one mans bitter struggle against a cracked head

[slim]

so i took the plunge and decided to swap my head myself and i took the old one off yesterday. its cracked between all the valves and number 3 piston had about 2cm of water sat on it! so i had a look around ands it seems you can pick op a head for about 250 to 300 quid and drop the valves etc in. has anyone ever bought a head off ebay before, theyre new and from a reasonable looking company.
im actually really enjoying doing it myself. finding out alot about the engine and stuff, plus theres plenty of room under the bonnet and its at a nice height to work on.

dont know of anybody using one of the e-bay heads. if it was me i would be contacting stevo and paying that extra bit of cash but you will also get good piece of mind wiv it too..

[The Lovely Boyo]

im actually really enjoying doing it myself. finding out alot about the engine and stuff, plus theres plenty of room under the bonnet and its at a nice height to work on.

Hello,

20 years ago I had a Dolomite Sprint - 2ltr, 16v, single over head cam, always blowing head gaskets. Oh, and it broke two of the big end bearing shells. I had to remove the engine and renew the block, so I totally stripped the head and rebuilt it, polishing everything in sight.

I cried. I sweated. I shed blood (lost knuckles etc).

And ended up loving it and knowing that car like I've known no other.

You carry on through the pain and frustration. Lucky you've got this and all the other sites to help you. Mantra - IT WILL BE WORTH IT IN THE END.

Regards

ps - take the bonnet off.

[227angrydonkeys]

yeah i considered that but part of me loathes to pay more for the head than the truck lol, plus its just a big $$$$in tractor engine lol. im in no rush so ill have a loook around, maybe ill get an ebay head and see how it goes then if its ok other people can get em. theres a 1 year warranty on em but i dont much fancy taking it all off again if it goes.

[Koi]

From memory didn't someone else ask this question a while back. Upshot was that the guy on ebay couldn't say it was the redesigned head, so you could be in a whole world of hurt again if its not.
Aslo 1 year warranty will only stand if you read the small print, rad pressure tested etc etc.
I have looked on ebay at some of the heads for sale......
one advert says 2.4 2L heads for sale fits all 2.4 2L Surfs from 1997-2002
Another we are the best at reconditioning heads all heads bought have been done to the highest standard etc etc, yeah all well and good but if its the old style head your in more hurt
Ebay can be good and there are some bargins to be had but with things like this I prefer to go somewhere you know has been tried and tested.

[slim]

thats strange? how did angrydonkeys post become the last one when he posted the thread??

[227angrydonkeys]

one mans bitter struggle against a cracked head

so i took the plunge and decided to swap my head myself and i took the old one off yesterday. its cracked between all the valves and number 3 piston had about 2cm of water sat on it! so i had a look around ands it seems you can pick op a head for about 250 to 300 quid and drop the valves etc in. has anyone ever bought a head off ebay before, theyre new and from a reasonable looking company.
im actually really enjoying doing it myself. finding out alot about the engine and stuff, plus theres plenty of room under the bonnet and its at a nice height to work on.

[Tonka]

thats strange? how did angrydonkeys post become the last one when he posted the thread??

Yeah and this thread was originally mine about brake systems, which has completely gone. Somethings definitely gone wrong here.

[227angrydonkeys]

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...MEWA%3AIT&rd=1
i found this one.
dark forces are at work on this here forum at the moment. trouble with the flux capacitor i dont wonder.

[joker??]

see what happens when you mock me

[MattF]

see what happens when you mock me

More like see what happens when you're allowed on the forum.

If I remember correctly, the 3L head is the uprated one, is it not?

[The Lovely Boyo]

If I remember correctly, the 3L head is the uprated one, is it not?

Hello,

If you search around the Oz forum they all seem to swear by fitting the 3L head (that's a code, I don't think its the head off a three litre)

I think its actually the head off a 2.8 non turbo model that was sold in various countries

[227angrydonkeys]

ok so i got a head and i just got it back from having all the valves and cmashaft fitted to it, new valve seals etc, all clearances checked.job done, 40 quid, nice, so ill tyr and fit it this weekend i think.

[toyotav84x4]

So whats the outcome of your head replacement? All our pockets want to know which head you bought, ebay or stevo, and how it runs? The ebay ads say the 2.4 and the 2.8 use the same head? Is that the same aftermarket head i.e. the 3L used for either application?

Some one needs to get this issue resolved for all 2.4's suffering the head crack. I want a cheap DIY approach which will be as strong as can be achieved. I can find no real answer other than one costs £800 plus fitting and the other can be done for £400 plus fitting?

I'm new to the board so if the answers here somewhere - you better flame me.

[toyotav84x4]

this appears to be nobody's thread now so I'll just round it up.
Since no replies to my very first post I will answer me!

The revised head has extra holes into the castings between the valves of the head. (The block remains standard) This is the area prone to cracking so with the extra coolant flow around here it is supposed to prevent the damage occuring so easily. I think thats about it. The total cost for the revised head all depends how confident you are with a rebuild of the top end. Various parts can be reused if good to save the cost of a whole complete and built head. You will end up needing a set of gaskets and bits and bobs driving the price up towards a full kit. A straight head off and new built back on is economical time wise! Depends how many days you have.

I considered the cheap way to do this job right and sourced all the parts at the right price. Since I hadn't bought the 2.4TD vehicle at the time I went for the 3.0TD as I had the choice (maybe not the funds). I believe the revised head gives good results as long as nothing in the bottom end got damaged leading to potential engine seizure further down the line. For me the total budget and time and unknown condition led me not to bother. If I had bought it I'd have done the job. Of course there is the cost of the Rad or whatever caused the overheating in the first place to add to your budget.

In my case the cooking of the motor would have been the massive trailer on the back with my right foot slammed to the floor!

[coolsv650]

So whats the outcome of your head replacement? All our pockets want to know which head you bought, ebay or stevo, and how it runs? The ebay ads say the 2.4 and the 2.8 use the same head? Is that the same aftermarket head i.e. the 3L used for either application?

Some one needs to get this issue resolved for all 2.4's suffering the head crack. I want a cheap DIY approach which will be as strong as can be achieved. I can find no real answer other than one costs £800 plus fitting and the other can be done for £400 plus fitting?

I'm new to the board so if the answers here somewhere - you better flame me.

I went for the £800 quid version, call me a bluff old traditionalist but when somebody mentions repairing a cracked head I always run away screaming