Hey guys, I just bought an 86 pickup with 235,000 miles from some guy who told me they just replaced all valves and the timing chain. I immediately notice the famous oil leak where the cover meets the head and the front crank seal was slinging oil as well. So, I've got this tore down and decided to pull the pan and get all of the chunks out that he didn't. He told me he put on metal backed guides.....not so much. So my question is this.......did he have to remove the head to replace the valves? Compression is between 145-150 in each cylinder and it seemed to run ok besides timing being off 10 degrees. Basically, do you guys think i'll be good with just fixing the leaks and possibly retorquing the head? I just don't wanna miss something that could have been taken care of............I don't really trust this guy's maintenance and really don't appreciate that he lied to me........sorry for the long rant would appreciate any advice guys, thanks

 

I'd call him back up and scream through the phone, lol.

Otherwise, pull the pan, pull the head, and do things RIGHT.
It's honestly not a hard job at all, and you'll be thankful you did it.

Just remember, RTV Silicone makes those tchain gaskets just so much easier.

 

thanks for the advice. it just seems that the further i tear this thing apart, the more stuff i justify replacing. it's getting expensive quickly unfortunately

 

Yeah thats how it is, unfortunately. The way i see it, go buy a fel-pro gasket set, and just re-do all the gaskets and inspect everything.
If the tchain guides are all good, leave em, unless they're plastic, then replace em.

Heres a tip though, clean off everything as best as you can on the front of the block, then use a pretty high-grit sandpaper lightly to take down any old gasket material.

I found that the best way to get the gaskets to work on the tchain cover was to smear a light amount of RTV over the contact edges, then let the rtv tack up, then stick the gassket to that, then let it dry on that.. Then, when you go to put the tchain cover on, put rtv on the other side of the gasket, let it tack up, then bolt it on. This way, you don't run the risk of tearing those stupid gaskets..

 

yeah x2 on that, if its worth doing its worth doing right the first time

 

thanks for the insight guys. i've done a timing chain on my 88 4runner and did exactly as you guys said, putting a thin coat of fipg on both sides of the cover gasket and it worked great. upon closer inspection, it honestly appears that there is oil leaking between the head and block.............with this many miles (235,000) I think I should pull the head and inspect/replace components as necessary.................then that leads to the next obvious question..............what to do with the lower end......spent all i had on this "project" now i'm kinda bummed cause it's getting out of hand. well at least the engine will be solid when all is said and done what to do, as said before cmpression is between 145-150........should I just replace the head gasket and keep on truckin?

 

Replace HG, and run er.

Won't hurt it to have a lower compression, as l;ong as it's low across the board.
I mean, if you really wanted to, you could replace the bearings on the bottom end, then hone the cylinders and get new pistons/rings, but if it's not worth it to you then don't.

Now, if you find you have compression thats extremely low in one cylinder but high in the others, that might be cause for alarm. Could be rings, valve seals, etc.

 

thanks peow I've decided to throw a new hg on there and call it a day..........since compression was 145 for 1,2,3 and 150 on #4 is it crucial to take this head to the machine shop or should i be good to go with just replacing the hg?
i've never done a headgasket but worked on helicopters for a while so i'm not too worried about it, just wanna do the smart thing here......

 

Just my .02 but put a head stud kit in it. A trip to the machine shop to check for warpage is a good idea. If he did the valves it will show. Otherwise make sure to do the chain & guides. Your compression is good, not great but good enough, 5psi is not that meaningful.

I would run it till it blows. save my money and then get what you want.

 

like skypilot said, a trip to the machine shop to check for warpage is ideal, but 145-150 across the board is A-ok.

You could also get away with just using a steel straight edge to check for warpage. any highs or lows in diagonals and straight across will be the tell-tale sign

 

If the head isn't warped too severely you can resurface it yourself. Just need a perfectly flat surface and a large sheet of sandpaper, moving the head in a figure 8.

This is a pretty controversial method and, if done incorrectly, can cause premature head gasket failure. If you have the skills to do this correctly it will save you some money.