Headgasket

sully87 · Post by **sully87** » Mon Feb 02, 2009 6:48 pm

So i'm fairly sure i've done a headgasket on my ea81.

It's been using a bit of coolant for the last couple months, but i didn't really worry too much about it. Tried to start her up this arvo after work and after 5 attemps she finally kicked over. Started running on three cylinders and blowing white misty smoke/steam. Confirmed by pulling ignition lead off spark plug on cylinder 1, revs didn't change. Got home eventually and topped up the coolant after it had cooled down, but couldn't see any bubbles and the coolant wasn't milky.

My question is, will a product like chemiweld work, or is it too far gone?

esray71 · Post by **esray71** » Mon Feb 02, 2009 8:15 pm

if it was me i'd get someone to check out the heads and if the motor has done a lot of kms give the heads an overhaul and replace head gaskets......hopefully it's only a gasket and not a cracked head! ......good luck!

YouTube · Post by **El_Freddo** » Mon Feb 02, 2009 8:39 pm

^ I'd be doing the same. Forget Chemiweld if you love your subi, that'll just mask it for a little bit longer before you really have to do something about it.

The EA81 isn't as hard to work on (from what I can see - never pulled the heads off one of these) as the EA82 - there's no cam box and cam belts to deal with. Once you have shaved the heads and replace the head gaskets you'll once again have a very reliable subi motor that will service your needs for years to come.

Cheers

Bennie

Xtreme_RX · Post by **Xtreme_RX** » Mon Feb 02, 2009 8:40 pm

Definitely sounds like a blown head gasket.
Chemiweld is not going to help here.....

New head gaskets are like $25 ea for aftermarket ones.

AlpineRaven · Post by **AlpineRaven** » Mon Feb 02, 2009 8:45 pm

Chemiweld is a waste of time, I did that once and its not worth it. Do it properly is to remove the heads and replace the gaskets, only way is to remove the heads to find out what is really going on there. Can't be much of help with EA81, but for EA82 isnt hard to do.
Cheers
AP

sully87 · Post by **sully87** » Mon Feb 02, 2009 8:58 pm

Thanks for the replys.

My mechanic has already reconditioned the head on the other side last year, Now i wish i got them both done.

shuffbag · Post by **shuffbag** » Mon Feb 02, 2009 9:30 pm

i pulled the heads on a ea82t, passenger side off/on no problems....driver side....

i just pulled the whole motor and put the ej in its place.

i dont think i'd touch the heads whilst the engine is still between the rails.

YouTube · Post by **El_Freddo** » Mon Feb 02, 2009 10:09 pm

shuffbag wrote:i pulled the heads on a ea82t, passenger side off/on no problems....driver side....

i just pulled the whole motor and put the ej in its place.

i dont think i'd touch the heads whilst the engine is still between the rails.

The EA81 is smaller than the EA82 in width, I'm sure the heads could be done with the motor still in, it would all rest on the head studs ('82s use bolts, '81s use studs from what I've seen) as to wether you could slide the head off the stud in the given space. It would be a much easier job to put back on than the '82 heads - no need to line up bolts

At the end of the day having the engine out gives you maximum access and also gives you the chance to replace clutch/rear main seal/service the oil pump (a lot easier to do out of the car) but these extra jobs come with extra cost - they're purely optional...

Cheers

Bennie

sully87 · Post by **sully87** » Tue Feb 03, 2009 6:00 pm

So when i started the car this arvo it was running on three cylinders, but upon driving it ran on all four and didn't blow any smoke.

I picked up a bottle of chemiweld and will put it in on friday. Anybody have any tips for flushing the cooling system? These are the steps i was going to follow:

- Remove the bottom radiator hose, unbolt the thermostat & housing and remove it from the block
- Remove the radiator drain plug
- Drain all the old coolant
- Flush water through the thermostat hole in the block, and flush the radiator
- Bold everything up, fill with water and run for a while, then add the Chemiweld

Post by **Alex** » Tue Feb 03, 2009 6:26 pm

make sure its not just an iginition thing

check leads and plugs before you do the drastic thing.

alex

sully87 · Post by **sully87** » Tue Feb 03, 2009 6:36 pm

Leads and plugs replaced ~10,000k's ago. With the amount of smoke it was blowing, i'm positive it's the headgasket