93 Cavalier 2.2L has bad head

[scooner]

I have a 1993 Cavalier w/ a 2.2L engine. Had a bad water pump and rear hose. Was using a gallon of water a day until it finally died!! I have diagnosed that the head cracked. What kind of job is it to change the head and gasket on this engine? I Know I can get a used head for around $40, but what am I looking at work-wise to swap it out to get this car running again? Keep in mind, I only paid $200 for the car as a winter rat, but it ran really well, and everything worked...so I wanna keep the cost low to repair it.

Thank you....
Scott

[86TATpi]

There's not too much to it. Disconnect wires and hoses from the intake manifold. Unbolt the exhaust manifold. Remove the altenator and alt bracket. Unbolt the power steering pump and bracket. Take off the belt tensioner, valve cover and unbolt the head. The head bolts are torque to yield. Don't reuse them. Make sure the block and head is clean. You may or may not find it easier to remove the intake manifold. I didn't have to. Torque and sequence is very important. They will have an added torque angle as well.

[public]

I have reused headbolts without issue many times. I know this is not recommended though. Just clean them well and clean the holes. What is torque to yield? I have never heard this term before. I just torque to the specified foot pounds.

This is a fairly easy job on this car. It only takes me about 4 hours including clean up. Leave the intake on as it is a real pain to install with the head on the car. Good Luck.

[thejacobhartman]

had a 93 sunbird with a cracked head, i went the new route and paid about $400 for everyhting. like he said it took about four hours. real quick and easy, as far as headbolts, its a good idea to replace them. yeha you can sometimes get away with it but it is worth the extra $20 not to have to put another head on it in two months

[public]

Like I said though, I've never had an issue. Just a habit from the "old days" when nobody thought to change them unless they were rusted or something. I agree, for $20 just replace em. I just like working on cars and have a couple of spares in case I need a ride.

[86TATpi]

Because aluminum is not as strong as older cast iron heads, if you look at the head bolts for the cavalier the top of the bolt stretches when you torque them (from the top of the thread to the head of the bolt). That allows the bolt to tighten and hold without damage to the head. I have reused them, but with added pressure from the car running, and the stretch from torque it may break the bolt when tightening them again. Basically just a precaution to insure it's as tight as it's supposed to be and nothing will happen to the bolts since they won't be as strong.

[public]

It is kinda sad. I have never had a new one for a Cavi to compare and see if it is stretched. But it only torques to 45 lbs and that will not stretch a grade 8 bolt. I have been around awhile and those bolts felt like grade 8 to me. I do not recall if they were marked or not. Maybe next time I will use new bolts, but don't hold your breath.

[grimesjm1]

torque-to-yield means that the torque spec is usually given , followed by a specific degree ( example torque to 90 ft lbs then turn 90 degrees.) the reason for this is in the last 90 degrees the bolts actually stretch, making the one time use bolts. the reason they stretch is tests havew shown that bolts have the strongest holding power at the point where they just begin to stretch. saure, they can be re-used, but their holding power is reduced drastically after they are removed from the head after their first use.

[public]

Thanks for the info. As for their holding power, I have one set that has been reused twice. That makes three times they have been installed. The last time was a couple of years ago. Sure hope they keep holding ;-)

[grimesjm1]

im not saying they won't work when re-used, im sure many people have done so and not had a problem. but for the $20.00 it costs to replace them, to me it just isn't worth the risk, but to each his own.