hey guys so i just replace my head gasket on my integra type r. it has the stock motor. b18c5. i alson installed arp head studs. my problem is that the head gasket seems to be leaking. theres oiling all along the block. am i not torquing the bolts correctly?
my torque spec currently is 70ft/lbs's
head gasket is copper sprayed
white/blueish smoke coming from exhaust
smells like coolant

any help is greatly appreciated guys


Modified by shorejdm5 at 5:24 PM 10/8/2008

 

I'd guess your head got warped when you removed it, or when you torqued it back down.. did you loosen/tighten in the correct sequence?




Did you torque the bolts 1/3rd of the way, then another 1/3rd of the way, then hit the max torque on the final shot? or did you torque them up to 70 lbs all at once?

could try another new gasket, but if you have to pull it back off, I'd take it in and get it mic'd/milled just to make sure it's nice and flat.. good luck!

 

i followed the sequence you showed me. I torqued down to 15, then 35, then 50, then to 70ft/lbs. I just sprayed where it looked like it was leaking then drove around a little bit smoking like no other then when i parked there was no oil leaking out the sides so im guessing it was just from putting it on in the beginning.

the smoke is white, smells like coolant. when i parked the valve cover was extremly hot as was my radiator. but yet not once overheated.

im really confused with this

 

did you have the head resurfaced? are you sure you installed it right side up?

 

might need to get your head resurfaced as previously stated

 

i installed the head gasket with the flat peice that looks like a square on the front passenger side. and the word up was on the up-side. so confused

 

should i replace the oil? i used gtx 5-30 my friends r tellin me to use 10-30. once again. very confused.

 

head gasket no longer leaks... still heavy white smoke coming from exhaust when either wot or at idle. any ideas? any help is greatly appreciated

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by shorejdm5 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">head gasket no longer leaks... still heavy white smoke coming from exhaust when either wot or at idle. any ideas? any help is greatly appreciated </TD></TR></TABLE>

Sounds like your head gasket was put on improperly. Lets look at the obvious:
White/Bluish smoke
Smells like coolant

Pull the dipstick, do you see coolant on the dip stick?

Open the radiator cap, do you see any traces of oil in the radiator?

When you put your head back on the car, there are those two little dowels that ensure that you install the head back on the car properly. Same thing goes with the head gasket, it will align with those two little dowels. Any logos/numbers on a head gasket should also be right-side up.

 

What are your compression numbers like?

 

the head gasket is leaking, that much we know. also, i have yet to come across a blown MLS gasket on a fairly stockish b18c. if the first one is leaking normally you have a warped head or a warped deck on the block. my deck was off .007 when i did my rebuild. a new headgasket would have had a hard time with that. the head was actually pretty straight. if you look at the sleeves in your block you should see black tracers on top of the cylinders if something is leaking...which...it obviously is. the white smoke is coolant entering the chamber. you most likely have a warped deck or warped head or both. a thicker gasket might band aid it but i wouldn't half *** it if i were you. the engine might need to come out and you might need to shave a few thousands off the deck or deck and head. from what i gather you can go up to .0015 or so before you will need, or should use adjustable cam gears to set the motor back up right.

 

I was also curious how the OP determined that the headgasket was not leaking anymore. Just because the oil leak was fixed doesn't mean the headgasket isn't leaking water.

 

my mods are.... edelbrock performer x intake manifold. hondata img. performance products 68mm throttle bodie. cai. spoon test pipe. t1r catback. jdm b16 header. cusco catch can. hondata s300. act 6 puck w/ act street-strip flywheel. arp head studs.

now that i think about it i dont think i put the dowels back on correctly.. wuld that alone cause all my problems?

 

most likely, take it off and takeyour time putting it back on

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by hpimichael02 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">most likely, take it off and takeyour time putting it back on</TD></TR></TABLE>

most likely he should use a flat edge and check the deck and head before he takes his time putting it on. there is a reason the first one failed and the MLS gaskets aren't like a composite that you might find on a non vtec civic. those do rot and blow. the OP should tell us what his first gasket looked like when it came out and also if signs of leaking combustion were present on the block.

 

now i understand what you guys are saying about the head needing to be re surficed. but now i just noticed when i drove the car around a little bit it seemed like it had no power? could it be that my timing is off a tooth or so. n if thats the case would that casue the white smoke problem?

also another thing some people around here are telling me is that i installed my catch can incorrectly. the one hose goes to the breather on the valve cover and the other goes to the black box on the bacl of the block. the pcv valve i believe.

thanks in advance for the input

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by shorejdm5 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">now i understand what you guys are saying about the head needing to be re surficed. but now i just noticed when i drove the car around a little bit it seemed like it had no power? could it be that my timing is off a tooth or so. n if thats the case would that casue the white smoke problem?: </TD></TR></TABLE>

Well, have you set your timing since the gasket was changed? You can tell if its off a tooth by setting the engine to TDC, using your cam gears as a guide. You want to make sure at TDC, the aligning marks on the gears are level with the top surface of the head. Then use a timing gun to determine what your timing is set at.

The timing wont necessarily cause the white smoke. The white smoke is a sign that coolant is burning in the combustion chamber. Chances are, the headgasket is not properly set and coolant is leaking.

 

changed the oil. flushed the gas tank.

the oil coming from the filter looked like it had traces of coolant in it.
and the gas in the car was over 6 months old so i flushed it n refilled it up with 93.

the white smoke seems to no longer be present. but now my radiator is steeeeming hot n it doesnt seem as if the fan is turning on.... maybe the relay is shot?

again though the white smoke SEEMS to be gone for now... this is really weird

 

seems so obvious, but did you make sure your head gasket is correct? Check the P/N, and who put it on for you? a shop?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by shorejdm5 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">changed the oil. flushed the gas tank.

the oil coming from the filter looked like it had traces of coolant in it.
and the gas in the car was over 6 months old so i flushed it n refilled it up with 93.

the white smoke seems to no longer be present. but now my radiator is steeeeming hot n it doesnt seem as if the fan is turning on.... maybe the relay is shot?

again though the white smoke SEEMS to be gone for now... this is really weird </TD></TR></TABLE>

the car running seriously hot and the white smoke are related. it's coolant in the chamber as many have stated. i'm telling you, you NEED TO MEASURE YOUR HEAD AND DECK OF THE BLOCK. that's always step one. the rest of this stuff we can talk about once you know the seal is good. 18c motors are famous for cylinder walk and the deck going out of true. extremely common over 100k

 

car no longer smokes ran great for 2 days now. drove it like 30 miles strait today n i was doing about 55 on a highway and the car bogged out and wouldnt rev above 3k when in gear. then i let the car sit for a little while n it drove home fine. im getting really sick of this why would the car go into limp mode out of no where then drive completly fine back?

 

You're running into a lot of problems, then magically they get resolved, only for something else to go wrong. Within all that, not once have you mentioned how you corrected the issue or gave any insight on what you're doing besides letting the car sit overnight and pray to god it works tomorrow.

 

when i fix one problem i drive the car and another thing goes wrong. i have no insight to give..... calm down wit the attitude. somebody woke up on the wrong side of the bed

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by shorejdm5 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">when i fix one problem i drive the car and another thing goes wrong. i have no insight to give..... calm down wit the attitude. somebody woke up on the wrong side of the bed </TD></TR></TABLE>

You're not understanding my point. What I'm trying to say is you never explain how you fixed the previous problems, or what changed in the grand scheme of things. You mention one problem, then you say its resovled the next day. If we knew what you did to fix it, it may help determine why other things are going wrong. For instance, one day you say the car is smoking, then you say its disappeared. Or the head is leaking oil, but the next day, oil leak is gone. Then the timing is off all of a sudden, but the next day you're driving it for 2 days straight and everything feels great or like normal. HOW did these issues disappear or what did you do to fix it ? Or are we to assume that the tooth fairy paid you a visit and magically fixed the problems while you were sleeping? Ya Know?

When it comes to working on an engine, there are parts that are dependant on others to function. If one part is not cooperating with another, then the balance is thrown off and thats when things go wrong.

Another thing is you are not giving us some information that could solve your issues. Aside from not tell ing anyone how you're fixing these little issues, things like who did the work for you, compression numbers, who tuned your hondata....?

 

Funny story, some guys I know put the head back on their b20vtec motor, and torqued it down with a wire stuck between the head and block.

yet again, that's my two cents.