Ford Crown Victoria P71
2007
100,000 miles
I've put new cylinder heads gasket. I used the Fel-Pro multilayered metallic gaskets. When I apply pressure to the system, coolant leaks into the valley at 10 PSI, not below. I haven't run a heat cycle yet because I haven't totally reassembled the engine yet.
Am I good to go or should I do something?
The cooling system needs to reach at least 15 psi without leaking.
Why did you replace head gaskets?
@imperator They were leaking. It's not leaking into the oil now, just into the valley.
why did the heads leak with only 100k? Did the engine overheat?
@imperator No. I don't know why. It was a police car. It may have idled quite a bit.
Idling doesn't blow head gaskets, but police cars are driven hard and heavily abused. Anyway, anytime you replace head gaskets you need to machine the mating surface. Or at least check it for flatness. Are you following service manual procedures?
@imperator I didn't machine the mating surface. Yes, I followed the instructions of torquing and angling the bolts at the correct order.
@imperator This is why I bought the Fel-Pro gaskets that claim to seal uneven surfaces.
it might help small imperfections, but not a head that's warped from overheating.
I followed the instructions of torquing
I'm talking about this ...
Using a straight edge and a feeler gauge, inspect the cylinder head for flatness in the sequence shown. If the cylinder head is distorted, install a new cylinder head....
And here's Felpro themselves showing you what you need to do before installing their MLS gasktes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVJ5C9o6H9s
@imperator OK... I don't really feel like disassembling everything again and buy new TTY bolts. If I start the engine and let it warm up, will it expand the gaskets?
no. You need to do it correctly or not at all.
Yes, I followed the instructions
The service manual states :
"CAUTION: Cylinder head machining or milling is not authorized by the Ford Motor Company. Cylinder head flatness must be within 0.0254 mm (0.001 inch) across a 38.1 mm (1.5 inch) square area.
Am I good to go or should I do something?
if your head can't hold 10 psi, you can be pretty sure it won't hold combustion pressures. I'm not sure why you're buying cars with blown gaskets, but this one probably needs new heads.
@imperator It wasn't leaking when I bought it but the leak appeared 3 years later. So you're saying that turning the engine on won't fix it?
pressure drops from 15PSI to 12 over 15 minutes. The system hasn't been bled. Is it OK?
https://carkiller.com/scottykilmer/qa/engine-rebuilt/#post-334671
I like the car. For all those who believe that they're still available out there by the millions, check this out:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MsKlyU2d0U
This car will become as rare as the Police Dodge Monaco
It was the tube going to the water pump that leaked. Now it doesn't leak any coolant anymore but the pressure drops from 15PSI to 12 over 15 minutes. The system hasn't been bled. Is it OK?