I was pretty much sold on changing out the head gasket after finding coolant seeping out. After talking to a local shop that only deals with Hondas, he said he almost never sees an external leaking HG. He mentioned that he would probably re-torque the head before changing the gasket. I have not yet found any guide online to do this. It appears to me I would obviously remove the valve cover and cams, but do you simply loosen all bolts and tighten to spec in correct order? Do you need to still drain coolant and oil?

Any suggestions are appreciated.

Thanks.

 

 

You ca warp a head from torquing improperly, as wel from loosening bolts improperly. There is a sequence to tighten them, and you want to do it a little at a tike on each bolt. Work up to spec'd torque. Likewise for loosening. Reverse of tighten pattern, and a little at a time on each bolt.

Never heard of retorquing curing leaking coolant, but willing to believe if it works. So let us know if it does!

 

I have an idea why he wants to "retorque" the bolts. He's going to see if the threads in the block have given up. He'll loosen then retighten the bolts nearest the leak and feel if they aren't going to make it to full spec.

This is becoming more common on aluminum engines, the only Honda I'm familiar with that does that is the J V6 when it's been overheated or at very, very high mileage.

Toyota I4s, especially the 2.4 in Camry models do this without ever getting hot. Puking coolant externally and over pressurizing the cooling system at anything over idle speed.

 

There is a prescribed sequence to loosen the cylinder head bolts. No more than 1/3 turn at a time. If 1/3 turn is all you're gonna do I think you'll be fine. Starts at the front of the block then jumps to the rear then back to the next pair at the front, etc. Tightening starts in the center (reverse of loosening). Get the diagrams from the service manual. 22 lb-ft. Do not over-tighten.

I'm guessing you can crack all the bolts 1/3 turn (in the proper sequence) without loosing coolant and then re-torque to spec and see what happens. Removing the head involves the cam chain and a host of other parts.

Or just try torquing all the bolts to spec (in order) with a good torque wrench and see if any move.

Note the words "I think" and "I'm guessing" above.

-- Chuck

 

If it is leaking from head gasket there is a problem. Re-torque is a band-aid at best. Also pressure test cooling system. Make sure that is the source of leak. UV dye works well.

 

The threaded holes in the head are near indestructible, they wont find a bad hole.

Re-torque of the head is lazy idea and will accomplish nothing.

 

Thank you for the advise. I am going to replace the HG.

 

Can you not clean it up and stick some sealer or Honda bond ect on the area,
seems like shit a lot of work for a small seep of fluid and chances of head warp in the process !!

 

I suppose I could, but considering I might be adding a supercharger soon, I really want to make sure to fix it right.