Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[bighed]

need timing chain etc doing and head gasket change. Would rather pay someone with the knowhow on here than a garage. Any takers  :-/

[Marks DTM Calib]

You need a weight lifter to do a Senator 6 cylinder head!

[Andy B]

need timing chain etc doing and head gasket change. Would rather pay someone with the knowhow on here than a garage. Any takers  :-/

I've done a head on a straight 6. No real worries or anything particularly difficult apart from actually reaching the back of the engine. It's all quite straight forward.
Don't drop the Torx drive off your extension drive when you're doing the 2 rear most bolts ... it's a barsteward to get the bugger back out again and you have to remove the head & turn it upside down to retrieve it ..... apparently!    
If you're having the head skimmed, just check with the machine shop that their machine is big enough to take the size of the head.
Sorry, I didn't do the chain & the sump needs to be dropped to get it off the crank pulley IIRC.

[Andy B]

You need a weight lifter to do a Senator 6 cylinder head!

They're not that bad.        

[TheBoy]

dustpan and brush useful to sweep up the bits as it erodes in front of your eyes....

[Andy B]

dustpan and brush useful to sweep up the bits as it erodes in front of your eyes....

It's the rear arches that rust, the engine is at the front!  

[albitz]

The front is self rust proofing due to a few small "designed in" oil leaks.

[Andy B]

The front is self rust proofing due to a few small "designed in" oil leaks.

Omegas will be OK then when cam covers leak.    

[albitz]

  ...........would prefer a rust free senator any day (if I could find one)

[bighed]

HA HA. nah rear arches are mint. Its all mint to be fair to her. Will put some close up pics on tomorrow. The head gasket hasnt actually gone. (no oil water mix) its the oil gallery at the back of block thats leaking and from what have been told its gasket is part of the hg. Whats the rough lifespan of a timing chain? ie cam belt on mig is 4 years or 40,00 miles  

[Andy B]

HA HA. nah rear arches are mint. Its all mint to be fair to her. Will put some close up pics on tomorrow. The head gasket hasnt actually gone. (no oil water mix) its the oil gallery at the back of block thats leaking and from what have been told its gasket is part of the hg. Whats the rough lifespan of a timing chain? ie cam belt on mig is 4 years or 40,00 miles  

There's an oil gallery about half way down the length of the block, I can't remember now which side, but that's where they tend to leak oil from. I lived with my leak till the head gasket finally let go on No6 cylinder, where they apparently tend to go, the gasket rots away around the coolant. They become a large cloud making machine, but you do end up with a really really clean No 6 piston crown.      
That was at 150 000, and I put another 30k on it before I lost my sanity & sold it.
A new gasket on its own will set you back about £60, Payen is OE

Why do I still have the old gasket hanging on my garage wall?  :-?  :-?

[bighed]

HA HA. nah rear arches are mint. Its all mint to be fair to her. Will put some close up pics on tomorrow. The head gasket hasnt actually gone. (no oil water mix) its the oil gallery at the back of block thats leaking and from what have been told its gasket is part of the hg. Whats the rough lifespan of a timing chain? ie cam belt on mig is 4 years or 40,00 miles  

There's an oil gallery about half way down the length of the block, I can't remember now which side, but that's where they tend to leak oil from. I lived with my leak till the head gasket finally let go on No6 cylinder, where they apparently tend to go, the gasket rots away around the coolant. They become a large cloud making machine, but you do end up with a really really clean No 6 piston crown.      
That was at 150 000, and I put another 30k on it before I lost my sanity & sold it.
A new gasket on its own will set you back about £60, Payen is OE

Why do I still have the old gasket hanging on my garage wall?  :-?  :-?

HeHe. Sentimental reasons!!! Well my senny has done 84 thou so not that much really. Just dont want camchain to go, and a local mechanic said I might as well change cam chain etc and HG at same time as it all needs to come apart to do both jobs.  

[old git]

the oil gallery is underneath the exhaust monifold quite difficult to see even on a ramp due to fittings ect. had a look on auto data they say 12hrs to do cam chain but did not give how to, can't remember if the head has to come off to replace chains does the haines manual give a clue

[old git]

the guy on the ABS site who sells the chains does a vid  on how to do ,says without removing the head. Taking head off not to bad a job just a lot of awkward gear to remove Did the K reg on the road outside house.

[Andy B]

the oil gallery is underneath the exhaust monifold quite difficult to see even on a ramp due to fittings ect. had a look on auto data they say 12hrs to do cam chain but did not give how to, can't remember if the head has to come off to replace chains does the haines manual give a clue

I did the cam chain & sprockets on my CiH 2.2 Carlton with the head in place - 4 pot version of the 3.0 12 valve straight 6.
I think the head can stay put, but bighead has an oil leak he wants to sort.

At 84k miles I doubt your chains will need replacing, but more likely that the 'rubber' chain tensioners will need replacing, James W in the ABS I think is the man you want, as IIRC they are NLS (No Longer Stocked) at Vauxhall.

 ...... but of course it's up to you. It'll cost you a couple of hundred to do just the CHG by the time you've replaced manifold gaskets, head bolts, etc etc