4age ae 82 question

[bootlegger]

Ive got a 87 ae82 twin cam. Ive owned it for over ten years and its blown a head gasket for the fourth time.
Its blown between the cylinders between 3 and 4.
My engine guy is blaming the ethanol fuel or my distributor locking on too much advance because its worn out.
There is oil leaking through the distributor.
My question is is there a supplier of new distributors.
If not can the seal inside be replaced.
Also where can i get new head bolts. My local auto parts store is telling me they dont have a listing for them.
I want to get more than twelve months out of the gasket this time round. Im figuring the head bolts would well and truly been stretched to their limit by now.
Sitting up till midnight pulling it down is getting to be a drag even though i really like my little racer.

[dnegative]

On its 4th headgasket? lol
Unless your making big power something is fucked, throwing headgaskets at it without figuring out why they fail is akin to putting a band-aid on a melanomia, might 'fix' the problem for a while but its still there. Ethanol wont cause a head gasket to fail, nor will your distributor be at fault. Spark advance is controlled by the ECU, but, yes, you can simply replace the seal (I've got a spare kit, or PM Terra here and he will do it for you). Head bolts you can buy genuine or aftermarket, keep calling around, they do exist.


Have you checked the block for warpage and surface condition? I'm hoping your not using the original head because I doubt you can cut it 4 times, which you should be doing for every gasket change.

[bootlegger]

Yeah i straight edged the block. It seems ok but without decking it its not really accurate..
Its weird because theres no warning before the gasket goes. No using oil or water or running rough.
Just driving along normally and then it just pops.
I get the head checked and shaved every time.
My engine machinist says it still has plenty of meat left.
I bought the car with a blown head gasket. I guess four head gaskets in ten years of everyday driving is ok.
My wife drives it mainly now which means it gets a break. I give it a bit of a hiding when i drive it especially on windy roads like the putty or bells line.

[dnegative]

I guess four head gaskets in ten years of everyday driving is ok.

Its not a Cressida...... 4AGE's essentially never blow headgaskets unless they are cooked. There are that many people with them (and 4AGZE/4AGTE's) who beat on stock unopened motors without issue. Your probably going to be up for a new head, meat left or not as every time you cut it your compression goes up. Its not a major issue mechanically but the stock ECU wont like it and it may start to ping.

But this time I think your going to have to pull the block out and have it checked, something is clearly wrong.

[webby]

What brand head gasket are you using? Factory Toyota or aftermarket?

what octane fuel are you running?

and how much base timing are you running?

A bigport with stock timing and a little more compression should be fine on 95+RON fuel.

[bootlegger]

Ive been using after market head gaskets. I asked the parts shop for a quality one rather than a cheapy.
I contacted him this morning and he reckons he cant source new head bolts.
My wife persists in running the car on that ethanol crap even though i tell her not to.
I agree the block should come out but im inclined to repower it with a 4agze if that happens.
Base timing i set around 8 degrees advance.
Im not really up on electronic stuff like ecus. Will it override my timing setting. Im figuring now with what you are saying the ecu povides the advance instead of how a normal distributor operates.
I usually muck around with american and early dinosaur cars and vintage speedboats.
This corrolla is the newest car i own.
I also have a mint original factory air ta 22.

[bootlegger]

Ive been using after market head gaskets. I asked the parts shop for a quality one rather than a cheapy.
I contacted him this morning and he reckons he cant source new head bolts.
My wife persists in running the car on that ethanol crap even though i tell her not to.
I agree the block should come out but im inclined to repower it with a 4agze if that happens.
Base timing i set around 8 degrees advance.
Im not really up on electronic stuff like ecus. Will it override my timing setting. Im figuring now with what you are saying the ecu povides the advance instead of how a normal distributor operates.
I usually muck around with american and early dinosaur cars and vintage speedboats.
This corrolla is the newest car i own.
I also have a mint original factory air ta 22.

[TERRA Operative]

Timing should be at 10 degrees. I tend to run 12 degrees on my engines.

I agree that something is wrong. Four head gaskets in 10 years on a 4A is completely abnormal. I've seen these things going strong with 250,000+ kms on the clock, all stock.
Hell I even reused the stock head gasket on my 4AGZE when I rebuilt the head (I just carefully bolted it all back together without any prep or machining) and it held 13PSI boost for years of heavy(!) driving.

Distributors aren't too hard to do if you have the tools, but it's not the problem here apart from an oil leak. I only use BP ultimate (98 octane) in my 4A engines, so I can't comment on the nasty ethanol stuff. Is there any signs of detonation at all? Raised compression from multiple machinings may require higher octane fuel.

My inclination would be to pull the block and get it machined, then preferably a new head if yours is looking a bit thin (you could get one here for cheap). Then use a metal head gasket, unless you need something thicker to compensate if you reuse your existing head.


Either way it might end up a full rebuild if you pull the block. The other option is to drop another engine in. Blacktop conversion ahoy!

[allencr]

Head been retorqued? This isn't the cause of your problem but will allow it to live through years of heat & even overheating cycles.
As everyone will write, it isn't a problem with ignition parts, timing, fuel, the often blamed headbolts or your wife, and even if it was a racing/performance engine, it is a problem caused by seriously overheating or being poorly installed.
Use a straight edge before blindly machining, it's either straight enough & has no metal erosion or it isn't.
Here's some good tips.
http://www.aa1car.com/library/ic697.htm
Good luck.

[webby]

If you're using E10 91 octane fuel you could be making this worse for yourself. I was under the impression that AE82 should be run on ethanol fuel??

I would recommend a factory head gasket next time or an aftermarket metal type.

[bootlegger]

Thanks for the feedback. That link was a great read. Ill get back to it on monday and see if i can sort it out.
There is no sign of detonation although i will have a better look at the head gasket when im back in my workshop..

If i do decide to pull the engine i wont bother trying to fix it. Ill just replace it.