DerFahrer Posted August 10, 2007 Share Posted August 10, 2007 Okay, finally got around to doing some work on the 79. Since 4 of the 6 intake manifold bolts are broken off in the head , I went about removing the heads. I started with the passenger side. Rockers off, pushrods out, nuts off, air suction system off, plugs out, broke the HG seal, started working the head off the studs. No problems at all so far. The head worked off the studs nice and easy. Presto. I go around to the other side and do the same thing. Rockers off, pushrods out, nuts off, broke the HG seal, and started working the head off the studs. It took me about 20 minutes to remove everything for the passenger head to come off, and that was including the air suction from both heads and removing the spark plugs from both heads.... ... it's taken me an HOUR just to get the driver's head an inch away from the block! I used a screwdriver, I used wrenches, I used a breaker bar, everything I could get my hands on to pry the head away from the block. Keep in mind, I'm using rags on the ends of these implements so as not to damage the mating surfaces of the head or block. But I've been working at this f'ing thing long enough and I want this head to come off! Is it possible that the studs on this side are bent somehow? Why is this side so difficult when the other side was so easy? Oh, and another problem... I at least have the driver's head off far enough to notice something I didn't really want to see: about an ounce of coolant sitting in the #2 cylinder . I turned my stand to face that side down and let the coolant drain out of it, and from what I see, there isn't any corrosion in the cylinder, it's just wet. Should I just wipe it out and not worry about it? Or am I totally screwed? Sorry for the n00b questions. This is only the second time I've pulled heads off a Subaru engine, and this is the only time I've done it while planning on keeping the shortblock intact. TIA! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted August 10, 2007 Share Posted August 10, 2007 sounds like you got yourself a beast there m. some solid wood and large hammer to whack it with sometimes helps. penetrating lubricant anywhere where it may be seized if it's partially coming off. if you can afford it, taking a break may help, frustration really saps all the fun out of stuff. wait until the head is off to diagnose the cylinder wall condition. i wouldn't consider coolant in there the end of the world just yet, too many variables to guess. good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caboobaroo Posted August 10, 2007 Share Posted August 10, 2007 So one of the main reasons why the head isn't wanting to come off very easily is because there's probably something built up on a couple of the studs, making it very hard to slide. Just keep hitting it and wiggling it, it'll come off eventually. As for the coolant, probably a bit got into the cylinder when you broke the headgasket seal. Just wipe it out and put a small amount of some 20w50 on the walls of the cylinders to prevent rust. It'll burn off once its started up and will also help keep the shortblock assembly from siezing to the cylinder walls. I had my shortblock on an EA82T sieze a little but it was just enough to not want to turn by hand. I had to put some MMO down into the cylinders and let it sit for a few days before it moved again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DerFahrer Posted August 11, 2007 Author Share Posted August 11, 2007 Okay, after another thirty minutes of hammering and jerking the head around (hehe), I finally got it off. I see a few nicks on the cylinder head surface, but they seem to be at the edge, and hopefully the new headgasket seals properly. If push comes to shove, I'll just have to have a complete head job done on both heads I guess. Wiped the coolant out of the cylinder, and there's no corrosion, so you're probably right Russ. I was afraid coolant had leaked out of the inlet and into the air intake hole and into the open intake valve, which would mean it had set there for several months. But the cylinder wall looks cherry - still cross-hatched, God I love Subaru - so I rubbed some oil around in it. I've been referred to a reputable machine shop, and I'll probably drop the heads off there Monday morning. Progress is being made! Thanks all for the encouragement! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DerFahrer Posted August 22, 2007 Author Share Posted August 22, 2007 Wow! I got the heads back from the machine shop yesterday. They look beautiful! They cleaned them completely, they look brand-new. They should for $250 Hopefully I'll get the longblock back together before the month's over, and then I'll bug someone to help me get it back in the car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShawnW Posted August 29, 2007 Share Posted August 29, 2007 $250 isnt bad if they lapped the valves, surfaced the heads and cleaned them. Its really hard to get carbon out of the ports on heads, especially ones that have carbon thats been in there that long. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DerFahrer Posted September 2, 2007 Author Share Posted September 2, 2007 Oops, didn't see your reply Shawn. Not to mention that they extracted 4 broken intake manifold bolts out too. I understand that the price was actually pretty good, but it just hurt a lot more than I'd have liked it to I'm gonna try to get them on tomorrow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DerFahrer Posted October 22, 2007 Author Share Posted October 22, 2007 I actually touched the car again tonight! Put the disty back in, no problems. I already had the motor lined up at TDC #1 on compression when I pulled it out, so it went right back in where it was. The passenger side head went on with no problems. Then that damn driver's head got hung up on the studs again. In the meantime, I had scrubbed the studs off with WD40 and a wire brush, just to get all the oil and gunk off of them. They cleaned up really nice, and the holes in the heads are clean too obviously, since they cleaned them up at the machine shop. So, logic can only suggest that one of the studs is bent somewhere. I'm thinking about locating the bent one and replacing it, but would it be in my best interest to just restud that whole side? Or should I even consider restudding the whole motor? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DerFahrer Posted November 3, 2007 Author Share Posted November 3, 2007 Well, I located the bent one and removed it. Head slides right on now, so that was definitely the one. Thank God it's one of the upper, shorter ones. The long ones that the rocker arms attach to are obsolete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caboobaroo Posted November 3, 2007 Share Posted November 3, 2007 Dang son, whats taking you so long? Need me to fly out there and get it done for you?:-p Just kidding! I ran into a problem on my first EA71. I had one bent pushrod and ones from an EA81 wouldn't work AND it had to be from a specific EA71 setup that had the EA81 waterpump on it:rolleyes: That made it fun to source... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DerFahrer Posted November 3, 2007 Author Share Posted November 3, 2007 Hehe... just been extremely busy with school. This is my last semester, and it seems like it's my hardest semester also. Believe me, wrenches will be turning furiously as soon as I hang my gown and tassel up. The engine looks really funny with the shortblock absolutely drenched in oil and two nice shiny heads sitting on either side of it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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