Three F-ups... three questions
Thread Starter
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 1,294
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From: Dallas (Richardson), TX, USA
Three F-ups... three questions I was putting my engine back together last night (had the heads off), and I think I've had three f-ups each of which brings a question...
1) Thinking back, I don't remember checking to see if the driver's side head gasket went on correctly. What is the potential consequence of having put it on backwards?
2) One of the rocker bolts seemed to be cross threaded. Of course it was the one all the way on the back of the passenger side head making it annoying to get to. I did notice that it had a lot of Loc-tite stuck in the threads, but I had nothing to chase it with. I ended up taking the rocker off and just cranking the bolt down about as hard as I could so that it was fairly easy to thread in and out. I then torqued it down. It definitely won't be coming out, but I just was curious if anyone thought this might cause a problem? I looked, and the bolt is in just as far as the others within a few thousandths, so I figure the hydraulic lifters will make up for any disparity.
3) Finally, something less major... There is a sensor at the front of the driver's side head. I broke the little plastic connector off the end, but the electrodes are still intact, so I'm just glueing it back together. Anyway, what is this sensor?
1) Thinking back, I don't remember checking to see if the driver's side head gasket went on correctly. What is the potential consequence of having put it on backwards?
2) One of the rocker bolts seemed to be cross threaded. Of course it was the one all the way on the back of the passenger side head making it annoying to get to. I did notice that it had a lot of Loc-tite stuck in the threads, but I had nothing to chase it with. I ended up taking the rocker off and just cranking the bolt down about as hard as I could so that it was fairly easy to thread in and out. I then torqued it down. It definitely won't be coming out, but I just was curious if anyone thought this might cause a problem? I looked, and the bolt is in just as far as the others within a few thousandths, so I figure the hydraulic lifters will make up for any disparity.
3) Finally, something less major... There is a sensor at the front of the driver's side head. I broke the little plastic connector off the end, but the electrodes are still intact, so I'm just glueing it back together. Anyway, what is this sensor?
1) A bigger potential problem....but easy enough to diagnose because your water temp sensor that you broke the plastic off of (and hopefully still works) should be a good clue on a head gasket installed incorrectly....esentially you would see higher than normal water temps (due to coolant flow issues) and a higher likelihood of detonation and knock retard due to higher chamber temps. If your car has perfect water temps and doesn't have KR related issues you can pretty much rest easy on the gasket.
2) Make sure the stud is INLINE with the others....just look down the row and make sure it is at the same angle....if so it probably threaded itself correctly back in the head....If it's crooked you have some issues and the head should probably be pulled so the rockerstud hole can be properly heli-coiled and repaired.
Good luck....pay attention to the details....missing one can cause you alot of aggravation, money, and extra work for yourself down the road.
Tony
2) Make sure the stud is INLINE with the others....just look down the row and make sure it is at the same angle....if so it probably threaded itself correctly back in the head....If it's crooked you have some issues and the head should probably be pulled so the rockerstud hole can be properly heli-coiled and repaired.
Good luck....pay attention to the details....missing one can cause you alot of aggravation, money, and extra work for yourself down the road.
Tony
Originally Posted by HOSS
yea, go ahead and get a new sensor for the 3rd problem, don't try to rig it like i did. damn thing would come off sometime while driving, and it would jerk the **** out of the car.
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Launching!
Joined: Nov 2004
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From: Rochester, NY
Originally Posted by HOSS
yea, go ahead and get a new sensor for the 3rd problem, don't try to rig it like i did. damn thing would come off sometime while driving, and it would jerk the **** out of the car.
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Joined: Dec 2001
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From: Bergen County, NJ
Originally Posted by HOSS
If the rockers are on, then the heads have to be on the car. If he takes the heads back off, he would have to get new head bolts again, costing him another 100 bucks or so.
Originally Posted by HOSS
yea, go ahead and get a new sensor for the 3rd problem, don't try to rig it like i did. damn thing would come off sometime while driving, and it would jerk the **** out of the car.
+1 million. I tried the glueing method and almost rear-end someone in traffic becuase the SOB jerked so hard while coasting in 1st gear. lol NOT fun times. I was so pissed i saw the tmep gage fluctuating, i pulled over, ripped my ghetto glued connector off, problem solved. Don't be a fool BUY ONE NOW, SAVE YOURSELF BEFORE YOU PAY FOR IT LATER.
Originally Posted by scotts94_z28
wait i broke this same connector when i did my header and plug install and now the car seems to jerk and miss sometimes randomly at idle could this be the problem and is it possible to get a new sensor and connector
Yea man, get a new connector and sensor, when your car jerks, pay attn to the temp gauge, if it reads 0 all of a sudden, thats your problem
Launching!
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 297
Likes: 1
From: Rochester, NY
Originally Posted by HOSS
Yea man, get a new connector and sensor, when your car jerks, pay attn to the temp gauge, if it reads 0 all of a sudden, thats your problem
just go to the gm dealership, if they can't find it, show them where it is on the diagram they have on the computer, thats what I had to do. I am not sure if other auto parts stores can get it or not.
Thread Starter
Joined: Dec 2004
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From: Dallas (Richardson), TX, USA
Thanks for all the replies guys. Lemme give you an update...
First, the head gasket. It was on backwards, but I was able to tell without taking the head off. I went to buy a new one because I thought I'd rather be safe than sorry (and I have ARP bolts, so I wouldn't have to buy new ones). When I saw the new gasket I realized there was a tab that would stick out from under the head. (I'm surprised no one pointed this out!) The tab was closer to the front, so I was able to go home, feel around for the tab, and determine whether or not it was on backwards. It was. So, I went back to the dealership and bought the gasket. I've since replaced the gasket the right way.
As for the rocker bolt, I am fairly confident that it's not cross-threaded. I really think there's some Loc-tite in there that's gumming up the works, but I don't have anything to chase the threads with. It's going in straight (I checked over and over), and it just doesn't feel like it's cross-threaded. It's tougher than normal to put in, but it doesn't get ridiculously difficult. It's like there's 10 times as much friction on the threads as there should be. So, I'm going to roll the dice on that one. If it's fubar'd, I won't have lost anything I haven't lost already.
As for the sensor, I glued it back together with some super glue in a vice. It looks pretty clean, so I'll bet it's okay. However, with the overwhelming response on that one, I will look into replacing it. If it's reasonably cheap, I'll buy a new one. If it's expensive, I'll give the old one a shot. It's not like it's hard to replace or anything.
Again, thanks for the overwhelming response on this guys. I really appreciate it.
First, the head gasket. It was on backwards, but I was able to tell without taking the head off. I went to buy a new one because I thought I'd rather be safe than sorry (and I have ARP bolts, so I wouldn't have to buy new ones). When I saw the new gasket I realized there was a tab that would stick out from under the head. (I'm surprised no one pointed this out!) The tab was closer to the front, so I was able to go home, feel around for the tab, and determine whether or not it was on backwards. It was. So, I went back to the dealership and bought the gasket. I've since replaced the gasket the right way.
As for the rocker bolt, I am fairly confident that it's not cross-threaded. I really think there's some Loc-tite in there that's gumming up the works, but I don't have anything to chase the threads with. It's going in straight (I checked over and over), and it just doesn't feel like it's cross-threaded. It's tougher than normal to put in, but it doesn't get ridiculously difficult. It's like there's 10 times as much friction on the threads as there should be. So, I'm going to roll the dice on that one. If it's fubar'd, I won't have lost anything I haven't lost already.
As for the sensor, I glued it back together with some super glue in a vice. It looks pretty clean, so I'll bet it's okay. However, with the overwhelming response on that one, I will look into replacing it. If it's reasonably cheap, I'll buy a new one. If it's expensive, I'll give the old one a shot. It's not like it's hard to replace or anything.
Again, thanks for the overwhelming response on this guys. I really appreciate it.