, you can look it up, and find the actual connector p/n, but if you are calling cdan, maybe just ask him and get one ordered. You can also get a ??(forget what it is called in the manual) couple inches of wire with the metal pin affixed to the end. That is the way to go, if you need to splice a damaged wire/end. Might be a good idea to order a couple for that connector, in case you damage a wire/end removing it from the old connector. they are a buck or three each. The EWD also tells how to remove the wire/end from each type of connector.

 

[85badger]

I've tried to get in touch with IdahoDoug about the HG DVD, but haven't heard anything, even sent the paypal.....
Does anyone in the Wichita, Ks area have one that I can borrow, until I get mine?

Here are a few pics of the leaking LC:

Tear down in progress

 

[85badger]

Well, got the head off tonight! What a PITA! So, looking at the gasket I'm not seeing the carnage on #6 as I was expecting, must have caught it very early. While man handling the head off the block, I must have broke the tip off the PS slipper, is this going to mean a mandatory timing chain replacement? I'm sure I did something wrong, probably should have zip tied the whole thing...I bet 10 bucks that was covered in the DVD that I don't have yet. I also broke a sensor off the block with the loose intake manifold! Good times! Will post some pics tomorrow

 

[robertaleon]

Looks very familar! All that mess running down the driveway - obvious you're not in California.

And "yes" those bits are addressed in the DVD. Doug goes away on extended vacations from time to time so he may be unreachable or try a PM again.

A couple of threads here point out the zip tying of the timing gear - I ended up with three: 10 o'clock position, 2 o'clock position, and a tight one at the tip of the slipper to hold everything nice, tight, and high so you don't slip a tooth. Can you find the bit that chipped off? Gonna let stay in there? How big of a piece (pix perhaps)?

Are you going to have a shop evaluate the head? That might be why you don't see too much carnage on the gasket; the head may be warped - that was the culprit on mine. I also notice you don't have a Mr. T # plate on your head (pix #2) near the water inlet. Is this the truck's first HG job? Aftermarket casts (like mine) will not have these and the machine shop found my head decked so far before that it was indicative of a poor aftermarket cast or from a head/cylinder exchange. I hope you don't find the same results as mine.

 

[85badger]

Looks very familar! All that mess running down the driveway - obvious you're not in California.

And "yes" those bits are addressed in the DVD. Doug goes away on extended vacations from time to time so he may be unreachable or try a PM again.

A couple of threads here point out the zip tying of the timing gear - I ended up with three: 10 o'clock position, 2 o'clock position, and a tight one at the tip of the slipper to hold everything nice, tight, and high so you don't slip a tooth. Can you find the bit that chipped off? Gonna let stay in there? How big of a piece (pix perhaps)?

Are you going to have a shop evaluate the head? That might be why you don't see too much carnage on the gasket; the head may be warped - that was the culprit on mine. I also notice you don't have a Mr. T # plate on your head (pix #2) near the water inlet. Is this the truck's first HG job? Aftermarket casts (like mine) will not have these and the machine shop found my head decked so far before that it was indicative of a poor aftermarket cast or from a head/cylinder exchange. I hope you don't find the same results as mine.

Yes, I will be having a shop check out the head, hope all is well with it...

I missed the whole zip tie all over the place...I found the piece that broke off.

Here is one of the gasket....

Not sure about the Mr. T number plate, this is above the coolant bypass?

and one parting shot of the whole damn mess!

 

[85badger]

1. The big question of the day is, because I snapped that piece off of the slipper, would you change the timing chain?

2. I do have some leaks down below so that would be a good time to fix them, pull oil pan, front crank seal.....anything else while/if I'm down there?

 

[robertaleon]

IMHO - front of the motor would be coming off. It may be extreme but the "What if" factor would consume me. Others will probably have differing opinions I'm sure. New slipper and chain would be on order

If you're that far (taking front off), I would definately be replacing the front main seal, oil pump cover gasket, and dizzy o-ring. Some may even suggest if you're going that far (front off and pan off) to think of checking bottom bearings, etc.

This job can take some strange paths.

FYI - clean your oil cooler while the exhaust is off. I think $20 in gaskets and it will be ugly in there (see my sig for my HG thread), especially if the cooling system wasn't properly flushed.

 

[85badger]

IMHO - front of the motor would be coming off. It may be extreme but the "What if" factor would consume me. Others will probably have differing opinions I'm sure. New slipper and chain would be on order

If you're that far (taking front off), I would definately be replacing the front main seal, oil pump cover gasket, and dizzy o-ring. Some may even suggest if you're going that far (front off and pan off) to think of checking bottom bearings, etc.

This job can take some strange paths.

FYI - clean your oil cooler while the exhaust is off. I think $20 in gaskets and it will be ugly in there (see my sig for my HG thread), especially if the cooling system wasn't properly flushed.

I just read through your HG job, I sure hope my head is OK, will find out tomorrow. Is that hologram deal a known fact (original head)? I added a pic of that area, (earlier post) it's not on mine. I sort of work with the PO of mine and he says, no engine work had been done, nothing that major anyway...

Thanks for the advice on the timing chain, guess I'll tear into that and also fix the oil pan leaks at the same time.

I'm starting to wonder what I'm working with and starting to question my abilities to get this done....this is a daunting task!

 

[robertaleon]

Purely anecdotal - some do and some don't. It may be on later (>95) vehicles.

Examples:

(#33)
https://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-tech/192239-head-gasket-blues-2.html
#197
https://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-tech/432477-1fzfe-overhaul-10.html
#1
https://forum.ih8mud.com/80-series-tech/480546-head-gasket-job-underway.html

 

[85badger]

Dropped the head off at a very reputable machine shop, as I was walking out the door I asked how long? He said 4 weeks! I left it there but I'm thinking about taking it somewhere else. I want to get this done, what should I do?

 

[firetruck41]

I got mine back in less than 24hrs. They did pressure test, vac test the valves (good, no valve grind needed), resurface. It was $100, would have been $350 and 2 days, if they needed to do valve grind. A couple other places were estimating about 1 week turn around with valve grind, and were a little more expensive.