Vehicle & Technical > Discovery

What am I doing wrong?

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Range Rover Blues:
Both 300TDis in thew family bust their head gaskets last summer, within a few weeks of each other too.  First Julies went, I had the head skimmed and used new bolts, it ran great 'till I started having probllems with bioderv, by January I was getting the ticking noise and clouds of sooty smokey gas from the back of the engine, especially at startup.
That could be the exhaust manifold galskets as the exhaust took a batrering when the car got hit.  It's still in the bodyshop whilst they try to get parts, when it ocmes back I have to look into it.

But I thought well maybe I shouldn't have skimmed the head as LR say you can't skim them, maybe I should have fitted a new one.

Tonight however my sister's turned up, I did the head on that the week after finishing Julie's, I put a new head on because one glow plug and one injector were stuck in, plus I wanted it bomb-proof reliable. Put new injectors, glow plugs, water pump and thermostat on it.

Not so, the head gasket has gone already, the car does few miles, it's auto and not thrashed, it had good qualilty antifreeze in it and generally it's looked after and leads an easy life.

So what have I missed? what can cause the gasket on a brand new head to fail? I used new bolts and followed the RAVE manual carefully.  The engine is very mildly tuned.

chris9119:
RRB

A couple of questions whilst the old cogs get going....

1. Was it over heating prior to replacing the head
2. Did you use after market gaskets or LR?
3. Was the correct sized head gasket used?
4. Was the head bolts reset after "running in"? (not sure if required on 300tdi, so I've asked anyway. You have the RAVE manual)
5. Did you check the block for being true?

Range Rover Blues:

--- Quote from: chris9119 on March 27, 2008, 19:00:08 ---1. Was it over heating prior to replacing the head
2. Did you use after market gaskets or LR?
3. Was the correct sized head gasket used?
4. Was the head bolts reset after "running in"? (not sure if required on 300tdi, so I've asked anyway. You have the RAVE manual)
5. Did you check the block for being true?

--- End quote ---

1)Neither of them were originally, julies was perhaps caused by the rad going pop on the motorwy, by the time I could get off, damage done.  Jane's I don't know as I don't drive it.  this time it just overheated on the way home, it had started to blow water out I reckon the other day.  That's the one with a new head.
2) aftermarket I think, I've seen something about the new LR gasket being laminated? are they more reliable?
3)yes they both had 3 hole gaskets and that's what I replaced, i didn't check the piston projection at the time.
4)I didn't retorque after running in, I don't think I was meant to :-k obviously if i was then that's the culprit.
5)No, I wasn't aware this would be a problem and as both engines had been fine up to the first instance of head gasket failure I assumed it was just due to their age/milage.

Thanks for the input Chris, I'm going to have to sort Jane's out soon so I'll be chucking more cash at it I think, Julie's will have to wait 'till it's resprayed.

dave_2A_2.25Turbo:
Mine (200tdi) went at 140k - after I'd put 15k on in under 6 months, driven fairly hard.  It was chuffing out of the back against the bulkhead.  As it hadn't got hot, I just replaced the gasket.  2 months later it went again.  Changed it again - exactly the same 'care and attention' - and it's been fine for 20k.  Dodgy gaskets do happen - a (very good) mechanic mate of mine had the same thing on a Frontera a year or two ago.  Both mine were Paddock ones.

mike142sl:
There's a guy called Range Rover Blues on here who knows everything about Land Rovers, I'm sure he'll be able to help. He's forgotten more about them than most of us know.

Oh Hang on, that's you  :huh:

Oh Dear  8-[

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