Have I made a costly mistake?

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I've ordered one, came off a a running k series, but not a freelander but a mgf. Land Rover said to me that it should fit, we will see... Surely if the bolts a different size the bolt could be changed to fit. If it's smaller just re-cut the thread
 
MGF's have a very, very wide range of heads.

There are two major different types: VVC (variable valve timing) and NON-VVC
VVC types are very common, so watch out - I believe the vast majority of the later cars were VVC based engines.

There were three major non vvc variants:
Standard
135
VHPD - The VHPD heads are a VVC head with the variable timing unit removed, believe these were used in Lotuses mainly - they wanted the VVC head for the bigger valves.

The standard and 135 heads are identical, the difference is the camshafts - the 135 comes with an extra 1mm lift on the cams.
If it's a non VVC head you get, make sure that you check the part numbers on the camshafts.

If you don't mind the ask, how much did you pay for the head? They can be had brand new for about £250...

EDIT: Regardless of which head you get, I'd swap the landrover cams in - the freelander was tuned to produce peak torque low down at about 2000 rpm to make it a much more drivable engine. If you put nonstandard or 135 cams in you may get more power, but you'll have to thrash it to get it to move.
 
It cost me 50 quid. It's a standard type. My freelander has the distributor cap and so does this one. Will be swapping the cam shafts over anyway as this doesn't come with any.
 
Ok awesome.

One thing when you do the rebuild, remember that the cam ladder MUST be sealed down with anaerobic sealant and not silicone sealant.

If your liner protrusion is at least level I'd highly recommend the SAIC N series head gasket kit too, its much more solid than most of the others.
 
Thanks I'll get that sealant today. Cheers for the advice, this is my first head gasket change. Just hoping there no more disasters. Really wanted to do the gear box oil this week but I think that plan is out the window now with this new expendature.
 
I've got the head off, wasn't too much of a disaster. Only had one of the alternator mount bolts round off. Just meant I had to split the exhaust instead of removing from the blocks.

Head gasket don't look too pretty. It's got steel dowels but they are hollow tubes. Don't know if that's normal. But the gasket is a single layer of metal with rubber edging. Loads of the rubber bits have split and theres muck in the coolant pools.
 
4 thou above the block face? Even is good. Means you can use the MLS gasket. Uneven or flush then you need the elastopolymer gasket.
 
I've tried measuring it seems about right. I've got metric measures and 4 thou is about 0.102 I only have 0.1 and 0.105 not quite as high as the latter so we will have to see. I've ordered the Mls gasket so fingers crossed it all works
 
Spend a lot of time cleaning the surfaces with a nylon scouring pad and diesel or similar. As Bear says use anaerobic sealant as it won't cure in the oil. It means any that squirt out the sides won't go off and cause a blockage.
Make sure you have good hex 1/4" socket set and a small torque wrench for the cam rail bolts.
 
With uneven liner hights, I'd use the latest Payen elasopolyler gasket. It will come with new dowels. A MLS gasket won't last long with uneven liners. This is why the elasopolyler gasket was developed in the first place.
 
The kit has come with a shim. The instructions says it must be fitted with the shim. Does this just sit on or do you need to glue it on the head in some way? I've looked online as some shims are sold with a sealant.
 
Had a real blond moment. After looking at my new head and my old head, I've realise I didn't need to buy a new one. I needed to buy a new cam ladder as that was where the bolts had broke. Such a moron.
Oh well, got a spare head now that I'll send away for refurb too.
 
Adam Gorsuch said:
The kit has come with a shim. The instructions says it must be fitted with the shim. Does this just sit on or do you need to glue it on the head in some way? I've looked online as some shims are sold with a sealant.
Click to expand...
On the Kit I got a couple of years ago I just set it on. If you start messing about with sealant you can cause problems.
Adam Gorsuch said:
Had a real blond moment. After looking at my new head and my old head, I've realise I didn't need to buy a new one. I needed to buy a new cam ladder as that was where the bolts had broke. Such a moron.
Oh well, got a spare head now that I'll send away for refurb too.
Click to expand...
An ill wind and all that. I wouldn't have them refurbed if they are flat. I have changed two HG now and neither needed skimmed. Depending on who you listen to it can make your head worse than it was or it is essential.
If it was overheated it may need skimmed but if so will also need hardness tested.
 
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