made a dumb mistake... head gasket still ok?

[riceatingrabbit]

I was doing the head gasket on a friends diesel caddy today... I got it nearly done, and noticed that I had put the gasket on upside down...

The head is torqued, but hasnt run yet...


the question is: will I be ok taking it apart, flipping the gasket, and putting it back together?


or is the gasket trashed? what about the bolts?

[rabbitman]

IMHO the chances of it sealing again are slim, nice catch though it would've wrecked the engine if you'd ran it.

[riceatingrabbit]

hmmmm... what would have happened?


oh, and what do yall think about the bolts?

[rabbitman]

hmmmm... what would have happened?


oh, and what do yall think about the bolts?

The oil passage that goes from the block to the head would've been blocked off so the head wouldn't get oil.

I reused the head bolts once, they were new and then I did a ring job about 4 months later so I just reused 'em. I assume these are stretch bolts then?

[Baron VonZeppelin]

Probably would have blocked some oil passages.
But i'm not looking directly at anything to confirm that.
Maybe someone will say its okay to leave it.
What tells you now that you put it on upside-down ?

Is the tab with the holes/notches exposed on the radiator side - closer to the passenger side of engine ?

If they come out/off - in the dumpster they go.
Unless its a matter of absolutely no money left to work with.
And you'll be pushing the limits to the extreme.

Headgasket has 'crush' abilty by design.
Its gone now - or patterned itself.
And flipping it over - the areas where it may crush more, or crush less, won't coincide now. Very low percentage of success rate in your corner if re-used.

Stretch bolts are 1 time use items by design.
You have used them 1 time.
Best to kiss them good bye.
You can use the metal stock for craftwork or hobbies or odd projects.

I'm sure there have had to of been people who have unknowingly re-used them. But we don't know what rate or degree of success/failure they experienced. For less than $20 - i'd pass on being the guinea pig if that were possible.

[Baron VonZeppelin]

ahh ha, Rabbitman posted another while i was typing.

There's a guy who has 2-timed the headbolts.
Maybe he can provide you more input on how long it has held so far, or how many miles.

[Rabbit on Roids]

ok, im gonna tell you what you want to hear. but im not going to guarantee it will work for you. but it has worked for me. i have re used head gaskets and bolts before. is it a turbo motor? just flip the gasket. i re use 100k mile old gaskets and they re seal. once you get the engine warm and up to operating temp is when the gasket finally bonds with the head and block. you shouldnt even have to lift the head clear off, just lift it enough to get the gasket out and then back under.

[rabbitman]

My reused bolts have lasted about 45,000mi so far, but I have a slight coolant seep('bout 2 quarts a year) at the back of the head and when I redo it I'll go with head studs.

I think with reused bolts you loose clamping pressure since when you do the torque and then the stretch sequence the second time the bolt is weaker and stretches easier. Lots of manufacturerers with stretch bolts give a max bolt length but not vw, they say get new ones

[Op-Ivy]

Because you haven't run the engine or completed the final torque sequences, the bolts could probably be reused. However, who knows how long they will last. I would just buy new ones. Better to be safe than sorry on the side of the highway.

[Rabbit on Roids]

ive even replaced a head on one of these things and used the same gasket. sealed up fine. and as andrew was saying. i do have WAY WAY more time than money. thats why i build most of my own parts if they are expensive. unless i dont posess the knowledge or tools to build it.

[Turbinepowered]

Avoid the "new bolts?" question entirely by throwing some studs in there. 

[jtanguay]

Avoid the "new bolts?" question entirely by throwing some studs in there. 

very good idea

[sm7bxd]

Where to buy studs in Sweden/EU?

[sm7bxd]

BTW - i dont find the admin's/moderator's hitlerbehaving subfilm funny?
Is it because VW is German?

Be nice!

[Possum79]

BTW - i dont find the admin's/moderator's hitlerbehaving subfilm funny?
Is it because VW is German?

Be nice!

Does anyone know what this is about?  Weird...

Jt's signature gif I would assume.