1979 85hp v4 head gasket ?

[phillnjack]

i have 1979 v4 85hp johnson that leaking water from the left head. not sure exactly if head gasket or cracked head/block. the engine seems to be popping on idles and mid range .is head gasket a problem on these engines and what could be the reason. the water is dripping at one drop a second from under left bank.is this a hard job to do, im not to bad at mechanical probs but never done outboard head gasket. and also is replacing rings easy on this engine.if any diagrams i would be gratefull. phill phillnjack@blueyonder.co.uk please help

 

[boltbreaker]

Re: 1979 85hp v4 head gasket ?

Head gaskets arn't very difficult. Make sure you have everything CLEAN and that the surfaces are FLAT.<br /> I would like to suggest that you purchase a repair manual and read over the procedure before jumping in to ring replacement. If your rings are gone then the cyl may be out of round, piston ring groove may be out of tolerance, and bearing may have excessive wear. When I tear one down I go ahead and install new powerhead bearing kits, pison kits, crankshaft seals, etc.. so it's all done right,,,, and you won't have to tear it down again. I would guess it may take a novice around 20 hours to do that engine from start to finish. That would include a tune up when the work was finished. Good luck! -B-