Well, as some of you know, i have had a recurring misfire in #4 cylinder.. IF it is the coolant leak( havnt had the chance to check the #4 plug yet) how hard is this to fix?

What all would i need to get, just a head gasket set? Which brand is the best?

And can i do this myself, or is it best to take it to the shop? the on-base auto hobby guys(ase Certified) said head gasket jobs usually take 7-9 weeks because they pull the heads and send them to an off-base shop that checks the heads for cracks, and cleans them up.. They also said its pretty expensive..

So what do you guys think? Should i attempt it myself, or what? I cannot afford for my truck to be down that long though.. A week TOPS..

 

i had the same problem. i done the job my self i used felpro gaskets and get new head bolts too while ya are their. i had the truck tour down in 2 hours the longest part was geting the heads checked. i had a crack in the coolent port for the #4 cylender they were able to fix it tho. its probley a 2 day job. at the most just depends on how fast your machine shop is

 

so i should def. take the heads to get them checked..

 

how much did you spend on the gaskets and bolts? And what would a good price be to get the heads checked out? i dont want to get raped..

 

hey i had the same issue.. i had coolant leaking into cylander 3.. and i was blowing spark plugs every few weeks and it started up VERRRY rough for about 30 seconds after ignition untill it got the coolant out... i fixed it for $2.40.... the leak was pretty small i was loosing about half my extra coolant over a month.. so i used some powder stop leak.. and it fixed it almost instantly.. its been a few months since and i havnt had any issues yet.

 

hmmm.. so you just put it in the radiator? or where did you put it?

 

yea right in the radiator.. i forget the brand i used.. but it was just a lil plastic tube of powder stuff... i was pretty surprised it worked that well tho

 

hmm.. anyone else recommend trying this first? I swear though, im not loosing any coolant, every time i check the radiator, its at the exact same spot!

 

im not sure then, it could be something else maby? it was pretty obvious i had a coolant leak when it happen to me tho.. the line slowly went down :( but there was never any coolant on the ground..

i dont think the stop leak would cause any harm tho?

 

yeah, i have yet to notice any decrease in coolent level.. i have been checking pretty regularly.. Ill have to check it again, but If there is it has the be the smallest leak EVER lol..

 

it could be.. but im not claiming to be an expert here lol..

it started out as just a few drops a day for me i think..
i didn't check it too frequently.. n i didn't wana bring it to a shop cause i was in school n couldn't afford to..
and i do recall it got slightly worse over time for me, and thats probably why i could see it leaking faster.

 

yeah, mine is wierd.. i think i may just take it to my local mechanic off -base and have him figure it out lol..

 

I will bet your head is cracked. I just went thru this...check my project thread for a step by step on what it took for me to fix it.

https://www.ranger-forums.com/forum2...r-rebuild.html

 

hey lucas you do know that the powder stuff is only a temporary fix right? and i don't think hes got a cracked head i think he has a small hole in his head gasket. is your engine coolant level going down?

 

Well, i havnt checked it in about 10 days( been on TDY), but it hasnt been drivin in that time either.. The last 4 times i checked it(over 2 weeks) the level stayed exactly the same, never went down..

Ill check the plugs when i get there on sunday..

 

the #4 cylinder is the first or second one on the pass. side? Looking at the truck

 

standing in fount of the truck its on the right side closest to the fan belt. my gasket set i wanna say was around 200 for the bolts and gaskets thats the complete head gasket set has everything needed to seal her back up

 

I'm 90% sure I have a bad crack some where on my passenger side, and all i did for now is put in some stuff from advance auto parts that comes in a tube and its like a power thing and you put it in your radiator and drive around for a while and it gets in all the cracks and dead ends and seals up, then to fix my compression whenever i feel misfires i get a can of restore compression stuff because i cant afford to be without a car for even a day anymore.

 

If you go through the entire process of tearing the topside of the motor off, why would you not take the time to have the heads checked? You will then know if the head(s) is cracked and causing the misfire or if the head gaskets were the culprit. It sure would suck if you tore it down and still had the misfire after the gaskets were changed. Take the time and do it right the first time and it will save you down the road.

 

If your radiator isnt going down, check your coolant recovery tank, id bet it is going down. My dads 93 had an intake gasket leaking coolant and i put 2 bars stop leak pellets on it and never had a problem again, the current owner is driving it problem free too

 

i dont know if its been suggested but liquid glass a.k.a sodium silicate

 

Last time I had a head checked, maybe 10 years ago, it was $125, and yes you should do that every time because there could be cracks you can't see or warping. The tear down isn't hard it just takes time, and you have to leave extra time in case you run into a stripped bolt.

I did the head gasket on my former 1994 B2300. Gasket set is about $100 or less. You can get new bolts or you can get a tap and die set, which is what I did, and just restore the threads on the bolts and the holes to new. Obviously have to get the metal bits out of the holes.

Don't be afraid of the job if you have a leaking gasket. Better to fix right it on your terms than to have it really go at an inconvenient time/place and have to pay someone else. Just go slow and by the book.

 

ive heard that liquid glass is some good stuff

 

Getting a head checked should be cheap. At my familys shop we charge $4 a cylinder to check for cracks on cast iron heads and $6 a cyl on aluminum heads. To do a full vavle job on the head if it is not cracked we would charge $110. That would include, degreasing head, sandblasting, grinding seats and valves and resurfacing.

 

Ok, so heres the plan, Doesnt look like the boss is going to give me any comp. time for the last two TDY's he sent me on, so it looks like this weekend i will ahve to work on everything.. My plan is to HOPEFULLY be able to finish the body lift on friday, and with whatever time i have left start working on checking the plugs. and if there is stuff on the plug, should i be able to drive it until i get a gasket set?