its official my head gasket blew yesterday on the way home from new castle
so im miniless for while hopefully not to long
im going to do it myself to save the money so itll be interesting ivenever changed a head gasket before and i think while its off the road ill take the engine out clean up the engine and engine bay get it looking good for minis down under
and hints anybody has to make this job easier for a first timer like myself would be much appreciated and also where will i get a head gasket set from id like to get it by next weekend im aiming to get the engine out on saturday change the head gasket by sunday then start the clean up and put the engine back in the weekend after

also here what the oil cap looked like

cheers bob

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1978 NUGGET GOLD 1275 LS

any of the mini places..... order a "valve grind gasket set", and since it's a 1275, ask for a BK450 head gasket.

if you don't already have a workshop manual, get one, and read all the relevant sections before you start

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did I tell you that I won a trophy?

Head Gasket is easy to do..

Main thing is MAKE SURE you give the push rods a jiggle when you remove them so that you don't pull the cam followers with it.

I wouldn't pull the engine out.

It'll take you a couple of hours at most (first time) and you'll have it back on the road.

Plenty of time until mini's down under to remove the engine and clean it up at a time that's convienient and if you do it closer to october it wont get as dirty after you've gone to all the trouble of cleaning it

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Starlet Conversion:
http://www.ausmini.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=15484

Hmmm...
On one hand you are asking for advice on how too and then talking about taking out the engine.

You dont have to lift the engine out to do a head gasket but you are wise to send the removed head to a recondition shop to have the head skimmed to make sure the head is flat and straight. At the same time they will hot dip it to clean out all the crud in the water ways and probably (ask them too anyway) check the valve guidesfor wear and replace them if necessary. They would also then re-face valves and valve seats.

If you choose not to do all that - changing a head gasket is a couple of hours work, you will need a valve regrind kit (Karcraft - next day delivery by post- about $40) a good torque wrench and a manual. Tips - loosen all head bolts/nuts in the reverve order to the order of tightening them (as recommended by the manual). Take off the rocker gear and then remove the push rods and place them somewhere in the order they came out. Give each one a litttle shake as you start to lift it so that it lets go of the cam follower.

Undo the brass inlet and exhaust manifold nuts (after taking off the air-cleaner, of course) and slip the manifold out of the way without undoing the choke and accelerator cables but do remember to undo and remove the fuel line from the carby first.

DO NOT - DO NOT try to lever the head up using a screw driver or similar device. That will only damage both the both the head and the block surface. Just take off the spark plug leads (they have to come off anyway) and give the ignition a quick blip with the key. The compression that causes will separate the head from the block and you can just like it up over the studs. I have not mentioned lots of littel other things that need to be undone such as the top radiator hose, the heater by-pass hose etc.

Taking out the engine is an entirely different operation and not necessarily part of replacing a head gasket. That bit is your call.

when the head is off clean it up and run a straight edge along the head face and the block to make sure theres no warping
Undo bolts in correct order and i would be checking for any craking in the head to just give it a good look over

why did it blow did it overheat???

cheers guys yea i know you dont need to take the engine out to do the head gasket but i want to clean the engine up and i think i may need to change the clutch plate it was slipping on the way home , the head gasket couldnt cause that could it ??
on friday night i drove to newcastle and i could feel it wasnt right but as i got then when it was dark i couldnt check it so first thing saturday morning before i left to come home i did the usual check oil water top em up and then i noticed the oil cap
so i then had to drive it back home to sydney keeping the revs low i sat on about 80 90 ks the whole way home (very slow trip) and now its parked in the garage with the bonnet off ready to be worked on

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1978 NUGGET GOLD 1275 LS

Check or replace your thermostat while you are there....they can cause overheating problems (where you end up blowing a head gasket).

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"Show me the Mini!"

thermo has just recentlybeen changed and i was keeping an eye on the temperature the hwole way up there it did got above 3/4 checked the water it was full so no overheating there
theres nothing else that it could be it was prbly just its time to go

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1978 NUGGET GOLD 1275 LS

anybody no of a place where i can get the head crack tested out west i was told there is a place in stmarys or dunheved

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1978 NUGGET GOLD 1275 LS

Also dont forget to buy yourself a decent tension wrench such as a Sidchrome, Kingchrome etc.. Dont trust those cheap tension wrenches as they will only cause you grief...

No idea where you can get the head tested out this way.. But you could try calling up Repco at Minchnbury or try Pep Parts at St Marys I have found them always to be be very helpful.

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Opinions expressed by me are of my opinion only and are copyrighted to Kinkabell Corporation? 2006.

Let your fingers do the walking

Any competant engine machine shop (reconditioner) can and will do crack testing.

When you take - get them to check the head all over at the same time. I have been told that 70% of all A series heads warp over time.

yeah i will get them to check for warping to see if i need to get the head shaved or not
im hoping to get the head of by saturday and get it in to get tested as soon as possible
i hate not having a car
looks like im riding the pushbike to work tomorrow
cheers bob

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1978 NUGGET GOLD 1275 LS

Hi -comp engines on eddie rd minchinbury can do the job there and a little port and polish too

nice and close thats what i look yeah i know where they are
any body know a rough price that would cost
and what exactly does a port and polish do
more power??

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1978 NUGGET GOLD 1275 LS

based on country prices - you are looking at about $100 for crack test, hot dip and a surface skim. A full head service (that may include new vavle guides etc) shouldn't cost more than $250 in total.

Port and polish ( a very loose term for head modifications) is a very high detail labour demanding procedure. You pay for the labour and a good head may give give you little change out of $1,000. It certainly gives you heaps more power than the standard engine.

Bear in mind, its also tied to other modifications such as carbies and exhaust (at a minimum ) and if you are looking at small bore motor that only had about 50 HP to start with, then a 50% increase sounds remarkable but it is only 70 hp at the end of the day. Haviing said that, it helps you broach Gladesville Bridge at the same rate as other traffic.