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Car back on the road (was the gasket sealant Q)


Guest bastaad525

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Guest bastaad525

Getting ready to put the head back on my car (FINALLY!!!) and need to make a last minute run to the auto parts store... anyways, one thing I was wondering:

 

As far as I've ever seen it done, whenever a new intake/exhaust manifold gasket is installed, it's usually just installed dry... right? I was thinking... well actually I seem to remember reading someone, somewhere, suggesting to spray copper spray onto the manifold gasket before installation. Has anyone ever done/heard of this? Is it a good idea? A friend suggested using the high temp silicone but I dont see silicone working well on the super hot exhaust manifold and would rather not, unless that is what i'm supposed to do?? What's the best bet for keeping it from blowing out or leaking?

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Guest bastaad525

Also, and I know this is a subjective thing, but, considering that coolant did get into the oil from the blown gasket, and I want to run some regular clean oil thru there just to 'flush' it out a bit before going back to synthetic, I was wondering, what is a good suggestion as to the number of times I should change the oil, so that it would be safe enough to drive daily again w/o worrying about the water in there?

 

I'm thinking, as soon as I get it all back together, put in the new oil and filter (just regular Castrol), start it up, let it warm up, then drain. From there though I dunno, should I do this more than once? Should I use any 'engine cleaners' like Marvel Mystery Oil? I dont want to do it too many times, maybe once or twice tops, unless you guys think I really need to do it more than that.

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If the intake manifold gasket is paper, what you can do is get it wet just before installing the manifold. Install it and start the car up. The heat from the block will dry the gasket to the surfaces and essentially seal everything up. Of course, this only works if you're ready to start the car up and the only thing you have to do is put the manifold on as you don't have all day to work with it.

 

As to the oil change, I'd drain it really good, put new oil in it, run it for a while, then drain, as you said. I'd only wonder exactly how long to run it, whether just until warm, or for 20 miles, or whatever...

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Guest bastaad525

yeah it was one of the paper ones with the metal inside. Anyways... I went ahead and sprayed the copper spray on it. I hope this wont cause me any problems in the future! I find that I constantly have problems with leaking manifold gaskets, or actually, with the exhaust manifold bolts working loose. And I torque the HELL outta them! Well, everything went smoothly yesterday, got the motor back together in about 3 hours, filled it up with regular castrol, started it up and it was smoking like crazy! Even after warming up for 15 minutes was still smoking, so I about had a heart attack (this is exactly what happened last time I had the head rebuilt, put it back on and suddenly my rings were bad!!) so I took it for a ride around the block... thank the lord by the time I got back the smoking had gone away :shock::D Then I drained the castrol... no signs of any leftover water in it, and refilled with Mobil 1. So far all seems well, though I haven't driven it again since then. I did turn the boost down a bit to about 9 psi... just to be cautious, I still dont think detonation or running lean had anything to do with the gasket failure, but I'm not taking any chances. Even at 9psi... wow... I had forgotten how fast this car feels (been driving my wifes '89 prelude for the last few weeks) scared the hell outta me the first time I floored it. Well... back on track now I guess but still so much to do, so my happiness at the car running again was kinda tempered by that. The thing still reaks of burning gear oil from the tranny leaking onto the exhaust. My front suspension is of course as wobbly as ever.... and I still need my I/C installed and an FPR... Well anyways, definately glad to have it back on the road :) think I'll go for a spin while it's still cool out!

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Guest bastaad525

Tim - nah dude you gotta understand... this wasn't really a case of me overreacting to a blown head gasket... hell I've taken the head off this thing, what... four times in less than a year? Me and my friend have gotten so good we could probably do it with our eyes closed... I knew fixing it wouldn't be that big of a deal nor really cost much. It's just, when the car broke down, and now my wifes schedule is the exact same as mine... sharing her car was not an option any more. And it's kinda hard to bum rides from friends to and from work at 11pm and 6am... bus was not an option as no bus stops near my job that late either. So to NOT sell the car did not even seem like an option at that point... LUCKILY our tax refunds showed up just in time, and we were able to find a car that my wife liked so quickly, leaving me with another car to get around in. Now that we have a third car, if anything else goes wrong with the Z it wont be this urgency of not being able to get to work, so I wont be so anxious to get rid of it.

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