HELP prepare on head gasket change ... need advice

[profuse007]

car: 5sfe
milage: 170k

like the title said, i need help preparing for a head gasket change. i see a lot of oil seeping. i recently replaced the remain seal and notice the leakage but was too lazy to take the extra steps to replace the gasket. so now its gettin worst.

what are some of the precaution or routine of ur experience.
should i get a gasket kit?
what some of other things need to be adjust?
or just any other comment would be great.

btw, this will be my first time changin out head gasket. so am a noob..... plz enlighten me.

[CrawlingEye]

if you plan on doing a lot of the work yourself, I'd suggest subscribing to alldatadiy.com or picking up a haynes manual. Both will contain all the info you need.

Replacing the gasket itself shouldn't be too much of a problem, but getting the head back together, timed (coordinating TDC and all) will be the more difficult problem.

good luck.

[Luckynumber5]

im willing to bet its not your head gasket leaking, just your valve cover and thats an easy fix in a 5s-fe

go to your local auto zone and pick up a haynes repair manual for your car, read it over before you start so you will know what you are getting into, and you know how to use all the different tools right? this is a simple job but not for someone who has never picked up a torque wrench before

[profuse007]

ive been through hell w/ two of our 5sfe. ive done everything else except overhauling an engine. so am i guess am pretty mechanically incline for the most part.

of course the valve cover could be a potential. ive narrowed that down and even the ditributor oring.

i lifted out the engine to replace the rear main seal and clean off the block really good. i notice the difference bt the cyl123 and cyl4, that how much cyl4 has seepage when the others didnt. ive been monitorin the engine for about 4 months and it leaks at the same spot.

so i think you might want to take that bet back......jk...

yeah i got haynes manual and chilton. just wanting to hear something from experience.

[Toysrme]

Yes buy a gasket kit. They are cheap and it's better to just replace them all and only use half the kit, than having to worry about re using gaskets.


If the head is comming off, there is no reason why you should change the timing and acessory belts at the same time (if they are worn). For that matter, it's a perfect time to do a full tune-up.

[Pineapple]

New Toyota kit come with most metal gasket. Pull the engine out and replace everything. Since you're at it, check the crank and rod bearings and see if you need to change them.

[profuse007]

do you prefer the stock gasket kit (if theres such thing) or aftermarket gasket kit?

what type of gasket sealant did you used or which one do you prefer using?

i guess its a good idea to do a timing belt change even though itll prolly last another 20-30k miles, i will do it.

sometime worrying about the major things first and forget the small stuff will hurt a lot. what are some of the small stuff i might run into?

Originally Posted by Toysrme

Yes buy a gasket kit. They are cheap and it's better to just replace them all and only use half the kit, than having to worry about re using gaskets.


If the head is comming off, there is no reason why you should change the timing and acessory belts at the same time (if they are worn). For that matter, it's a perfect time to do a full tune-up.

kinda off topic here but why do my local Toyota part charges like 4-5 times more than autozone or oreilly? i mean it litterally. its so ridiculous. i notice Hondas do not charges as much more than aftermarket stuff.

do yall guys ran into these situation?