1999 TD5 - head gasket failure :( - Need advice on doing HG please

As above guys. To summarise the situation.... I bought this TD5 about a week ago. I have since found the expansion tank is pressurising and the heater is cold.... - HG failure time!

I am going to have a crack at doing it later this week and am hoping you can advise me on any tools I may need (other than ordinary stuff) and a few other questions!

Parts - was going to get head pressure tested, skimmed and order new HG as appropriate (thickness wise)... or shall i just order a stock HG?

- was going to use an OEM head installation kit, and elring HG gaskets. Was going to use aftermarket new head bolts.

I have been reading rave , it doesn't mention air con compressor? it looks like I need to remove it?

Rave mentions a crank locking tool as well as cam locking tool. I was going to use a bolt for the cams? is there any other option for locking the crank?

Would really appreciate some advice as Im so p*ssed off to have to be doing this less than a week after buying it...!! Its a nice clean car apart from this though so I'm hoping it's worth it.

How long should removing the head take for a reasonably competent DIY mechanic? I was hoping to have it removed in about 4-5 hours... Is this realistic!!!
thanks

LASER 4052 Timing Pins - Land Rover TD5 | eBay

timing locking pins as above or you can use drill bits, haynes manual goes through all you need to know about head gasket, not a hard job, removing everything to get at it is the time consuming thing,
your gonna need a torque wrench 1/2" drive plus an angle gauge for tightening head bolts plus an E14 TORX socket fo the head bolts, the rest of the tools are standard sockets and spanners, allen sockets etc

johnlad said:

LASER 4052 Timing Pins - Land Rover TD5 | eBay

timing locking pins as above or you can use drill bits, haynes manual goes through all you need to know about head gasket, not a hard job, removing everything to get at it is the time consuming thing,
your gonna need a torque wrench 1/2" drive plus an angle gauge for tightening head bolts plus an E14 TORX socket fo the head bolts, the rest of the tools are standard sockets and spanners, allen sockets etc

Click to expand...

Thanks mate.
Ive got all the kit there apart from I might need to get the E14 torx socket and I need cam locking tool.

Ive only got the RAVE manual, not the haynes. It does list some special tools but not very clearly!

Presumably to set the timing marks up for camchain removal I rotate it on the crank pulley clockwise with the plugs out?

What do I do about checking the flywheel timing? It says to put a tool through the gearbox bell housing!!?

ahh I see.. are the tools in the ebay link to lock both cam and crank?

thanks

in the link i posted there is a flywheel and cam locking tool, it screws into the bellhousing, theres photo's in the haynes book showing where it goes, and yes turn crank pulley to get on cam and flywheel hole

johnlad said:

in the link i posted there is a flywheel and cam locking tool, it screws into the bellhousing, theres photo's in the haynes book showing where it goes, and yes turn crank pulley to get on cam and flywheel hole

Click to expand...

cheers mate.
Is the haynes available in pdf anywhere folks?
Do I need to remove the bonnet and get the car on drive on ramps or can it be done with wriggling underneath stock height?

sorry for all questions!

ok, Ive bought the locking tools. Hopefully they will be here thursday so I can get the head off. I will update here as I go in case it helps anyone in the future.

I will also probably need advice lol

anderow said:

ok, Ive bought the locking tools. Hopefully they will be here thursday so I can get the head off. I will update here as I go in case it helps anyone in the future.

I will also probably need advice lol

Click to expand...

do it in detail and take photo's, you can make this a good fred!!
i know it's not good as it's the dreaded Head gasket job
good luck!!!

Will do my best mate.
Will take plenty of pics and write it up as soon as I can.

got to do it first though!

ps/cheers!

It's a pressurised cooling system so if you take the cap off when it's hot coolant will go everywhere. If no anti freeze has been used and it has just been topped up with water, in this weather it is possible that your cooling system has frozen, especially to the heater, happened to mine a few years ago, blew out icy cold air into the cabin for days! No HG failure just cold driving for a while. Check coolant mixture - get it checked for AF, might prove a bit easier.

chrimcne said:

It's a pressurised cooling system so if you take the cap off when it's hot coolant will go everywhere. If no anti freeze has been used and it has just been topped up with water, in this weather it is possible that your cooling system has frozen, especially to the heater, happened to mine a few years ago, blew out icy cold air into the cabin for days! No HG failure just cold driving for a while. Check coolant mixture - get it checked for AF, might prove a bit easier.

Click to expand...

Pressurised coolant system when hot , yes.
When the system has cooled down overnight, the water has lost volume as its cooled down, pressure in the coolant system decreases. So when taking the exp cap off on a cold engine, you shouldn't get more than a 'pfft'....

Mine explodes coolant out like a frothing tidal wave!!! meaning the coolant is under pressure from exhaust gas I reckon.

and its full of coolant too unfortunately :/
The give away for me is the gurgling behind the dash. It just wont bleed all the air out no matter what I do.
So that damned head is coming off hehe!

Gurgling behind dash, check.
Coolant light flickers on and off after driving for about 20mins,
No apparent loss of coolant.
Does this sound head gasket like to you knowledgable types?

ScottyK said:

Gurgling behind dash, check.
Coolant light flickers on and off after driving for about 20mins,
No apparent loss of coolant.
Does this sound head gasket like to you knowledgable types?

Click to expand...

I would say if your not losing any coolant, then its possible you may just have an air lock in the heater matrix. Search this forum for bleeding the coolant system.
Is your expansion bottle pressurised? take the lid off before you start the car in the morning. When the engine is cold. If it starts trying to fizz out and theres a lot of pressure in there, I would bet my money on your head gasket being at fault...
Im waiting for the new HG to turn up...grr.. internet parts order. But Im going to strip the head off tomorrow so will update the other thread I started in the TD5 forum.