Headgasket...UGH!
 

Ok so its official I blew a headgasket.

I got foam in coolant, I have exhaust comin out of everywhere including cabin.

I was quoted $1250 for valve job and gasket replacement. But I do have a Haynes Manual, and other than the absurd amount of time it'll take me to get the engine apart I think I can do it. How long does it normally take (So I can multiply it by 2 or 3 for myself). Do I need to do a valve job to do a headgasket change?

Is the exhaust in cabin a symptom of something else?

Well it's not a matter of just changing a gasket. You will have to get the head that blew milled flat again, and me being overkill would take the other side off and have it shaved as well even if it wasn't blown, that way compression is still even over all cylinders. Even if its minuscule.

You MIGHT be fine just changing the gasket but chances are it blew because something is warped.

A valve job isn’t required when replacing a head gasket. However, it is recommended if you have 80k+ miles on the motor. A valve job can only be done with the head off, so you might as well while your at it.

Pulling & installing the heads is fairly simple in principle. It’s removing all the other stuff to get the heads off that takes the bulk of the time. I’m not sure what the book hours are for a head gasket.

I agree with BabyGT in that you should probably send the head(s) out to get milled flat again. They are aluminum and typically warp when a head gasket blows due to an overheat problem. So if you don’t get them milled flat, you’ll blow another head gasket shortly after installing the new gasket. You don’t necessarily need to do both heads. The compression difference is so minute it won’t make a big difference.

You might be able to save some money by pulling the head(s) yourself and bringing them to a shop to mill and do the valve job.

Good luck...

If I chose to do it myself, wouldn't it be a good time to try to find supercoupe heads? Or other heads that will flow better than the 94? I don't want to do a split port swap, so what are my options? (I want an m90, its a cosmetic thing)

If my car has a rust problem, and I replace the engine, how do I make sure I don't get old rust into new engine?

When I did my last head job on my 5.0 it took me approximately 12 hours to do the complete tear down, clean up some parts, drop the heads off for milling, picking up the heads, and reinstalling everything.

Keep in mind I had done this many times so I had the sequence down. I can strip a 5.0 down to the engine in around 2-3 hours. It's the rebuild that takes 2 - 3 times longer to do as everything has to be set and torqued perfectly. Rush here and you'll be doing it again.

So for your first time expect it to take 2-3 days (depending on how long/fast you work) to do everything.

You will need a complete tool kit (sockets, wrenches, screw drivers, etc).

You will also need a pulley puller, fuel line removal tool, and a torque wrench that measures up to 100 ft pounds to do this job.

Hmmm save myself the trouble and put these in?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/3-8-FORD-V-6-CYLINDER-HEADS-MUSTANG-TAURUS-SABLE-WINDSTAR-COUGAR-THUNDERBIRD-/350712946688?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item51a81ee000&vxp=mtr
I want better flowing heads, and I want to find racing gaskets so I don't have to deal with this too often. Daily driver and all but I want to supercharge it.

Wahoooo found someone that'll do the labor for a reasonable amount! I'm going to go collect the parts. Means I don't ahve to go around begging to use someone's yard! (I live in an apartment and I seriously dont want to get rid of my car)

Nope cvan't afford the 600 + parts to have someone else do it. Parts on the way I'm going to take a crack at it. Should I just buy new heads or send 'em to machine shop?

Send them to get machined. A lot cheaper.