On Thu, 24 Jul 2003 02:33:33 GMT, clare @ snyder.on .ca wrote:

Apparently it IS possible to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear -
and the 3.8 as supplied by Ford IS a sow's ear. The current crop, from
198? on is leak prone and fragile. The commonly supplied antifreeze,
when it gets into today's oil, makes short work of the factory
supplied bearings.
There are gaskets and build procedures that can make a relatively
leak-proof 3.8. Is there a combination of oil, antifreeze, and bearing
that will not result in instant death when they are combined????
For this reason I have reservations about the 3.8.

I'm well aware of the problems Ford has had with leaking cylinderhead
gaskets with this engine. That's why I bought the ARP cylinderhead
studs instead of replacement cylinderhead bolts from Ford.

Studs allow a more accurate torque setting because the only thing
turning is the nut against the washer, not the entire bolt. ARP
recommends that you use either their lubricant between the nut and
washer or oil. If you use their lubricant, the torque value is a LOT
less than if you use oil. In addition, you get to use all the threads
available to hold the stud in: you thread it down till it bottoms.
The nice thing about having a cast steel block is you don't have to
worry about stripping the threads out of the block.

ARP also recommends that you install "throw away" head gaskets for the
first torque of the cylinderhead, then fire up the engine, bring it to
temperature and then shut it down and let it cool to room temperature.

Once it's completely cooled, remove the heads, replace the head
gaskets with new, reinstall the heads, retorque and you're good to go
for the rest of the life of the engine.

What this does, they said, is get the studs initially stretched, after
which they will hold constant pressure.

They were suggesting I use the old head gaskets for the initial
startup as it really didn't matter what you used. Cardboard would
work (they said) since you are just running it to temperature then
shutting it down again. Of course, I did not save the original
gaskets when I dismantled the two engines so I'll have to buy an extra
two.

Just another one of those tricks to remember when building engines.
I'm sure Lycoming and Continental engine rebuilders have their own
tricks.

By the way, the block was decked to true the surface, and the
cylinderheads were planed. I know that at least initially, I'll have
two flat surfaces to mate together.

The great majority of the Ford auto conversions have run reliably IF
(the big IF) the builder followed the conversion manual and
information that has accumulated.

Corky Scott