For the haters and second guessers, bench racers and more.

[greenbullitt]

Have fun with the rebuild. I think the gaskets look ok. On mine it was freakin obvious. One of the pistons looked like it was getting a steam bath(no carbon buildup).

they do that when they ingest water, look at the tracking

mike, the pics I mentioned, the holes mentioned (ends) look to be blown to the outside too

[racrguy]

I just don't want to spend $ on a stock rebuild to me that's a waste.

Will it last forever? No. Will it last a while? Yes. Is it going to boom bitch!? Let's hope not!

Borrowed time.

[greenbullitt]

Thats the spots I was referring to, I'll post a close up of those spots tomorrow. I'm tired of putting my shoes on to go to the garage.

im not looking at the gasket material for this conclusion, and theres a reason the gasket came apart there when you lifted the head. It was already being destroyed before you twisted a bolt

[91CoupeMike]

im not looking at the gasket material for this conclusion, and theres a reason the gasket came apart there when you lifted the head. It was already being destroyed before you twisted a bolt

Makes sense. The car got hot a few times, nothing major. But wouldnt that be typical in a higher mileage engine?

[greenbullitt]

Makes sense. The car got hot a few times, nothing major. But wouldnt that be typical in a higher mileage engine?

where does a blown gasket start? the cylinder.

stare at the fire rings and tell me what you see

[racrguy]

Makes sense. The car got hot a few times, nothing major. But wouldnt that be typical in a higher mileage engine?

No. The cooling system on cars is over designed for a reason.

[greenbullitt]

No. The cooling system on cars is over designed for a reason.

less friction with miles, if anything less likely! lol

[91CoupeMike]

No. The cooling system on cars is over designed for a reason.

That's not what I meant, sorry.

I meant the gasket deteriorating.

[greenbullitt]

That's not what I meant, sorry.

I meant the gasket deteriorating.

I followed you in that part, was jus sayin

[JC316]

The head gasket has deteriorated on every engine that I have ever pulled apart. I personally don't see any blown spots on that gasket, but without seeing it in person, I can't say for sure. As for the block, I think these guys are giving you shit for no reason. Knowing how you drive, I would have everything freshened up, but I doubt it's going to blow up,

Hell, I just rebuilt the engine in a saturn that was carboned up about 5 times worse than yours. Slapped a new set of rings and bearings, used a gallon of lacquer thinner to clean all of the carbon off and reassembled it. Has over 200 PSI of compression in all 4 cylinders.

[Mysticcobrakilla]

El oh El @ this thread!

[FOKAI]

You should just get it rebuilt. It's only a 302 prob get it done cheap you are already there why do it again in a few months and you prob get more out of it in the long run. Do it right like I said last time so get shortblock rebuilt and have someone tune it. Good luck on build.

[dumpycapri85]

If it were me I would rebuild it but I do it myself so a re-ring , new bearings and a new oil pump is simple and quick . The oil you think is coming from the valve seal or guide may have come from the rings but without a compression check we can only guess . That being said I would think about how long you plan to run that motor before you swap it for a different combo and do what you think is smart .

After you get it done I wanna run you with your tune and the spray with my factory short block 302 .

[Diabolic]

Mike I wouldn't even worry about cleaning off the pistons other than the big stuff that will come off with a carbon scraper. Don't gouge the piston and rotate each one to the top of the bore so you don't damage or nick the cylinder walls. You could even give a wire wheel ona drill a quick whirl. Just cover the adjoining hole with a towel and keep a shop vac handy to suck out the debris. I really can't tell from the pics if the gaskets are blown or not, but I do know that if there is some leakage, it isn't bad. It's just really tough to make 100 certain with a photo unless a whole chunk is missing.

[G..]

As long as you're running fuel through your upper intake you are gonna have these issues. Either switch to a plate or dry kit and have fun. And rebuild that motor. Leaking valve seals will only help buffer the detonation for a short time.