animal8526

k guys, for those of you who are in the know on this... what is the difficulty level of replacing a headgasket on an 82 euro? eg, what special tools needed, how long, potential problems, and what else should be done at the same time... oh, and parts cost?

thanks everyone, your help is always appreciated.

animal8526

bump bumpity bump bump.

hinchcliffe

I think its easier to pull the engine on the early cars. I believe the studs are locked into the block and the heads can't come off easily whist in the car? Or is that just the '85-'86? If the studs are threaded into the block, you should be able to double jam nut them and use that like a hex bolt and screw them out?

Richard S

I would pull the engine. Buy a gasket kit, (it comes with valve seals). Clean up and re-seal the whole engine, not a very hard or complicated job. Believe me, it is very easy with the engine on a stand. Just keep everything in order, and organised. You can replace all the dried out hoses easily, clean out the engine bay, etc etc. Cost? Maybe $500 if you already have tools, hoist, stand, etc. Price goes up if you need machine work on the head, new valves, new lifters, etc. Time? Maybe 4-7 hrs to remove engine (depending on experience), one day to disassemble, figure a couple more to clean everything and get head worked on if needed, 1-2 days to reassemble, and another day to install engine. (BTW, these days won't be "in a row", it will more than likely be over a few weekends) I have a write-up for all the steps required to remove a CIS engine if you want it. Good luck.

Rich

animal8526

thanks guys... just a Q... and I am almost afraid to hear the answer... how much would the machine work on the heads cost me if I needed it... I mean, howmuch could it cost?

hinchcliffe

All depends on whats needed. If it just a surface refinish to flat maybe $100ish. If there any crack that need weld and then refinished price quickly goes upwards.

Airflite40

I tackled this job on my 80 Euro S 1.5 years ago with the engine in the car. I wish I had been able to remove it but at the time I did not have garage space to do so. I would recommend pulling out the engine since it is not that hard. I pulled the engine and replaced it by myself without too much hassle.
If you plan on leaving the engine in make sure you buy the cam removal tool from 928 motorsports since it is especially important to remove the cam allen head bolt intact cause if you strip one it is a huge pain to get it free. If this happens let me know I can help you.
Good luck.

RyanPerrella

Borys

I have a 90 GT engine on a stand with a stripped cam bolt, that impedded me from removing the cams and thus the head, any tips, i know its head is not at all similiar to your 16V engine but i would imagine it used the same triple square socket, what can you recomend for removing a stripped tripple square?

Ryan

Airflite40

Well Ryan, I am not familiar with the S4 cam covers, but the problem for me was that the engine was in the car, and the top row of 6mm hex bolts holding the cam towers to the head are recessed within the housing. To remove them you have to remove a small plug and you can reach the bolt through the small hole. The bolt head is about 5 inches from the opening. Due to the fact the engine was in the car, there was no feasible way for me to drill it out. So after much searching and head scratching I devised this recipe:
1. Dremel tool
-not cordless since you need to grind for a while.
2. An older style dremel flex tool
-the older style has a thinner shaft that is able to pass through the cam bolt hole. You might be able to get them on ebay. If you cant find one PM me.
3. Some carbide cutting bits from www.widgetsupply.com
-the standard dremel bits do not last against the bolt. I bought many different kinds before I found this one and man does it work. Like a knife through butter.
4. A Steady hand.
-On the 16v, the cams are mere inches from where you are grinding. I was able to control the bit enough to leave the cam unmarked.

The basic idea is to grind off the head of the bolt enough to release the cam tower. I know that Tony has also been able to use a dremel with a cutting disk to notch the head of the bolt and remove with a screwdriver on an S4 head.
Hopefully this helps.

GlenL

Whether to replace the head gaskets in-car or out-of-car depends on what's going to happen. Spend 4 hours getting fuel lines off? Strip out cam tower bolt? In other words you won't know until too late.

Having done both, you might go with in-car and if it goes badly then pull the engine. Let me add that removing the 9 bolts along the bottom of each cam tower ranks as my least favorite 928 job ever. Yes, ever!

The head work varies by what you want and what's found. Figure $250 to inspect and plane the pair. Goes toward $500 for valve stem guides and ground valves and seats. Figure $50 for each bad valve.

Going full-boat with bearings, seals and is not needed if those are in good shape. Lower mileage (<125k or so) and good maintenance pays off at this point. A full engine rebuild will be $800 in parts plus all those sweet WYAIT opportunities like hoses, belts, engine mounts, clutch master, etc...

animal8526

yay! I will have a second paycheck eater soon. I am going to have to volunteer to come back to iraq just to keep the soon to be sisters fed. lmfao.

mulik51

I pulled the engine. After that not hard, just tedious, as someone said keep everything in order, clean and organized. If you have WSM, just follow it closely and the engine removal is pice of cake. For the head work I paid 520$, which included disassembly, resurfacing, valve seats and valve "resurfacing", seals change, degrease and pressure test for cracks and leaks. This is for two heads.
The reall PITA for me were the bolts which hold the T-housing to heads. MAKE SURE YOU USE THE RIGHT(METRIC) ALLEN KEY!!!!! I stripped 3 of them.... On two I used combo of pliers with vicegrips on their end to get more pressure. If you have one left, you can saw it off. Also, with camtower gaskets and head gaskets, make sure to orient them correctly, so that all the oil borres are open.
Don't mix up the lifters.

That's all I can remember of the top of my head...

Klim

Jim bailey - 928 International

What makes you think the engine needs a headgasket ?

animal8526

Jim...

I am purchasing another 928... a real nice 82 Euro S 5spd... it only has a few flaws, one of which being a small leak in the headgasket to the outside. it will likely be okay for a while, but, I am just getting it into my head how much this will sock me in the wallet when it's time. other than that, the AC doesnt work, and the stereo is a no-go. both of which I can handle. just the headgasket needs thought. I am buying the car regardless, I just always like to recon my future battles. Now see that? my addiction has really become intense... I am at war and still buying another shark!