my son has a 84 gl with a bad headgasket on the right side (pass). it's leaking coolant to outside. oil is fine.

 

is there enough room to take head off without removing motor? a guy at his work said he can put something in the radiator that might seal the head. not sure about the name but it costs 60 bucks.

 

should we try that first?the motor only has 162,000 mile on it.

 

thanks

im interested in this as well... my 86 is doing the EXACT same thing on same side! Go figure.

Ea81 or ea82?

 

Ea82s can be done in the car

 

Ea81s can't.

 

82 uses head bolts

81 uses head studs

 

And I wouldn't put HG sealer in there unless its the CRC with nano tech

Other wise you will clog something.

Ea82, how many studs are there? and what specs do the nuts have to be torqued to when putting them back?

Ea82, how many studs are there? and what specs do the nuts have to be torqued to when putting them back?

 

EA82, not studs, 9 bolts iirc, though it could be 10. Either way, the chilton's manual misses one, but you can work it into the pattern they do show.

Edited March 13, 201214 yr by man on the moon

If its a 1984 as he said, it is an ea81

EA81 heads can be removed with the engine in the vehicle.

 

There's a couple holes in the framerails to allow removal of the rocker assembly mounting bolts once they are unscrewed.

Believe I removed the pushrods using those holes also. Been a few years....

 

Use Felpro Perma-Torque head gaskets, no need to do the re-torque with them.

Factory only for the intake and exhaust gaskets.

 

Buy either a Haynes or Chiltons manual for your vehicle. Has all of the info you need for torque specs and what not.

It's so easy to remove the engine. Just pull the engine and do both heads. If one started leaking, chances are the other one is gonna follow.

I had a pressure plate fail when I was on a business trip. I pulled the engine with a come-along attached to the bottom of the deck of the people's house I was staying in. I had it out, replaced clutch, and back in about 2.5 hours.

 

Just pull and re-seal everything, otherwise you're going to have to rip into it again.

EA81's can have their head gaskets replaced with the engine in the car. As Tom said, there are holes in the frame rails so you can fit a few extensions and a socket through there and get all the bolts off.

 

However, your back will thank you if you just remove the engine. Also, you really want to do BOTH head gaskets at the same time, and might as well do the oil pan gasket as well. Takes maybe 20minutes to pull the engine, however your probably going to spend an extra 3 hours hunched over the hood, cursing and punching stuff if you decide to leave the motor in.

 

The EA82's head gaskets can easily be replaced by swapping out the entire EA82 with a EJ22

Since you have to pull the intake manifold, fuel hoses, throttle cable, etc. And you have to pull the exhaust to just pull one head. You've done most of the work to pull the engine.

All additional you have to do is two motor mount nuts, one pitch stop bolt, four nuts/bolts holding the engine to the tranny, and one starter nut. It's really that easy.

to the person with EA81 - don't know, i haven't done those.

 

to the EA82 guy - they're easy to do in the car as well, take your pick based on your personal preference and tools/space/etc. it's much nicer to do in the car with air tools - i just zip all the bolts...being careful of course with it. turning all the bolts by hand is easier out of the car.

Since you have to pull the intake manifold, fuel hoses, throttle cable, etc. And you have to pull the exhaust to just pull one head. You've done most of the work to pull the engine.

All additional you have to do is two motor mount nuts, one pitch stop bolt, four nuts/bolts holding the engine to the tranny, and one starter nut. It's really that easy.

 

 

thanks all/ i have never pulled a motor before so you have to multiply the time by 10. it always takes me a minimum of 3 times longer to do something on the car.

 

do you suggest i also replace anything else like seals, oil pump? etc. it's really a good running motor.

t

i've got the old "How To Keep Your Subaru Alive " manual.