changing my head gasket.

[POScar49]

i am not a mechanic. i have never done a job lyk this before. i took a shop class last year in highschool, but thatss about it. i know the step by step procedure. BUT, im sure theres sumthing i should watch out for? is there anything i should pay extra careful attention to while taking apart, and reinstalling everything? and how do u turn the crankshaft? i think i can figure out everything else. that and taking off/putting on timing belt is my 2 main concerns at the moment.

[91civicDXdude]

jack the car up and either turn your wheels all the way to the left or take the driver's side wheel off. you will see a bolt on the crank pulley. put a socket with extension on there and turn it counter clockwise to turn the crank/engine over.

the timing belt issue was just discussed in a previous post, but i'll repost the information.

The best way to do the timing belt is to set the engine at TDC (top dead center) which means to line up the white mark by itself (there are three other marks together which are the timing marks) on the crank pulley with the sights on the timing cover which are located to the rear of the engine mount. loosen the timing belt tensioner and remove the belt itself, remove the head, replace the gasket, then replace the head without turning the cam gear. make sure the head is still lined up in TDC (the - - marks will be lined up parallel to the head and the lower / mark will be lined up with the pointer on the timing cover).

replace the timing belt, turn the engine over about 1/4 turn, then tighten up the timing belt tensioner.

[POScar49]

wat do u mean by "turn the engine over 1/4 turn"?

[vesper]

make sure you replace the distributor o-ring. if you dont you will have oil pouring out of you head.
also put some sealant around the dizzy tie down.

[91civicDXdude]

Originally Posted by POScar49

wat do u mean by "turn the engine over 1/4 turn"?

put a ratchet on the crank pulley and turn it 1/4 turn counter clockwise.

[CRX-Crooks]

Scew All That Sh#$ And Pay The Extra Money At A Mechanic Shop

[91civicDXdude]

Originally Posted by CRX-Crooks

Scew All That Sh#$ And Pay The Extra Money At A Mechanic Shop

the same mechanics shop that *you* buy your Nawz or headers or vtech at?

come on... changing a head gasket is VERY EASY.

[Masta]

Originally Posted by 91civicDXdude

the same mechanics shop that *you* buy your Nawz or headers or vtech at?

come on... changing a head gasket is VERY EASY.

ouch

[jeef]

biggest thing to do is make sure the mating surfaces are in great shape, make sure all of the old gasket is off and there are no scratches, check to be sure the head/block aren't warped either while its apart...

[lilol89crx]

Quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally Posted by CRX-Crooks
Scew All That Sh#$ And Pay The Extra Money At A Mechanic Shop
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

the same mechanics shop that *you* buy your Nawz or headers or vtech at?

come on... changing a head gasket is VERY EASY

: lmfao where can i buy vtech?

[JimCRX]

It's not hard as it sounds. Just take your time and label every hose/connection that you take apart. Also, makesure you got all the tools you need, like a gasket scraper to clean the old on off. And use a copper head gasket, you can just get a head gasket at autozone and buy some copper spray and spray it good. Makesure you got all your marks on the Cam Gear and Timing Belt. Besides that stuff, use those little twisty ties to tie the cam gear in place, just makesure once the head is off the cam gear dont move outa place. Good luck man!

[travagliante]

Originally Posted by jeef

biggest thing to do is make sure the mating surfaces are in great shape, make sure all of the old gasket is off and there are no scratches, check to be sure the head/block aren't warped either while its apart...

Yes no scratches, so dont use a paint scraper, chizel, or screwdriver to take it off!!!

[CZ-R]

Could this thread get any funnier???

Just do what 91civicDXdude said & you'll be fine. One other suggestion I'll make is to mark the timing belt (which you should probably replace if it hasn't been done already) and the cam gear with White-Out or some sort of chalk. Just so the teeth are in the same spots as they were when you took everything apart.

It's not a difficult task. Just take your time & we're here if you have any other questions