[RESOLVED] blew head gasket again. need suggestions

[lazer1985]

alright well this will be the 2nd blown head gasket in a year..

a year ago when i first bought the car i had a blown head gasket so i got that fixed but the mechanic didnt replace the head cause he thought it would be fine. well it wasnt fine so what he ended up doin is getting a different head that wasnt warped and put it in. well for what ever reason i had a bad feeling so i checked my oil a week ago and i saw a ity tiny bit of white residue. i figured i would wait to see if it got worse to diagnose the problem. well i checked it today and oh yeah . coolant on my oil cap like no ones business..

my question is what is my next move? i want to fix the car because i want to keep it. the car is not overheating so i dont think(or at least i hope) the head isnt warped. suggestions????


on a side note: this may sound stupid but bear with me......i know it is slightly cold out but it seems like my exhaust throws out more smoke than average......even if it is borderline cold it will smoke quite a bit and when its warmer out no smoke. even after the car has been on for a while and all warmed up it still smokes quite a bit. it did this before the head gasket blew. could it be bevause of the header and exhaust? would that cause more exhaust smoke to come out or is there another cause?


i really appreciate all your help and thanks in advance

 

[cruisintalonawd]

i would take the block out and take both it and the head to get it checked by a machine shop.....very slim possibility your block could be worn. What head gasket are you using

 

[lazer1985]

i would take the block out and take both it and the head to get it checked by a machine shop.....very slim possibility your block could be worn. What head gasket are you using

to be honest i am not sure what head gasket it is. my mechanic is the one the got it. i am sure it is probably one of the sets from like autozone or something.

 

[meliketoball]

to be honest i am not sure what head gasket it is. my mechanic is the one the got it. i am sure it is probably one of the sets from like autozone or something.

There is your problem. Probably a felpro; there's a reason why you do all your work yourself. To the place where you got your car "fixed" ask your technician if he guarantees warranty for his work.

But yeah, something may be warped. If you didn't take your head to get it re-surfaced then who knows ya know?

 

[lazer1985]

There is your problem. Probably a felpro; there's a reason why you do all your work yourself. To the place where you got your car "fixed" ask your technician if he guarantees warranty for his work.

But yeah, something may be warped. If you didn't take your head to get it re-surfaced then who knows ya know?

well last time the head gasket was replaced so was the head. the mechanic was a friends family friend and he did it for 100 bucks so no big deal there. is there a better head gasket i could get so it doesnt happen again? i am gonna take it o MY family mechanic to whom i should of gone to in the first place but he was busy....

again thanks to everyone who replies

 

[jesselee69]

Is it a heat issue or a pressure issue?

well last time the head gasket was replaced so was the head. the mechanic was a friends family friend and he did it for 100 bucks so no big deal there. is there a better head gasket i could get so it doesnt happen again? i am gonna take it o MY family mechanic to whom i should of gone to in the first place but he was busy....

again thanks to everyone who replies

 

[lazer1985]

Is it a heat issue or a pressure issue?

that i am not sure of. i mean its not overheating....at least not yet. and as far as a pressure issue, are there any symptoms that would tell me its a pressure issue?

 

[RSTeclipse97]

JUst because its not overheating doesnt mean its not a prob. It could just have a small enough leak that you dont notice and thats why you have the smoke and oil on the cap. I would def get the block checked since it was aparently overheated before to have to change the gasket. Its a shame you dont live close to me because i still have my old block that threw a bearing and you could just switch your internals in it and be back in and running in no time. Hell if anybody needs one let me know

 

[cruisintalonawd]

There is your problem. Probably a felpro; there's a reason why you do all your work yourself. To the place where you got your car "fixed" ask your technician if he guarantees warranty for his work.

But yeah, something may be warped. If you didn't take your head to get it re-surfaced then who knows ya know?

whats wrong with felpro????

 

[snox135]

Your excessive smoke is probably coming from the antifreeze burning in the combustion cambers.

 

[bastarddsm]

having whiteish oil on your oil cap is normal during the cold months. I doubt your head gasket is blown. what do your plugs look like? abnormal buildup? exhaust smell sweet? Is your oil getting over full? are you losing coolant? is the cooling system getting pressureized?

 

[bastarddsm]

whats wrong with felpro????

absolutly nothing. they probably have gotten a bad rap around here from people expecting them to take the same abuse as a MLS gasket. People not in the know view topics like this as " if it works on domestics it obviously can't work on a dsm."

 

[meliketoball]

I like felpro but, I wouldn't use them for a head gasket. I would use them for other gaskets such as for the valve cover but not for a HG. keekee.

 

[bastarddsm]

Out of curiosity why not for a headgasket?

 

[JeffGST]

I currently use a Felpro on my Talon. It's just a very cheap composite material gasket that won't take a ton of abuse if you knock a lot. The reason why it works for me is because I have SS O-rings machined into my head. The rings dig into the gasket and provide a great combustion chamber seal.

If you don't have your block or head O-ringed, then just get a MLS Mitsu Gasket and make sure both the block deck and head are clean and smooth.

EDIT: I also choose to use a cheap gasket because it acts like a fuse. I rather blow a head gasket than crack a block or throw a rod. If something is going wrong inside the engine the HG should blow. No big deal, just swap in a new one.

 

[turboglenn]

I have a felpro HG in my car and it's been pushed to 28psi with no ill effects, but i do have ARP head studs. THey make a HUGE difference in what your HG can take because they won't lift and stretch under high boost situations or deonation

 

[cruisintalonawd]

anyone know what kind of HG does shep and rau use????

 

[bastarddsm]

Orings..sheps block is hardblokked so he probably has a dry deck with only coolant running through the head. so just orings around the bores and oil passages... mebbe a cooper gasket too. basically its pretty standard racecar shit

 

[99gst_racer]

anyone know what kind of HG does shep and rau use????

Rau has been running the Felpro MLS ever since Marco has been building his engines.

Other than the HKS MLS, it's probably the only MLS gasket that I would ever consider running.

Prior to running the Felrpo gasket, he was using a Mitsu MLS and copper o-rings.

 

[cruisintalonawd]

How does a head or a block get O-ringed?????

 

[99gst_racer]

How does a head or a block get O-ringed?????

It's a matter of cutting a small groove around the sealing surface of each cylinder on either the head surface or the block deck. Then a wire (either copper or stainless steel) is inserted into the groove. It's slight protrusion presses into the head gasket, thereby offering a superior seal. See my picture gallery for pictures of an o-ring'd block.

For more info, check out this thread:

http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/cyl...t-o-ringed-merged-2-7-o-ring-oring-block.html

 

[lazer1985]

having whiteish oil on your oil cap is normal during the cold months. I doubt your head gasket is blown.

well i went and got it checked out and you sir are correct. mechanic said that it is just condensation and it is completly normal.. so he told me not to worry

thanks to everyone who put their .02 cents in my problem is now resolved

 

[Littlebeeper]

i'm with Turboglen, i use Felpro HG. Is it the best, when compared to copper or MLS nope, but it does a very good job. I push 20 lbs and have yet to have one fail. but, as it was brought up, i would rather have the HG fail than the head or block. I monitor Knock all the time though, and am very careful with the Talon's health. of course if your building a 400+ hp motor then use something better. 3 dsm with Felpro gaskets and no failures don't lie. they do get a bad rap, i was skeptical when doing research on here but i trust them now that i'm familiar with them.

glad you don't have to tear into your car. i still have to check out what the knocking is on my other DSM (91 Laser RS)