86 toyota head gasket/bolts need help! - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

sammaster08 · 11-10-2009, 11:55 PM

We have an 86 toyota corolla 1.6l automatic fwd. The head gasket has gone out on us twice now. Would not replacing the head bolts have been what made it go out the second time? We put at least a few thousand miles on it before it went out the second time. I heard the head bolts can stretch and I don't know if that's what would have made it go out again. Maybe it was a cheap head gasket? Plus I've looked everywhere online and can't seem to find head bolts for a 4ac or 4alc engine. Does anyone know where I can find them? Does anyone know if there's a more durable head gasket for the engine? Any help or advice on the topic would be greatly appreciated! thanks

fredricktflail · 11-11-2009, 12:23 AM

You could have a warped head, The head bolts could cause this I've herd sometimes you can just retoqure them and that will fix the problem. Someone on another fourm got headbolts from pep boys.

sammaster08 · 11-12-2009, 03:40 PM

Thanks for the reply, I was expecting a more replies but I guess nobody else knows much about the topic. We're going to try retorqing the head bolts like you suggested, if that doesn't work were gonna have to replace the head gasket again... I'll post my results after we retorque the head bolts, and thanks again for the input!

watchdog1801 · 11-12-2009, 08:15 PM

do not reuse the old head bolts. most head bolts are torque to yield bolts meaning at the factory they are torqued to the point right before they will break or stretch. your bolts probably stretched. go to a machine shop and get your head check to see if it warped if not than get a new head gasket and new head bolts

***MR2Jedi*** · 11-12-2009, 08:23 PM

I don't think any of Toyota's stock head bolts are reusable. When blowing a headgasket, it's always best to have the machine shop check it for warpage, leaks,cracks. I would also recommend getting it resurfaced.
I would be wondering and would make it a point to discover why the gasket was blown in the 1st place.
A graphite HG from Ebay would be good enough for your application.

Brian · 11-14-2009, 04:11 PM

What is causing your overheating? An external coolant leak can quickly overheat an engine and subsequent headgasket failure. So can a plugged radiator or failed waterpump.

What brand head gasket did you use? Do you have a picture of the failure point of the current head gasket? Did you check the head for flatness when you replaced the first head gasket?

You can re-use head bolts as long as they are not longer than the specified length, and torque down properly.

sammaster08 · 11-15-2009, 10:19 AM

Thanks for the replies. There was no coolant leak, but I'm not sure on the radiator and water pump condition. I'm also not sure what kind of gasket we used, and the head is currently on still but there's low compression in cylinder 2. Also we had the head shaved before putting it on again.