97 Trans Sport Head Removal ! Need Help !

[Bob1942]

Follow UP on "Transport Head " I bought a Code reader on the internet it is coming ... I checked all the connectors and they all seem to be plugged in ...It will be interesting to see what the ODD2 code is when the reader comes... The Trans Sport engine really sounds good now ... BOB

[Bob1942]

I got a code reader a CREADER on Ebay Cost was 50 bucks with shipping ...Works good it cleared the codes and none have returned (SO FAR ) Now I am starting to fix the little things on this "Fixer-Upper" the heater /AC blower motor Does not work on all speeds and I found the resistor is fried .. So I need one of those yet and the Rear wiper does not work just goes click click ... I have decided this is not just a car to fix up
IT IS A CAREER ! BOB

[Bob1942]

WELL IT IS RUNNING GREAT ! We now have around 250 miles on it since the repairs and all is well ...We got 26.6 MPG with the first tank of gas ! ... THANKS EVERYONE FOR YOUR HELP ! ....BOB

[Bob1942]

FINAL FOLLOW UP on Head removal ...Well I now have 2000 miles on the Trans Sport since the "head / valve job " even drove it to downtown Chicago twice that was 100+ miles each way ... Trans Sport Runs great ,Idle is smooth and quiet ... THANKS TO CHRIS- CDRU and all you other guys too who replied to my "thread" for my successfully completed major repair ... BOB in MICHIGAN

[iceman2]

Bob or Chris and all, I too have a 1997 Trans Port in need of new head gaskets and will begin this project this coming weekend. I will have the luxury of a full garage with lift and mechanic who will guide me on this, although I have to do all of the work. Sounds like you guys nailed it! Any last minute tips or pointers? My plan is to tear everything down this weekend, then go back in the following weekend and put it all back together with new gaskets. My mechanic recommends taking the heads to a machine shop for inspection? (Sounds expensive!) Also, just curious, Chris, you recommend OEM parts, yet these are the ones that have failed, and lastly, was there ever a factory recall for this problem?

Thanks to all

[Bob1942]

Originally Posted by iceman2

Bob or Chris and all, I too have a 1997 Trans Port in need of new head gaskets and will begin this project this coming weekend. I will have the luxury of a full garage with lift and mechanic who will guide me on this, although I have to do all of the work. Sounds like you guys nailed it! Any last minute tips or pointers? My plan is to tear everything down this weekend, then go back in the following weekend and put it all back together with new gaskets. My mechanic recommends taking the heads to a machine shop for inspection? (Sounds expensive!) Also, just curious, Chris, you recommend OEM parts, yet these are the ones that have failed, and lastly, was there ever a factory recall for this problem?

Thanks to all

ICEMAN
It has been sometime since I did the Transport head job ...Mine had one bad valve #3...I got a whole new set of exhaust valves on Ebay and took the heads to a auto machine shop to be checked he reground two valve seats and said everything was ok ...Would you belive he charged me 12 dollars ! ...I took the heads home assembled the valves and poured a little kerosene in back of each valve to be sure it did not leak ...Next I got gaskets at the GM dealer because Chris advised it ...GM made changes in the gaskets to fix some pesky leaking problems, the other gasket makers may not have made the changes ! so I highly recommend GM gaskets ...They did not cost much more than at the auto parts store ...I worked in an Automotive Factory as a mechanic I told the GM parts man I was a retired factory auto mechanic and he gave me a discount ! not a big one but hey it saved me a few bucks ...When I did the job I changed the alternator and belt too because the car had 103,000 miles on it that was easy with the heads off ...The Alternator is VERY HARD to change you have to lower the engine or take the heads off so I changed it , cost was 200 bucks at the Zone ...Chris recommended that I unbolt the exhaust joint on the right side of the engine and take the manifold off with the back head , this makes the job easier he said (and it Was ! ) you put it back together that way too... I broke one manifold bolt off on the head then I used PB Blaster on the rest of the manifold bolts and did not break another one ...Squirt the blaster on a bolt work the bolt back and forth a tiny bit to get the blaster penetrating oil in there and work the manifold bolts out back and forth a little like you were tapping a hole and they will come out ok ...The blaster keeps the bolt from seizing in the aluminum ...The bolt I broke off I drilled out and re tapped the hole ...Your new GM intake manifold gasket is a special low torque gasket ! it will come with special instructions as to torque and which bolts to tighten in which sequence ! follow them to the letter... One thing I would recommend is to take out the lifters while you have it apart , take the lifters apart, examine them make sure they are ok and clean them up ... Be sure you put them back in the same spot they came out of ...I did not clean the lifters and my engine went TICK,TICK ,TICK until it had warmed up... I think it was the dirty lifters I should have cleaned them ...Another thing I did was when I got it back together I flushed the engine twice with water then installed the regular green antifreeze and distilled water I do not like the orange stuff ...I traded the Transport off recently with 13,000 miles on it since I did the head job ... I was quite proud of my work other than the ticking at start up it ran like a new car ! Thats all I can think of hope it helps you , good luck with your Transport head job this weekend ! ...Bob in Michigan

[Bob1942]

Originally Posted by Bob1942

ICEMAN
It has been sometime since I did the Transport head job ...Mine had one bad valve #3...I got a whole new set of exhaust valves on Ebay and took the heads to a auto machine shop to be checked he reground two valve seats and said everything was ok ...Would you belive he charged me 12 dollars ! ...I took the heads home assembled the valves and poured a little kerosene in back of each valve to be sure it did not leak ...Next I got gaskets at the GM dealer because Chris advised it ...GM made changes in the gaskets to fix some pesky leaking problems, the other gasket makers may not have made the changes ! so I highly recommend GM gaskets ...They did not cost much more than at the auto parts store ...I worked in an Automotive Factory as a mechanic I told the GM parts man I was a retired factory auto mechanic and he gave me a discount ! not a big one but hey it saved me a few bucks ...When I did the job I changed the alternator and belt too because the car had 103,000 miles on it that was easy with the heads off ...The Alternator is VERY HARD to change you have to lower the engine or take the heads off so I changed it , cost was 200 bucks at the Zone ...Chris recommended that I unbolt the exhaust joint on the right side of the engine and take the manifold off with the back head , this makes the job easier he said (and it Was ! ) you put it back together that way too... I broke one manifold bolt off on the head then I used PB Blaster on the rest of the manifold bolts and did not break another one ...Squirt the blaster on a bolt work the bolt back and forth a tiny bit to get the blaster penetrating oil in there and work the manifold bolts out back and forth a little like you were tapping a hole and they will come out ok ...The blaster keeps the bolt from seizing in the aluminum ...The bolt I broke off I drilled out and re tapped the hole ...Your new GM intake manifold gasket is a special low torque gasket ! it will come with special instructions as to torque and which bolts to tighten in which sequence ! follow them to the letter... One thing I would recommend is to take out the lifters while you have it apart , take the lifters apart, examine them make sure they are ok and clean them up ... Be sure you put them back in the same spot they came out of ...I did not clean the lifters and my engine went TICK,TICK ,TICK until it had warmed up... I think it was the dirty lifters I should have cleaned them ...Another thing I did was when I got it back together I flushed the engine twice with water then installed the regular green antifreeze and distilled water I do not like the orange stuff ...I traded the Transport off recently with 13,000 miles on it since I did the head job ... I was quite proud of my work other than the ticking at start up it ran like a new car ! Thats all I can think of hope it helps you , good luck with your Transport head job this weekend ! ...Bob in Michigan

I just thought of a couple more things ...When I did the Transport valve job I took lots and lots of pictures with my digital camera then when I put it back together I went back to the pictures to see how things went together...This helped a lot ...Another thing I did is I got a box of small zip lock bags at the grocery and when I took something off the car I put all the bolts and small parts into a zip lock bag then I label it on the outside with a permanent marker so I know where they go ... This helped a lot too ...

The wiring on the Transport is not much of a problem on some cars you have to mark all the plugs and things but on the Transport I had to mark only a few electrical items because the plugs are all different sizes so you can't get them plugged in wrong they won't fit ...

BOB

[iceman2]

Thanks, Bob, I'm going in tomorrow. A friend of mine is from England and he's moving back there this summer, he gave me the van, I plan on using it for the beach here in coastal Virginia, I've do some projects with engines, but nothing like this. I'll have the luxury of an experienced mechanic showing me the way, he said it would take him four hours to break it down. Good advice about the zip lock bags and alternator, my goal is to keep overall cost below $600, including the inspection by the machine shop.

Mark

[iceman2]

Sludge! Sludge! Everywhere, took eight hours to get the manifold oof, have not removed the heads yet, beginning to wonder if this is worth the trouble.

[iceman2]

I just thought of a couple more things ...When I did the Transport valve job I took lots and lots of pictures with my digital camera then when I put it back together I went back to the pictures to see how things went together...This helped a lot ...Another thing I did is I got a box of small zip lock bags at the grocery and when I took something off the car I put all the bolts and small parts into a zip lock bag then I label it on the outside with a permanent marker so I know where they go ... This helped a lot too ...


Bob, do you still have those digital photos?

[iceman2]

Thanks to all the posters, especially Bob and Chris. After approximately 12 or so man hours spread out over 4 Saturdays, I finally got the heads off - what a pain! The steps posted in http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbul...=321467&page=8 for the removal of the intake manifolds on a Chevy Venture were right on the money. I quickly took the heads to the machine shop, but they're back-logged, arrrgh! I want to get them back on before I forget everything. The hardest part for me was the ignition coil pack, I removed each of the six screws and the three coils, rotated the engine forward with a rope, tied it off to the bumper, and was able to get the coil bracket off, I then removed the alternator, and bracket - got real lucky I did it in that order, because the bracket was needed to pull the engine forward, I was then able to remove the rear valve cover, and everything went fast from there, removed the rear head with the exhaust manifold and cross-over pipe still attached, however the oxygen sensor and the stainless steel shiny flexible hose (egr, maybe?) were still attached so I just separated the exhaust manifold from the rear head while still in the engine well. Turns out the cylinder closest to the front passenger seat (standing in front of the vehicle, looking into the engine well, the cylinder farthest back to the left) was full of antifreeze, my buddy told me that was where it was leaking, he also doesn’t believe the heads sustained any damage. Is there anything I can do in the mean time while waiting for the heads to come back that may help speed up the installation?

Mark

[iceman2]

If anyone's still out there, do you know if you can re-install everything, including valve cover and coil assembly, to rear head before installing head back on the block? I thought I read somewhere along the way it was possible to do this. Is this even an issue?