FoxGT

Either my head is warped or for some reason fel-pro gaskets don't like me. I've taken that head off 3 times just to see that the gasket was still in great condition. Since i've had the car back together I've had nothing but trouble with everything that has to do with the cooling system. First it was the lower radiator hose blowing off at a local gas station, then the thermostat my friend put in backwards during the rebuild, after that it was a hole in one of the hoses coming off of the water pump, now I find out coolant is getting into one or more of my cylinders. I got on it when I was driving down the road, this was the first time it had seen WOT since the rebuild. A couple seconds later I started smelling coolant. I call my friend over & have him follow me down the road to see if any white smoke was coming out when I got on it. I was driving normally & called him, he said nothing was coming out. I got off the phone with him & punched it. 5 seconds later the phone rang. He told me there was a ton of white smoke & some clear liquid sprayed all over his car.
Now back when I first got the engine together & started it, coolant had sprayed out the passenger side of the engine, so I took the head off & checked for cracks & a blown gasket. All was good. I put it back together & the same thing was happening. I ordered some stronger head bolts figuring those had stretched. Put those on & torqued them down 20 more ft.lbs. than the others (they said they could take 80, i put them at 70.) After that all was good, no more leak from the head until now.

Any ideas? This thing has got up to 260 degrees before once (I wasn't paying attention to the gauge)

vfast

I would take that head and have it shaved 5000th to clean it up and make it straight and it will make for better seal....what gaskets are you using.....also I hope you have a mr. gasket 180 stat

black89gt

all i can say is bad rebuilder no offense though.!

xgregrandomx

Get the heads magna fluxed i had a similar problem, replaced the gasked 3 times and it didnt help and i checked the heads for cracks each time and no cracks, but the last time the crack finally came through and it was obivous. Sometimes cracks cant been seen with the eye so yea i bet that is your problem and dont use fel pro gaskets there cheap and blow easy.

FoxGT

Fel Pro gaskets. Not sure on the Tstat brand, but it is a 180
Most likely true. My first rebuild. You have to start somewhere. I've had the engine out before to put the cam in, but never rebuilt the engine.

FoxGT

I do have a spare H.O. 302 for parts.