aws140

i searched and oddly nothing came up when i searched "head gasket" or "headgasket." im looking at buying a 97 EX. the guy said it has a small head gasket leak, but it wasnt a big deal. i told him all head gasket leaks are a big deal. id still like to pick up the car, but before so i need to know what im in for with a head gasket change. im pretty mechanicly inclined. i should be able to do this pretty easily. im just afraid of having to remove the cams, cam gears, etc. and not being able to get them back in and have the timing off. we just put a built engine in my buddies protege and we had this issue. it wasnt a big deal though as when it went to the dyno the shop changed all the setting to where they need to be. id buy a haynes manual for the car, should that show me what i need or is there a better source for info. i just dont want to have to pay a shop to do this, esspecially a STEALER-ship. all help is greatly appreciated. thanks

SOHC4life 96

One option is to tell the guy you are very interested in the car and if he has the head gasket problem fixed you'll buy the car.

Or if you want to do it yourself, you can.

Basically you need to remove the timing belt from the cam gear, remove all the connectors from the harness connected to the head and the radiator hoses. Then remove the vavle cover to get to the head bolts. There is a write up on this. It is in the FAQ at the top of the page.

Here is a link to one. Though I've seen another one for single cams
https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=1404934

Syndacate

It's easy as hell, 4 hours if u havent' done it before :-\

Got to take off timing belt, valve cover, head...think that's all.... (and whatever other misc. hoses 'n ****..

The IM should come out w/ the head...but will have to be d/c

It's really not that big a deal on a 4 cyl engine

BauleyCivic

You should be fine. I'd recommend getting the official shop manual from http://www.helminc.com It's about 1000 pages and has everything you'll need to know about repairing that car. You could also check ebay for a cheaper one.

Here's HT's version (this is on a motor identical to yours): https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=649277

SOHC4life 96

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by BauleyCivic &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Here's HT's version (this is on a motor identical to yours): https://honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=649277</TD></TR></TABLE>

That's the one I was looking for.

aws140

thanks guys. i thought i could probably do the fix myself with no problem. after i sent him an email he said he was mistaken, it was the valve cover gasket, not the head gasket.

Syndacate

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by aws140 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">thanks guys. i thought i could probably do the fix myself with no problem. after i sent him an email he said he was mistaken, it was the valve cover gasket, not the head gasket.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Well that's even easier to change :-P.

Sketch_hs

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Syndacate &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Well that's even easier to change :-P.</TD></TR></TABLE>

yeah like 100 times easier lololololol

young noob

unless you break a valvcover bolt into the head like i did when replacing the valvecover gasket

SOHC4life 96

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by young noob &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">unless you break a valvcover bolt into the head like i did when replacing the valvecover gasket </TD></TR></TABLE>

Which just proves that your SN suits you well.

young noob

too bad it was because the blow-hard before me who owned the car before i bought it over-torqued the valve-cover bolts when he last changed the valve-cover gasket

Eran

iTrader: (1)

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by young noob &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">too bad it was because the blow-hard before me who owned the car before i bought it over-torqued the valve-cover bolts when he last changed the valve-cover gasket</TD></TR></TABLE>

No, it's because those bolts break really easily. I know 6-year honda techs that have broken bolts. Helicol ftw.

young noob

yes, they do break easily, but it also doesn't help when over-torqued

civicboy34

IF ITS JUST A VALVE COVER GASKET THAT IS NOTHIN TO REPLACE...$8.00 FROM HONDA...BUT IF IT IS A HEAD GASKET THEY CAN BE DONE IN ABOUT AN HOUR OR SO...BUT IF YOUR BUYING THE CAR WITH A BLOWN HEADGASKET YOU BETTER HAVE THE HEAD CHECKED FOR WORPAGE AND MAKE SURE NOTHING ELSE IS MESSED UP

Syndacate

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by civicboy34 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">IF ITS JUST A VALVE COVER GASKET THAT IS NOTHIN TO REPLACE...$8.00 FROM HONDA...BUT IF IT IS A HEAD GASKET THEY CAN BE DONE IN ABOUT AN HOUR OR SO...BUT IF YOUR BUYING THE CAR WITH A BLOWN HEADGASKET YOU BETTER HAVE THE HEAD CHECKED FOR WORPAGE AND MAKE SURE NOTHING ELSE IS MESSED UP</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yeah, I agree with this guy, have the head checked for "worpage."

SOHC4life 96

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by civicboy34 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">IF ITS JUST A VALVE COVER GASKET THAT IS NOTHIN TO REPLACE...$8.00 FROM HONDA...BUT IF IT IS A HEAD GASKET THEY CAN BE DONE IN ABOUT AN HOUR OR SO...BUT IF YOUR BUYING THE CAR WITH A BLOWN HEADGASKET YOU BETTER HAVE THE HEAD CHECKED FOR WORPAGE AND MAKE SURE NOTHING ELSE IS MESSED UP</TD></TR></TABLE>

Cause if you have massive "warpage" you won't be able to use your VTAK to go warp speed.

HoangR

Hey there!
I just did my head gasket on my 98 Civic Ex (d16y8) and it has been a bitter sweet. I spent around $500-600 on parts (all oem Honda parts) including the head being resurfaced and machine work. Keep in mind that I did a lot more than JUST the head gasket. I resealed everything and replaced stuff like oil pump, oil pan, etc.
I read your post and what throws a red flag for me is that this buyer is selling you it's not a big deal. If he has been driving on that blow gasket for awhile and if he has overheated at some point, that's not good. After I did all the work to my Y8 and driving it, I found that a ring was stuck, therefore it was burning oil at a rapid rate. I was having to fill it with a quart every two days with semi aggressive driving. I should of had thew new rings on since I have the head off but that's life. There is an old Honda trick you can do by draining the oil, putting in Honda auto tranny fluid and drive it for about 50 miles to get the rings free from sticking. This old method doesn't always work, in my case, it helped a bit but I am still burning oil but not as bad of a rate as it was.

My advice is, worse case, if you have the money to rebuild then I would. I would also look into another long block for a swap. It could also be a decent engine and I'm just giving you extreme cases like mine. I wish you luck on the buy and make sure you look at the car/motor VERY carefully and drive it like you mean it.

JRCivic1

HoangR, you do know that you are responding to an eleven year old thread right ?!?

TomCat39

I don't think they were aware, but hopefully are now. Closed the thread so it can be put back to bed.