Head Gasket job

[Jkalplus1]

Good morning gentlemen,

Yesterday I -attempted- to drive my 230SL home from its storage.  It has about 300 kilometres on a rebuilt -top to bottom- engine.  Standard transmission.

I blew the head gasket on an uphill.  Got the car flatbed taken back to is storage garage.  At the time, I was 45 km into the trip, the car ran beautifully, great sound, temperature was fine (just at the 80 C mark on the dashboard). 

A few questions:

1- If I take the car to a mechanic, with all the instructions and procedure from the WIKI, and I also have the "Mercedes-Benz 230 Workshop manual" from Veloce Press that describes the procedure.  How many hours should I expect this job to take?  I know not all mechanics have the same knowledge, skill, but there has to be a certain range ("A head gasket job is a x hour job") type of thing...a lot of shops have set rates/hours for given job...Any ideas welcomed here, I am trying to get an idea of whether I want to do this myself or not.

2-If I decide to do this myself, any advice?  This should be a pretty fearsome endeavor, but from what I read in the Workshop manual and the Wiki, it seems like it is very doable for a man with the right attitude and tools, if you follow correct procedure.  Any advice here?

3-I see I have to pop out the linkage rods to pull out the head...will I have to readjust the whole likage again?  I get the impression NOT...I just can't be sure.

4-Parts list:  From reading the Wiki, I think I will need a head gasked, a valve cover gasket, manifold gaskets and crush washers (from the WIKI: "If possible use new copper seal rings (crush washers) for the three hex bolts that fix the cover to the three camshaft straps")  I have yet to find a picture of a "camshaft strap" to see what that part is, but I assume it is the part to which the three Hex bolts on top of the cover attach to in order to fasten the cover, is this right?  Is a brand of gasket better than the other, or all made by the same company?  to grease or not to grease the new gaskets?  Any other little "seals" or miscellaneous part I need to order that is not mentioned?  Can you recommend a supplier for this type of product order (quality/price/service)?

...anything else?  Do I need a new valve cover gasket every time I take off the valve cover gasket or can the same one be re-used?  For example, I know the head has to be tightened with the engine hot, which tells me I have to put the valve cover back on, then off again for tightening the head.  So, do I order two-three valve cover gaskets?

5-The workshop manual mentions: "it is most advisable, though not absolutely essential, to remove the valve rocker arms, as this will ensure all the valves are fully closed and that they will not hit the pistons or become damaged when the head is removed"  Really?  Do you guys do this for a head gasket job? I do not have the special tool for that and was wondering how big a deal this was, and if the head can safely be removed without.  It seems it would make the whole procedure longer and more complicated, with greater potential for screwup...thoughts?

6-exhaust manifold: I know I need to disconnect...now, do I need new gasket or can the same one be re-used?

7-Any special precautions to take disconnecting/reconnecting injection pipes?  Sealing coumpound to the threads, or something like that?

8- Timing.  I have the procedure to remove the timing chain sprocket.  My limited experience tells me if I mark and re-assemble everything to re-align the marks I should be allright.  Thoughts?  I also see the Workshop Manual says: "Normally the key (5) is straight but offset keys are used to adjust the valve timing.  What?  I look at the diagram and part (5) is a small half-moon looking hing, like a coin cut in half, at the top of the camshaft diagram, near the sprocket.  I am not sure what this means.  I think this "key" is inserted when all the parts are aligned, and that's it, right?

9-If the engine was working well when the gasket blew, I assume no other adjustments will be necessary when I put it back together again, yes/no?

10- Weight -The head, valve covers.  Can they be lifted by a man bending over a fender (yes, I will pad and cover the fenders very carefully)?  I have no idea if it weight 15 pounds, or 100 pounds?  Is this a two-man job or can I do it alone?

11-Any other advice much appreciated, thanks!

Thanks in advance to all who will reply to this.  I appreciate the time and patience.  I am new at this, just inherited th car and those 44 kilometres pre-blowup was the most fun drive I've had in a long time, looking forward to getting the car back on the road without having to starve my kids or get another mortgage...thanks!

Jerome

[glenn]

First, take it back to the rebuilder.  300 km and the head gasket goes???

[glenn]

If you tackle the job yourself, there is a lot of help here.   The little head bolts in the chain/tensioner gallery and filling the tensioner with oil are points to remember.  Cranking the engine to TDC no 1 and removing the rocker arms(marking each) helps.  Two people(four arms) make lifting the head out a lot easier.  Hood off, too.  Offset keys for timing are available.   Getting the right head gasket is important.

Estimate 40 hours the first time.
Eight hours the second.
Steep learning curve. ..
(after all the frozen bolts are loose......)

[glenn]

More...  The valve cover gasket is used over and over again.   
By the way   ---   Who rebuilt the engine???

[Benz Dr.]

Sounds like the head wasn't torqued down properly and then it wasn't re-torqued after starting.

 This is why I try and drive everything at least 500 miles before I hand the keys back to the owner. Almost all of these sorts of things will happen before 500 miles and are generally easy to catch because I'm watching for anything that doesn't seem to be right. As in noises, leaking, running rich, brake problems, etc.

For most places, that's a lot of extra time to spend and it can take a week or two to do it but it's well worth the wait. In my opnion, test driving is just as important as the actual build. Done right, it can add years of life to your engine. Not done at all. Well..........

[Jkalplus1]

Thanks to all who have replied.

Yes, taking it to the rebuilder would be the initial step, but my father (previous owner) died and there is no bill for the rebuilding (cash transaction), and I do not know who did it.

My brother will undertake the job with a friend since they both have a great deal of experience restoring (mostly British) cars from the sixties.  I wish I did not have to impose that on him, but he kindly offered, I cannot pass that as I know it will be done with the utmost care and following proper procedure. 

I get that the head has to be re-tightened after the first start (hot engine tightening), and again after 500km or so.  Perhaps this was not done on the rebuild.  It will this time.

Thanks for the advice, it will be passed on to my brother and his friend. 

Looking forward to hitting the road again, thanks gents.  I'll post updates on the progress.

[Palolo]

My brother will undertake the job with a friend since they both have a great deal of experience restoring (mostly British) cars from the sixties.

That's it. It will forever leak oil and the headlights will mysteriously dim at dusk...the wipers will be a little erratic... The Britishness rubs off, I tell ya'...

 

LOL!

[Jkalplus1]

Precisely: Austins and MGs break a lot, which means they have a lot of experience with mechanics.  I used to call them biodegradable cars they would rust so fast.

In any event, one thing for the british cars, the parts are cheap and plentiful (MG, Triumph, Austin) and the lines sexy...DB4 or XKE, anyone?

[Jkalplus1]

Sounds like the head wasn't torqued down properly and then it wasn't re-torqued after starting.

Hi Dan,

that's exactly what happened.  I learned (from my mother) that the engine arrived from the rebuilder's place in a crate and was installed in the car, and the likeliness it was re-torqued is very low.  My father fell ill shortly after and died without having the chance to properly turn the car over to me.

1- Forensics on the head gasket shows failure on two cylinders, and was probaby progressive until the massive failure on number 1. 

2- My brother, engineer extraordinaire and rebuilder of many classic cars (not Mercedes though) did the work and reported the head was nowhere torqued where it needs to be initially, which completes all circumstancial evidence that it never was re-torqued, like you said, Dan.

3- The head was taken to a specialty head machining place and was found to be straight. Check!

4- Rebuild is complete...and we found a replacement head gasket in my parts bin AFTER the mail-in replacement was flown in from a supplier (!).  Total time (including taking the hood off): 20 man-hours.  Retightening took 1 hour.

5- 50km initial run-in: the motor runs strong and idles well.  I do have a question: How many miles does it typically take to "burn off" the coolant and oil from the mufflers that accumulate when a head gasket blows?  There is slight oil and coolant smoke coming out of the exhaust.  Careful measurements show no oil or coolant consumption, I will continue to monitor though.

6- I will test drive the car and take it home next weekend, re-torque the head with my calibrated torque wrench, check timing again, and we will hit the local shows!  Standby for photos and wish me luck for weather!  The car was intended as a "trailer queen" museum piece, and little expense was spared on the restoration -save for a few incorrect things.  But I will drive it dammit!  I don't want to drive it in the rain because it will dirty the underside that still presently looks like it came out of the assembly line.  I figure I cannot drive it a couple thousand miles a year and make it lose much in value, since you cannot really recoup initial restoration investment.  Besides, that's what Dad would have liked.

Thanks to all the members who helped me out.  As I am growing into my SL ownership I am learning tons of fascinating stuff, and blowing the head gasket was the best thing to happen to me for it enabled me to bond with my brother in a way that is not normally possible when you have young kids and family responsibilities.  Sometimes, you need a "magnificent failure" to become better.  I am not afraid of putting my hands "in there" anymore because of this and I know more now than I would in a year of problem-free ownership.

That said, I still know better than to "try" "great ideas" before checking-in with you guys.

Now, if I could find replacement copper seal rings to completely seal off the thermostat, and find replacement rubber-embedded screws to replace the worn ones under my air filter canister, I would be the happiest man.  Let's see what Niemöller calls them.

Cheers,
Jerome

[Benz Dr.]

I hope you changed the oil before starting to use the car. 

   It can take a couple of hours to completely burn off any remaining oil from the exhaust system. Just a few drops can create a lot of smoke so it doesn't happen quickly. If the smoking continues then you may have different problem.
Engine break in should occour in about 500 miles at which time you should drain the oil and do a final re-torque of the head bolts. I use a zinc additive made by Comp Cams during break in at twice the normal strenght, or in this case, a full bottle. Use half a bottle after that at every oil change.

[Jkalplus1]

Yes, new oil (10W40) and filter.  I read an old post by you about motor oils and zinc additives.

I bought a bunch of Zinc additive bottles on eBay (ZPPD MAX) to add to the oil I'll be using (really hard to find synthetic 10W40 off the shelf! Special order only around here), and will change oil and filter again after the 500-1000km.  I tried to get the Comp Cams product but the seller could not ship here, and when I go to local "performance" shops, they look at me like I have two heads when I mention zinc additives, and say "Oh, you have an old car, you need 20W50"  Uh-huh, yeah...I do not have the time to try to explain...it is rare to find knowledgeable staff nowadays.

Thanks for the insight on burning off the oil from the exhaust system.  Yes, I understand I can have another problem if it persists after break-in, so I will monitor temperature, oil and coolant consumption like a hawk.