New Head Gasket Leak After Install

CaptainJochem

Respected
Hey all,

I recently swapped my engine for a B16 and in the process replaced the leaky head gasket with a new one. Had a few problems with starting the car, but that's all over now and I'm able to drive it around; perfect, well, almost. I noticed that my exhaust gases were slightly whiter than usual and after testing the cooling system with a simple test the dye came out yellow which means I have exhaust gases coming into the cooling system; a leaking head gasket.

What I am curious about is why this could happen? I did install everything properly (to my knowledge), new head gasket, new cylinder head bolts, smoothened the cylinder head and checked the block. I torqued everything down as per the manual. I was thinking that maybe the dowel pins needed to be shaved off a little bit too since I didn't do that. Maybe this is causing a little leak?

Would it be smart in this case to make the bolts a little tighter? Just want your guys' opinions, much appreciated!

Jochem
 

thatboostedhonda

New Member
Well did you fix the problem that originally caused the headgasket to leak? If you just put a new one on ofcourse its gonna blow you didnt fix the problem

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HeX

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thatboostedhonda said:
Well did you fix the problem that originally caused the headgasket to leak? If you just put a new one on ofcourse its gonna blow you didnt fix the problem
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Moreso, if the previous head gasket leak lead to the head being warped then this may be why its leaking, which is why you're suppose to check for that after a leaking head gasket.

I know nothing of dowel pins so perhaps someone knowledgeable can chime in on that.
 

XpL0d3r

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OP, did you reuse the same head bolts? OEM head bolts are known for stretching and often times are replaced along with the head gasket. A stretched head bolt can cause the head to lift off the block and cause leaks.

Did you also check with a Helms manual to see if the head and block were both within the allowable tolerances after you resurfaced?
 


CaptainJochem

Respected
Hey all, thank you for your very swift replies! Just to inform you all better, the previous head gasket was leaking and a lot of oil was being consumed. I did change the head gasket for a new one, had the cylinder head resurfaced and all of this was done within the tolerances. I also understand that the OEM headbolts can be stretched and I did buy new ones and torqued them down to specifications. I'm kind of lost at this as I feel that everything was done by the book...?
 
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