working on a 96 ranger 4.0 at home right now, pulled the heads off the change the head gaskets, i can see that the left bank was burning coolant pretty bad, the combustion chamber is all white, any specific things i should be aware, to check before i put it back together later this week, i'm planning to take the heads to work so i can clean em nicely and try my best to check for cracks.
check them EXTREMELY GOOD for cracks. anytime a head gaskets blows and it's driven a long time while burning coolant, the chances dramaticly increase of the head(s) cracking.... mainly between the valves btw, i hate these engines lol
well we magnafluxed em and there is no cracks, they are straight, only problem exhaust valve seats are worn, and guides have little play in them. problem is the guy wants it done as cheap as possible, so if i put it back together without doing the valve job, only thing it may do is have small amount of valvetrain noise and maybe burn a little oil?
Do it right and be done with it! He`ll be happier and not cause problems later. Explain what needs done and cost. If he don`t want it right,,, never do work for him again.
