Hi everybody. I took my 66 TR4A that I finished last fall out for a nice
ride Sunday, at it performed nicely. However, today on a short run, I
apparently blew the head gasket again. Cylinders # 3 & 4 are down on
compression, and there is pressure in the cooling system. This is the
engine that I had rebuilt by a shop in Eugene, Oregon that advertises
their expertise on British engines. At the end of last summer, just
after finishing the car, I overheated due to a blown head gasket. Upon
disassembly I found several of the guides had pushed out. They used
knurled guides rather than fitting the new ones. Also, it appears that
reused the liners with used oversize pistons. The pistons have lots of
pitting. Though I had good compression after having BPNW redo the head
(165-175 lbs.), this first long ride has repeated the problem. I'll
admit that engines are not my thing, but what should I look for to
determine the cause of this problem? Is there a type or brand of head
gasket that might help? They must have milled the head, as I had a good
deal of problem getting the right length push rods when I also replaced
the rocker arms. The ones from BPNW were too long, so I reused the old
ones. Perhaps I should just yank the whole thing out and send it someone
who can get do a through job? The power on this engine didn't seem to
match up to the TR4A I had in the late 60's. And it has lots of little
leaks. Any suggestions? Thanks. Jerry Oliver, Olympia, WA.
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