I have a suspected 'minor' head gasket issue with the ej22 in my 76 bus.
Anyone here changed the gaskets on these donks?
Is it difficult thing to do without pulling the motor out?
Do you have to use new head bolts?
Any help much appreciated
alex

What symptoms are you getting?

Don't read my thread, you will get very discouraged

my first 22 was running fine but the overflow kept filling and bubbling once it heated up
Eventually the oil cap started getting creamy underneath

There's some awfully graphic pics in there of what one ends up like inside when previous owners use substances like cat piss for coolant

it would be a much easier job with the engine out

Does a '76 bus chassis rails get wider in the engine bay?
If so I've done my HGs in situ (RJES bellhousing). Doubt you could if the rails are uniform distance for the whole chassis

You have to remove (& replace) the RHS head with one cylinder bolt (one at front) still in the head as there's not enough clearance to remove it independently. Remember to insert it into the head before putting it back on (D'oh )

Remove:
Inlet manifold (GNG - gonna need gaskets)
Exhaust man (GNG)
H2O Man (GNG)
Crank pulley, Cam covers, idler pulley, Tensioner, Belt (if you're gonna change it get a new one, may as well)

Follow Subaru's instructions about head bolt removal sequence

No need to use new head bolts (not told to replace in Subaru's manuals)

You will need a 12mm (or is it 14mm?) 12 point socket for the head bolts

No "special tools" required

Make sure you torque up the pulley bolt correctly!

HTH

Been somthing that has slowly developed over the last 6 months or so.....maybe up to 12 months??
The runs like a dream and pulls really hard.
Cooling system is spot on. The engine comes up to temp really quickly and sits on 80ish on my VDO guage if in city traffic it will slowly creep up till the fans kick in at 90.... if you stay in traffic the fans knock the temp down till the fans cut out and the temp will slowly rise......it just keeps cycling like that. If you hit the open road temp drops straight down to 80 and sits there regardless.
I have done many many trips pulling a 13ft boat......last summer all the way up to Noosa. 110km/h + easy all day.

Did start to notice that I would lose a bit of coolant at times.... out the top of the overflow. Have been over every other option. New thermostat, new cap etc etc..
It is at the point now that it is fine around town but on a good open drive it spits out some coolant..... up to a litre or so on a 4 hour run..... and yes after such a run there are bubbles coming out into the overflow.
What seems to be happening is after prolonged drive, combusion gas is pushing past the gasket and overpressurising/displacing an amount of coolant.
Now as long as I watch the coolant level...and I watch it like a hawk....... the engine temps sit as they always have and it goes!
Must add I am yet to see ANY hint of coolant in the oil or such.

Yes to chassis rails get wider in the engine bay.... seems to be heaps of room to pull the heads... and I really think that it needs to happen

I didn't get any water in the oil.
Mine was oil in the water. When it dried around the cap it looked like really fine sand.

Here's a link to what you might see when you pull the heads
http://www.vwkd.co.uk/bb/viewtopic.php?t=848 

Thanks for the link..... just when I thought I had a handle on all the vw/subi type forums around I find that one!
A LOT of info there.
I thing I have the same type of gasket break..... from the water jacket to the exhust port somehow? Is that possible?

changing the belt is not that much of a drama on the DOHC models so the head can't be too bad on a SOHC. Just make sure you replace the water pump while you are there if you haven't already. Cheap insurance.

Well I just got to give it a go now I am loaded with all that info hey....
So as parts go, is this all I will need?
head gaskets
exhaust gaskets
inlet manafold gaskets
timing belt
water pump
??

I've got a genuine water pump I bought for my first one and never used if your interested

Thanks for the offer Joel but jobs all done
.... and as the water pump and timing belt were done just before I put the motor in and are still pretty fresh I left that job for down the track..... what do you what for the water pump btw.

Everything went as planned and I am happy to say I got no nasty surprises when the heads came off.
I am still not 100% sure where exactly my problem was coming from but to my untrained eyes both gaskets seemed to be on there way out and showing signs of age.
Here is the passenger side head.....

And the drivers side....

So anyone have an idea where my problem may have been? Seems to me there are a few areas where it looks like small leaks may have happened.... and given theat my problem was just an issue after a hard drive I am thinking the gaskets were just getting a bit tired and i got them before they really started giving me grief.
There was also quite a bit of carbonated smeg on the pistons. Is this to be expected or is it maybe the remains after the coolant has been burnt off?
alex

Another thing that seemed strange to me was the timing belt. This was replaced Just before I received the motor and is thus only 18 months old. The car has always run like a demon but when I pulled the cover and marked up the belt before I removed it.... the notches don't seem to line up as per the manual specs...
Here are some pics..

it looks to be a tooth out! IN GENERAL: if cam timing advanced, it gives better low end torque and a little less top end, cam timing retarded, it gives better perforance in top end, at the cost of bottom end torque.

Can be a bit tricky to line up cause u have to take into account the belt's movement when the tensioner puts pressure back on. (if its a spring loaded sort, i neva worked with these motors)

Do cometic make performance head gaskets for these motors? (if it ensures any better longevity). hard to see if there is any breaching between the cylinder wall and water jacket from those photos, but seeing that its pulled apart, you gotta get the heads polished and new head gasket anyways. And if it still bubbles from there, you at least know its not the headgasket.

Thats what I thought.... a tooth out.
Am I right thinking that the timing would be retarded in this case. Would this have been done intentionally?
New gaskets have gone in the motor and she is purring once again. Touch wood this has solved this issue. If not where else could exhaust gas be entering the coolant?

Looks like you've had blow by on the front LH head. It also looks like it may have distorted like mine did (I put a link up earlier for you)

Did you check the heads/pots for distortion? Steel rule edge diagonally is a quick and dirty check

Your cams deffo look like they are both one tooth out (rotate cams 1 tooth C/W). This is assuming that your Tippex (is it called that over there? Correction Fluid) marks on the pulleys are on the Subaru stampings

Looks like theres a tiny bit of that nasty electrolosis that killed my first engine going on under #2.

If you can find in my thread were i did my timing belt i wrote down the tooth count each way for correct belt orientation

*edit was back at page 13

http://forums.aussieveedubbers.com/viewtopic.php?tid=77027&page=13#pid752752 

Yeah thats the bit I suspect too.

Did put a rule over all the surfaces and they all looked great.

The white marks on the cam gears were already marked over the subaru mark. The rest of the marks I put there before I did anything..... teh belt went back the same way and the car runs great.

Quote:

Originally posted by ElusiveStranger Looks like you've had blow by on the front LH head. It also looks like it may have distorted like mine did (I put a link up earlier for you) Did you check the heads/pots for distortion? Steel rule edge diagonally is a quick and dirty check Your cams deffo look like they are both one tooth out (rotate cams 1 tooth C/W). This is assuming that your Tippex (is it called that over there? Correction Fluid) marks on the pulleys are on the Subaru stampings

I was worried I would see somyhing like you had in that first engine but it all looked really good.
The stuff you mention.... I am embarrased to say.... I believe to be the remains of the Bars stop leak I put through in a moment of despair and under the influence of bad advise. my shame! There a a few small areas where it seems evident. DOH!
I did count 45 toward the left side and I think 39.5 the other...... it was then I thought something may be up but went with the aint broke and put it back as it was.
What I find strange is why it was done like that in the first place.
I was told the belt and water pump were done before I took delivery of the motor... in kit form from a well known supplier.
I guess a new belt is in order....

Quote:

Originally posted by Joel Looks like theres a tiny bit of that nasty electrolosis that killed my first engine going on under #2. If you can find in my thread were i did my timing belt i wrote down the tooth count each way for correct belt orientation *edit was back at page 13 http://forums.aussieveedubbers.com/viewtopic.php?tid=77027&page=13#pid752752

Covers off, do it properly.
You've copied the POs cock-up. Maybe it wasn't a cock-up and the belt slipped off the crank sprocket.

You will really notice a difference in power and delivery. Kev's (SubaruGreenVan on vwkd) had jumped on the LHS. I did the belt and set the cam properly - he accused me of slipping in a turbo while he wasn't looking

If you notice a difference I'll buy a round, you're paying my taxi fare.

So I picked up a new belt and that went on a week or so ago. Car does seem to have a bit more pull down low...... and still goes like a bat outta hell.... for a kombi anyway
The best news is after a few weeks and a long run up to the Blue Mountains this weekend I am happy to say my coolant loss problem is NO MORE!
The car ran great and the coolant in the overflow/recovery bottle went from the low mark while cold up maybe 300ml while at operating temp and then returned as it cooled after the run...... just as it should.
Thanks all for the help and support on this issue... it really helped give me the confidence to get in there and sort it out myself.
thank you
alex

alex have you got photos of rad location and your overflow bottles are

John did you find an engine yet? i bought a gasket set to do up one of my EJ22s if you are interested

cheers Rob

yes i have rob thanks my number0414954453

I realize that this is a resurrected thread, but I noticed that nobody mentioned the use of Subaru Coolant Conditioner. Subaru, at least in the US, recommends the stuff as a preventative measure. It's not expensive and doesn't seem to have any negative issues so you might want to give it a try with the new gaskets.

We see many more gasket problems on early EJ25s than we do on EJ22s, though.