??? changing head gaskets ???

[86_bronco_2]

i am deciding on wether or not to buy a 1986 bronco II 4x4 w/ 2.9L 4sp w/ overdrive.

it is very hard to start, once it starts it does not want to stay running and smokes like crazy. the smoke is a white-grayish color and im sure it is burning anti-freeze, so i am thinking that it has a blown head gasket. are the head bolts torque to yeild or what ever they are where you have to replace them with new ones? does anyone know what these get for gas mileage? what kind of power do these 2.9 L's produce?

any help would be appreciated! thanks, jeremy

[tekatlarge]

i am deciding on whether or not to buy a 1986 bronco II 4x4 w/ 2.9L 4sp w/ overdrive.

it is very hard to start, once it starts it does not want to stay running and smokes like crazy. the smoke is a white-grayish color and I'm sure it is burning anti-freeze,

so i am thinking that it has a blown head gasket.

are the head bolts torque to yield or what ever they are where you have to replace them with new ones?

does anyone know what these get for gas mileage? what kind of power do these 2.9 L's produce?

any help would be appreciated! thanks, jeremy

Jeremy,

I will attempt to answer your questions as I broke them down in the quote.

The first answer is YES that grey white smoke and antifreeze smell means Most likely you have a cracked head as opposed to a blown gasket. The #1 all time problem with a 2.9 is bad heads. Cracked heads can cause ALL the above running conditions and happen more often than not.

The head bolts are torque to yield meaning 1 time use and they are No Good. you must replace them each time...

Gas mileage can vary from awful to great just depends on about a million things and your driving style.

Now after answering your questions let me leave you with a couple of thoughts.

If a gasket has blown or head cracked the likelihood of getting water mixed in the oil is great. The 2.9 wasn't known for a real good oiling system and now any running will run that mixture through it and cause more damage if it hasn't already been done..

It depends on how many miles are on the rig as to weather it is worth trying to save with a questionable motor. Options would be replacing the 2.9 with another 2.9 or rebuilding yours. putting in a 4.0 or going for broke with a 5.0...

Unless you get this rig for almost next to nothing (a case a beer or bottle of wine) be ready to lay out some coin..

So think over that and ask questions as you have them. Were here... Somewhere.........

[86_bronco_2]

well it has 92,000 miles on it
it ran fine, then one day it got down to about 19 degrees and the next day when they went to start it, it wouldn't run. the radiator is still full of anti-freeze and the oil does not look milky, so with any luck it may just be a blown head gasket.

how dificult is it to swap to a 4.0L ? can you use the same running gear? how much wiring is required? do you or anyone for that matter have any pics of a 2.9L to a 4.0L swap in a bronco II i can see?
thanks for the help, jeremy

[tekatlarge]

Swapping to a 4.0 is mechanically basically a engine swap. the wiring can be daunting but if you get the donor harness it goes prety easy.

You can use your running gear and just swap the 4.0 in.. I personally don't have any write ups or stuff but there may be some Tek on it here. Maybe one of our more of our learned people here can help ya out.

[86_bronco_2]

well im goin to try and just get it running as soon as i can so i can drive it, next summer the engine swap is a big posibility though....
thanks,jeremy

[86_bronco_2]

well everyone.... i bought it yesterday and started to check out the engne. it turned out not to be a blown head gasket or a cracked head. the 2 rear fuel injectors are stuck in the open posistion. so tomarro im going to replace them and hopfully with some luck, that was the problem and it will run :)

[desrt_rat]

luck is with you my friend, may it continue.