About 1 month ago I did the head gasket on my car as I had an oil leak on the inlet side were piston 3 is. I pulled the head off cleaned the block sent the head away for servicing. I used an aftermarket gasket kit

Since everything was put back together i have a leak coming from the front of the block on both sides of the engine, its not a huge amount but everytime you look at it there is always fresh oil. We put the head back on with the speifications 40 NM with a 90 degree turn.

A mechanic had a look at it and told me to loosen one bolt at a time then torque it back up then do the 90 degree turn, then do the rest in the correct order. This was done very carefully and I still have the leak. The mechanic said that it would either fix it up or stay the same or start leaking in other spots. I was also advised that for doing heads on fords or holdens that genunine parts should be used.....that was his recommemdation, can't remember his reason though...I think it was because they fit exactly on.

I now know that i have a faulty head gasket....but I was wondering if the head could have been shaved incorrectly, as the oil is coming from exactly the same spots on both sides of the block. Is it possible to buy faulty head gaskets???

Anyways I'm pretty sure it is the gasket so i'm going to go to ford and buy the genuine. I was told originally to buy the original part becuase the person I did the job with had problems with an aftermarket gasket and when it was changed the car went perfectly again

What have others experinced with aftermarket head gaskets??

Check machining, there may be some uneven milling across the head...
Use latter model AU gasgets..Ford have had issues in this area.So I assume the latter model gasgets are superior...They look beeter too...
Use "NEW" head bolts also.....
Torque from centre out...

Can i use a paste or gasket maker with the head gasket so it goes together securely, or is that not recommened. I was going to use new head bolts. as the ones i put in a month ago have now been torqued and tensioned twice. So the AU gaskets are exactly the same to the EL?? just different material. I have hybrid motor and I was just going to use the head gasket for that car. Ford make 2 head gaskets for EL's. One is for the early models and the other is for jan 98 onwards.

Also when I did my head service I bought the kit from them and they used an AU head gasket kit becuase of the AU head in the Hybrid.

What are the torque settings for the genuine head gasket???

Where exactly is it leaking.

If I remember the manual correctly, I thought there was 2 places at the front of the head, over the timing cover, that required a sealant to be put in as the head gasket doesnt cover these holes and you need to seal them to stop oil coming out....

It is not leaking from the timing cover. It is leaking from bolts 13 & 14....the 2 front ones. When I took the old gasket off, the head gasket covered all the way to the beginning of the block. What type of seleant did you use. Also what manual do you have......I have the Haynes repair 94-98 EL falcon

I didnt mean leaking from the timing cover, but the point where the head goes over the timing cover.

I have the Ford Factory manual. I'll take a look at it when I get home, maybe I'm thinking of the wrong thing.

You seem to be having a few woes with this head gasket replacement.... I hope it all gets working good eventually...

Just an interesting comment too that I was told the other day. The Ford factory bolts dont have a long enough thread if you have shaved the head (depending on how many times it has been shaved). The bolt ends up bottomng out where the thread stops on the bolt, so its not holding down the head as it should. Permaseal have designed some replacement bolts with a longer thread to get over this problem.

I will be replacing my head soon, as its on its 4th head gasket and been shaved one too many times and constantly leaking. I'm wondering if I am having this problem...

Its giving me trouble alright....hope to get it sorted out soon. Pulling it apart on the weekend again.

The new bolts i put in have a longer thread. I bought them at the place that did the service on my head



I will wait for your response on this

BTW the head gasket i used was made out of graphite

So basically were the block finishes and meets with the timing cover this area should be sealed up. Would you put anything on the top of the timing cover seal as well.

I don't want to have to pull it off after this again

Thanks for your help on this

I havent actually done my head yet.

So far I'm speaking from reading and advice given to me, so I may be talking crap for all I know until I do it, but adding a bead of silicone around the front of the engine to stop oil leaks rings a big bell.

As I said, I'll look in the manual when I get home and let you know.

yes just some blue high temp gasket maker, i reckon that it is not the head gasket at fault but the timing cover seal. my opinion any way.
check out this site,
http://www.eafalcon.com/techpages/mecha ... /index.htm

ahhh... sellys allclear - is there anything it can't do??

There we go.. Step 16... I think thats what I was thinking of.. Some sealant is needed to stop the oil leaking out...

And yes, is there nothing that silicone sealant cant do..

On the Ea I had previously I had the top timing case gasket leak twice after replacing the head gasket. My Father-in-law who is a engine reconditioner advised me to not use a gasket at all! Instead a thick bead of high temp silastic. After I did that it never leaked again (4 years)

Thsi is what i got off the website





This is the only thing we didn't do..........

Thanks for your responses guys....i hope all goes well this time