How's the oil look?

^Good. It was due for a change. After driving it 100 miles yesterday, I switched it out. Looked fine.

Which I guess is good. If I screwed up the new gasket, it could fail in new and fun ways. which would potentially cause water/oil mix. So far so good. Gonna go refill the ac system on it right now. Put a new compressor on last week while I was in there.

From what I remember of the first thread, you did a quickie shortcut job after a HG failure and did not even take the head to a machine shop for inspection? I understand rolling the dice on a cheap car but I would have at least taken that simple step. Your time and labor isn’t free.

If you were leaking from a hose, you should be able to easily see it. You did the job, you know what you disconnected. I wish you luck, you’re going to need it. :)

Thanks. Perhaps I should have taken it to the shop. I did get a little carried away on the cheap and easy portion of it in the first thread. I also reference my dad, who would have LOVED this website and easily been in the 65k post category (in a good way).

Eating some mexican tonight, and swilling some margaritias, watching various volvos drive by, I thought about the flow of automotive life. My dad wasn't a cheapskate. Well...yes... He was a cheapskate, but he'd disagree.And I'd stand by him. He would argue, he knew when to sweat the small stuff, and when to not. I'd concur.

That is the art I wish I aspire to.

For that matter, I was able to locate the failure on the gasket. It read more like a cheap gasket or an overboost situation on some 944 turbo forum. Perhaps a schlep tightened it wrong (me), but not warped. It made it 200k. It never overheated. I only pulled it 6 years ago because a valve burnt. Measuring across the defect from multiple angles with numerous implements of measuremental destruction , the head and block were still dead flat.

Were the measurements as good as a stranger in a machine shop with proper equipment? Perhaps not.

For the HG, I failed in my dad's cheapskatedness. This is also where I fail my dad. He had a retirement plan. I do not, I go all out on stupid car stuff. Once again, I have failed!!! :) I went genuine volvo. I got new studs, and for a combination of my dad's genius and my own OCD, instead of buying one new good torque wrench, I used multiple torque (on hand) wrenches to tighten the head. Over the years I've accumulated numerous of such, so why not torque it using the average of three wrenches, and then do the 120 degree rotate?

So I did.

A bunch of cheap (or older) wrenches should click all over the place -but they didn't- they were boringly consistent.

While I was in there, I pontificated a bunch. Then engine is open, why not replace the main seals? Why not replace the turbo? Why not replace the water pump? Why not go the extra step, drop the pan, pull the pistons out and replace the entire lower end? Why not?

I should, as a local P-car mechanic told me the engine was trashed 6 years ago. This as we swooned over the Ferrari 250 GTO in his care for an oil change.
You'd think a guy like that would know when an engine was trashed. :)
So 6 years ago, I drove my car home. As we climbed the mountain, a pickup truck blowing oil passed me. I called my wife who was following. "Am I blowing oil like that pickup?" No, she said..

So I pulled the head, saw no wear on the engine, replaced the head gasket( and rebuilt the head) and got 6 years.(2018)

My guess was that if I replaced the head gasket again, (2024) and got another several years out of the car, and assuming I hadn't hit a deer or been sidelined by some texting millenial, I would be at a good point to go for a 1/2 million mark.

So a strategy developed.

I would replace the pistons, bearings, turbo, water pump, seals, etc... as a next major overhaul.

Big picture stuff, which would easily amount to more than the car's worth nothing other than a sentimental conquest.

Tonight, while swilling my margarita and spilling cheese dip all over myself, I watched numerous volvos drive by. I guaranfreeking -t you not one of those owners could even change their oil.
but enough blabbering.

Day 2 update in cooling levels- no change- no cocki-ness(this is a part of good karma btw... :) ) Humble all the way. Serious humble. AC holding charge. Cold happy air, but car needs new cabin blower.

Still in the darkest hours of the night, but I can hear the morning songbirds waking up :D

I think this all boils down to the original intent of my thread. All circumstances are different. In the end, WE ALONEchoose a strategy.

And then WE ALONE have to stand by it.

And then for several hours we get to think about our decisions. Wondering if they were a good strategy or not.

Dead man walking type automotive stuff.

That can be victorious, and it can suck. Agony of defeat (skier falling down) type stuff. Either way, there's skin in the game.

I've stood in this tunnel before. I hate it. I've come out a winner and loser, but tonight, I'm beginning to see hope.

Have another margarita and next time use one of those vacuum venturi thingies to fill your cooling system.;)

Hey Greg, we need to get together again. Pm sending

I love you, Man.

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They work grate cept when you gots a head gasket leak.

I will not perpetuate this.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1716081103.jpg

Ah hell Bob, I wished you lived closer.

For fun sake, I share this...The 924 hose. (mental note - I thought this was an 83' NA 944 upper hose... ) but things get foggy. Either way,(it sucked)for Miss Katrina and her 944)... Welcome to the boomtown.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1716082030.jpg

Way I figure it, is if you can outlive this guy, ANYTHING is an improvement! :)

A pressure test kit like this will help you find a coolant leak, and the funnel kit works great for filling the cooling system.
When filling the cooling system in my Lexus RX350, I located the bleeder valve and attached a clear hose to it, and ran the hose to the funnel. As the system filled, I could see the coolant going from the bleeder valve and into the funnel, and that way, I knew for sure that the system was full. Easy peasy. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...0240154b1b.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...2611c223ae.jpg

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When using the bleeding cup angle the front of the car upwards to help move air out of the block while you rev the car (if belt driven WP).

That is a nice tool and just toss all of the little bits into the cup and put the lid on to store.

Correct Bob. The key is to have the set up at the highest point so that air bubbles will find their way "up", Bubbles Up!!! My Lexus has a bleeder valve for this purpose as it is located at a high point on top of the engine.

Not to highjack here, but I had a coolant leak that was coming from an O-ring failure in a coolant by-pass pipe. The pipe is located in the "valley" of the engine between the two banks (6 cylinder) and is under the intake manifold. I was able to pinpoint the leak exactly by using a pressure test kit like the one pictured, I would've never found it otherwise. The kit allows you to pressurize the system with the engine cold so that you can find the leak.

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i agree. pressure test it.