How To Remove ACylinder Head On A GTE

[ash anderson]

hi all,
does some1 have aguide to removing a cylinder head never performed such a task on a car, doen the usual brakes-gearbox ... but my headgasket has gone so it needs taking off
anyhelp would be muchly appreciated on what i need to watch out for etc

[Shaun_O'Donnell]

Just the orientation of loosening the head bolts. A haynes manual would be useful.

[Stuart]

Haynes has the best guide.

[craig green]

Agree on getting a Haynes.

However on a GTE.

Airbox off, drain coolant - remove pipes from matrix & radiator etc, remove neg terminal, release alt belt.
Drain oil, (mark poition) - remove dizzy, unplug ECU loom from main plug on firewall. Undo the downpipe from exh manifold.

Carefully check for plugged in wires & coolant hoses etc (accel cable).. Uniformly undo head bolts & lift head incl inlet/exh mainifolds away from block.

[ash anderson]

do you take the injectin system off after you have taken the cylinder head off?
i have a haynes manual i shall dig it out!

[Shaun_O'Donnell]

Shouldn't need to unless the head is needing skimmed I'd say.

[ash anderson]

also how do i get top dead centre

[Stuart]

rotate the bottom end round till the TDC marks line up... if you have a dizzy'd 1.6 engine then its really easy as you pop the dizzy cap off and check that the rotor arm is aimed at Cyl 1 (top right as you look at it from the passenger side.... I hope my memory is right)

[ash anderson]

Shouldn't need to unless the head is needing skimmed I'd say.


i think the head may need skimming when havinga head gasket done doesnt it? thats all im replacing

[Shaun_O'Donnell]

Not unless the head is warped.

[ash anderson]

rotate the bottom end round till the TDC marks line up... if you have a dizzy'd 1.6 engine then its really easy as you pop the dizzy cap off and check that the rotor arm is aimed at Cyl 1 (top right as you look at it from the passenger side.... I hope my memory is right)

your memory is right thanks for the help the mark on the crankshaft pully is also 1 tooth off inline with the pully housing mark is this correct?

[craig green]

Get the head skimmed if the gasket has failed. Makes no sense to waste all that time, effort & parts only to have to pull it all aprt again in a months time.

[ash anderson]

how do i slaken the crank shaft pully belt? undo the alternator belt:confused:

[Shaun_O'Donnell]

Are you talking about the timing belt?

[ash anderson]

Are you talking about the timing belt?

its the belt that goes round the pully? i carnt see any tension brackets etc

[Shaun_O'Donnell]

An inch wide and toothed in the inside?

[ash anderson]

An inch wide and toothed in the inside?

i aint sure the belt that goes round the pully need to slacken it off to get the valve head off? as the belt is still on the pully which im thinking is stoping me from taking the valve head off as i have undone bots etc bracket beneath dizzy ETC

[Shaun_O'Donnell]

That's the timing belt. To slacken, you need to loosen the water pump and rotate it.

[Stuart]

might aswell get a new water pump and seal as the existing one will fail when you refit it

[ash anderson]

it looks like the head gasket has gone on all 4 cylinders,
heres some pics

Cylinder 1

http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u312/ash180890/PICT0167.jpg


Cylinder 2

http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u312/ash180890/PICT0168.jpg


Cylinder 3

http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u312/ash180890/PICT0169.jpg


Cylinder 4

http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u312/ash180890/PICT0170.jpg

just woundering if what people think to the black burnt marks round the edge of the (cylinder) Gasket? does this represent that the owner before didnt tork the head corectly-or do you think this gasket looks fine?

[Adam]

Probably wasnt torqued down right.

Id get the lightest possible skim on the head to be sure.

[ash anderson]

[quote=Adam]Probably wasnt torqued down right.
Id get the lightest possible skim on the head to be sure.[/quote

would the head not being torked down correctly, cause my cylinder head to warp itself?

[Adam]

Can do, because if the bolts are done to different tightnesses, each bolt is obviously putting a different clamping force onto parts of the head.....

[ash anderson]

Can do, because if the bolts are done to different tightnesses, each bolt is obviously putting a different clamping force onto parts of the head.....

i shall update after i have been to the machine shop:thumb:

[ash anderson]

here is my cylinder head its a bit of a dog see most of the stained bits, also what would be the best too clean this up ready for new gasket
just normal sand paper-or is there any kind of chemical i can buy?


http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u312/ash180890/PICT01682.jpg

http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u312/ash180890/PICT01672.jpg

[brainsnova]

haynes as i done my first cylinder gasket when i was 16 :D

[ash anderson]

good work:thumb:
im barely 19 enjoyed every minute of it tbh,
i think i was scared of messing the thing up, i have lack of mechanicle knowlege when it comes down to stuff like that but always the 1st time-im glad i done it even if i do spend the same on cock ups as the labour would cost me in a garage-i enjoyed every minute of it:cool:

[craig green]

No need to clean it really, take care of the head face (that mates with the block). A totally clean head will coke up to run at the optimum anyway.

When my hobby was popping head gaskets on my 1600 turbo, I got to know how to do it pretty quickly.

[ash anderson]

No need to clean it really, take care of the head face (that mates with the block). A totally clean head will coke up to run at the optimum anyway.

When my hobby was popping head gaskets on my 1600 turbo, I got to know how to do it pretty quickly.

took me about 2hours to remove but im sure id be able to do it alot quicker next time:thumb: thanks for your healp evryone