erghhh help removing head plz (carbed)

[A18A]

well i have no idea what really needs to be done to lift the head off just to change the head gasket, just a couple questions.

1. do i need to remove the carb just to lift the head off?

2. how do i remove those 2 pipes comming out of the exhaust manifold?

3. can i reuse the other gaskets if i dont damage them?

4. what other things must i remove other than the exhaust manifold?

5. do i need any certain tools? (i found a torque wrench while cleaning the garage :D)

and thats about it, hope u can help me, don't be flamming in this thread plz :(
TIA

[MessyHonda]

im with you ...i blew my headgasket and my uncle said that he is going to leave the intake and just take off the headers since im geting some pacesetter ones and he said its like a 4 hour job if done right...gives me time to paint my valve cover.

BUMP we need answers!

[88Accord-DX]

Leave everything on there, pull the head off with the intake, carb & header attached. Put the motor on TDC on #1 compression stroke. Label all the wires & vacuum lines attached to the head. There is water hose that needs to come off under the intake. (see it in the pic?)Take off the valve cover & timing belt. Remove nuts from header to exhaust pipe. Remove head bolts from outside to inside (reverse torque sequence). Lift the head off.

As far as tools; complete socket set. Breaker bar, torque wrench, wrenches.
Edit- just plan on having screwdrivers, extentions, etc.

Take loose the EGR pipe & other air pipe from the intake after you get the head on the ground with everything attached. Here is a pic for example.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v488/ddude2uc/A20A1intakebottom.jpg

[A18A]

oh um whats a breaker bar? im as far as disconnecting the hoses, already done the rest, head doesnt seem to be that loose

and im asuming i had to drain the oil and radiator right?

[88Accord-DX]

Here is a pic of breaker bars.

I forgot to add, there are two brackets going from the block to the bottom of the intake. You need to un-bolt it from the intake. It's a pain to reach & take the bolt out.

http://i19.ebayimg.com/02/i/06/d7/1a/39_1.JPG

[smufguy]

if i was you, i would change all the gaskets at this time. Which is the intake manifold gasket, exhaust manifold gasket along with the head gasket. the reason is that. With the intake manifold and exhaust manifold attached, its a bitch and a half to lift it out. and last thing u want is a nick on the mating surfaces of the head to the block. With some elbow work, u can get the exhaust manifold and intake manifolds off before u get to the head itself.

You need a pipe wrench (Monkey spanner) to get the egr and air suction pipes off the exhaust manifold.

yes u will need a breaker bar, an extension, deep socket set, torque wrench, and a new timing belt and a timing light to get the valve/ignition timing set right.

Just follow the directions in the shop manual and you will be fine.

PS: if u dont have a shop manual, follow the link on my sig. and good luck

[A18A]

oh cool, thanks :) i figured i will just unbolt the exhaust manifold from undernethe the car like ddude2uc did. and i just got another couple questions, i found some old gasket cement aswell, i thinks its good, it stuck some piece of metal to the car (over the paint) and just wandering if i should use it? and whats the breaker bar for? (i got one that came free with the car :D)

[88Accord-DX]

Just buy all new gaskets, never want to re-use them. Don't put that cement on there, if anything, just use fine layer of silicone on the intake gasket. Head & exhaust gaskets don't need anything.

The breaker bar is to break loose the head bolts. Use a 6 point socket, I beleive 14 mm.

[A18A]

why cant i use the gasket cement?

o yea, already loosened head bolts, was i ment to do a quarter turn on each bolt from outside going in so i dont warp the head? my dad told me to do so, so i did

[smufguy]

a breaker bar just has a longer moment arm so u can put less force/load at the end and break/loosen a bolt/nut. Its just a simple torque calculation. for the same force and a longer rod, the torque yield is larger so its easier for you to break loose a stuck bolt, if u have a longer wrench aka Breaker bar.

[A18A]

yeah i used the torque wrench coz its about as long as a wheel

[88Accord-DX]

why cant i use the gasket cement?
o yea, already loosened head bolts, was i ment to do a quarter turn on each bolt from outside going in so i dont warp the head? my dad told me to do so, so i did
Yup, quarter turn.

You can use gasket cement if you want. I personally use cement on cast iron. I don't use it on aluminum cause it hardens so hard & if you put it on aluminum, you take a chance of knicking up the mating surface on the head & intake . If or when you ever remove the intake again & scrap off the cement with a putty & razor nife.

[Whistler225]

are you planning to have the head mating surface checked for warping? I was under the impression that this is pretty much a required step in replacing a head gasket....if your head is warped and you just replace the gasket, it will leak again. I've been told that head gaskets often go bad BECAUSE of a warped head....just a thought....

[88Accord-DX]

Good point Whistler225, that is standard practice. The limit on warpage is .004 thousandths of an inch.

Edit- There is also a limit to how far the head can be milled down, automotive machine shop will have the specs.

[Whistler225]

I've been lucky, and never had to replace a head gasket (knock on wood)....but it ought to be relatively simple to have it checked if you have the head off anyway....dunno how much it costs to have it machined though. That's a pretty narrow tolerance, so I would think it would be worthwhile to avoind problems in the future.

[A18A]

are you planning to have the head mating surface checked for warping? I was under the impression that this is pretty much a required step in replacing a head gasket....if your head is warped and you just replace the gasket, it will leak again. I've been told that head gaskets often go bad BECAUSE of a warped head....just a thought....

well the guy who owned it before us said that his son thrashed the hell out of it which blew the head gasket (something like that anyway) i dont know if that will cause the head 2 warp :S

[A20A1]

Did you get the head off.

Remember that the exhast manifold is bolted to the block about center mass, it has two 12mm or 14mm bolts, you can either remove it from the block or from the exhaust manifold.
The carb intake manifold has two support brackets that bolt to the underside of the manifold. I think those are 12mm or 14mm.

[Whistler225]

well, I think head warping is caused mostly by overheating, so if by "thrashing" the guy means his boy had his foot to the floor most of the time and overheated the engine alot, chances are the head is warped.

[88Accord-DX]

Generally aluminum heads will warp when the motor is too hot, but not all the time. It depends on how hot the motor reached.

One thing that will warp an aluminum head after the motor got to hot, is taking loose the head bolts in the wrong sequence & loosening it too much. I personally just break them loose at first in reverse torquing senquence, then back them off 1/4 turn for 3 passes.

[AccordEpicenter]

listen to dereck, you can warp them if you take them off wrong. Also, only remove the head when the engine is dead cold.