My "88" 4X4 Truck 22RE has a blown head gasket, water sucking into #3. Losing water, steam coming out tail pipe, #3 spark plug fouling bad (although #3 still seems to have good compression), rocker arm cover coated with brown milk. 170K, 40K on rebuilt long block and timing set, head was in good shape at that time. Truck was running great untill it turned into a steam engine.
Going to give it a shot at getting that head off. Think I can handle everything except possibly the fuel injection intake manifold which looks like it could be a bear. The Haynes manual is pretty vague in the subject. I have read previous posts on this list about a possible "9th" bolt? And while looking under the manifold, I see some metal tubing which must be disconnected? One possibly called a secondary air injection tube? There are a couple other metal tubes which seem to go back behind the head. Haynes says to remove all hoses and wiring, but don't think that is necessary.
I would be most appreciative if someone could explain, what needs to disconnected, and how, to move the intake manifold out of the way just enough to get the head off.
Also, the book says to relieve the fuel pressure first, disconnect electric fuel pump connection at the fuel tank. Crawled under there twice, can't find it, I think the tank has to come out to disconnect it there. What the heck?
Thanks for your expert impute on this matter. Pray the head is OK. Mark
Word of caution: #3 may appear to have good compression due to water in the cylinder occupying space that would normally be filled by compressible air. Basically, the water could be reducing the displacement in that cylinder. Don't run the engine if there's liquid water in a cylinder, you can do serious damage.
You also have to worry about the fact that you got water in your crankcase. That means pulling the oil pan. It also means that there's probably emulsified water and oil in your engine's oil galleys. I'd be concerned about getting all gunk that out. A power flush would be best, but I don't think that's something you can DIY. Perhaps someone else has some better recommendations on this. But I would consider removing the oil filter and blowing compressed air through the engine's oil inlet port (the nipple the filter threads onto). That should help blow out the galleys. But even that will probably not clean it all out. So after you've finished getting the engine back together, you might want to consider putting the oil pan on with a temporary gasket, filling the crankcase with oil, *priming* the system (that's important!), running the engine a short while, then pulling the oil pan again to get out any remaining gunk.
As for the root cause, it may not simply be a blown gasket. It's very possible that the water passages in the head have corroded to the point that they have bridged into the cylinder dome. This is not as bad as it sounds. A reputable machine shop can grind out the corrosion, fill in the holds by welding, and then re-surface the head. When I pulled my head ('89 22RE), there was some corrosion that had gotten very close to the cylinder domes. My machine shop did a great repair for me.
Frankly, I don't remember everything I did to get the manifold off. I do recall that it was tricky in that it required some contosionist positions from the top and the bottom of the engine compartment. Be sure you have a good assortment of socket extensions, flex joints, and combination wrenches. You should also have flare nut wrenches. Probably the worst was getting to the air injection manifold that runs behind the back of the head (I don't know if your engine has this). Of course, I pulled my manifolds completely to R&R all the gaskets and soft parts, so my job was a bit more involved.
The fuel pump is inside the tank; there is an electrical connector at the access port on the top of the tank. But you really don't need to disconnect that. If the vehicle has been sitting for a day or so without running, there probably won't be much--if any--pressure remaining it the fuel lines. What you definitely do need to do is disconnect the battery. I recommend actually removing the battery altogether from the vehicle. It gives you more room to work and ensures you don't accidentally short the terminals with any tools or parts (very bad, especially with open gasoline lines around). When you're ready to disconnect the fuel supply line from the fuel delivery rail, wrap a shop rag around the wrench and connection before cracking the banjo fitting. If there is any residual pressure, it will get soaked up by the rag (you are wearing safety goggles, right?). Make sure you properly store and dispose of any gas soaked rags.
There is one hard-to-find bolt under the thermostat housing. It is long, allen head and hidden underneath the intake. A Factory Service Manual is a big help:
MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here.
All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.