I have the original d16a6 in my si hatch. I'm rebuilding a motor for it slowly for boost but just my luck the headgasket blew last week and my new motor is no where near ready.


I'm trying to decide if I can just replace the headgasket and drive it around for now.

I know the car has had the headgasket replaced about 30k miles ago with another oem equivalent. The guy who changed it (previous owner) said he had the head milled enough to make it straight and nothing more.

He also said the deck was at .004" and the service limit was .005" so they left it alone.

Is the straightness of the deck extremely important in non boost apps? I'm hoping I can just pull the head have it straightened again and throw it back on.

Should I worry about the deck much?

Any recommendations on what headgasket to use? I've read that the oem a6 gasket is a POS.

If its of any importance, the way it's leaking right now is just by burning coolant slowly. Enough to smell and drain the cooling system every few days, but not enough to see the white smoke.

Thanks

 

shave it again, then run a nice thick cosmetic gasket

 

If it drained the coolant every few days, that's a big leak. I'm guessing you didnt see it at idle since sometimes they won't leak until the car is warmed up and being beat-on.

Good luck with the deck surface issue. I know on my LS, it went through 2 headgaskets, and it never had the deck shaved...but since the current owner is boosting it, we'll see how long it lasts.

 

There is no way to shave the deck without pulling the motor out correct?

I got the factory specs.

For the head its .002" max or 0.05mm

For the deck its .004" max or 0.10mm

I'm definitely going to have the head resurfaced to eliminate that side of the issue, and hopefully the head side will fall within spec or close enough that if the head is perfect it'll make up for it.


I'm also going to be using the 3layer Y8 headgasket. Do you think that the 3-layer metal gasket has less room for error than the others? The reason I'm using it is because it's only $22.50 brand new from the dealer, compared to $40-50 for the a6 and z6 ones.

I'm planning on spraying everything with copper spray to hopefully help out as well.

 

its probably the shitty composite HG used. switch to a MLS and you will probably be fine

 

The shitty oem/composite gasket is better for a slightly warped surface than a mls. The mls is stronger than the composite but less likely to seal with a warped surface. Get a oem composite for now, and use the mls for the new motor...

 

how much better is the composite one really going to be than the MLS?

a 3 layer Y8 gasket is $23 and the oem composite is $44. I'm a cheap ***


Also would getting the arp head studs be helpful for right now? I'm planning on getting them for my new motor.

Maybe I can get them, use them, and then transfer to the new engine when the time comes.

 

hey Foowee.....4 dr HG popped.......still driving on it, using 1.5 quarts a day right now.

 

If the mls seals, no better. If it doesn't, it's an option that's cheaper than milling n decking a motor you plan on removing anyway.

dang. How'd that happen?