Well, I just completed the headgasket replacement on my 99 D1 and I thought I would give some thoughts on my experiences with this job.
First off I would say find a CLEAN work bench to use during the replacement. Second, I had great success with using a Snap-On breaker bar and 1/2 wobbly extension to get the rear head bolts loose.
On my rig, I have just over 95k on the ODO. And there was some gunk build-up on the intake runners and a fair amount of carbon deposits on the combustion chambers of the heads. I decided that I did not want to put the heads back on with this stuff still on it, so I took the heads to work with me and put them in the parts washer. Now, I made sure that I had the heads back on the vehicle and the engine running on the same day that I put the heads in the parts washer, because I didnt want to have any rust build up on the valve stems or anything.
I would say that this job is not too hard to do, just takes a while. So, if you were like me and a bit worried that you might not be able to do the job on your own, it is do-able.
First off I would say find a CLEAN work bench to use during the replacement. Second, I had great success with using a Snap-On breaker bar and 1/2 wobbly extension to get the rear head bolts loose.
On my rig, I have just over 95k on the ODO. And there was some gunk build-up on the intake runners and a fair amount of carbon deposits on the combustion chambers of the heads. I decided that I did not want to put the heads back on with this stuff still on it, so I took the heads to work with me and put them in the parts washer. Now, I made sure that I had the heads back on the vehicle and the engine running on the same day that I put the heads in the parts washer, because I didnt want to have any rust build up on the valve stems or anything.
I would say that this job is not too hard to do, just takes a while. So, if you were like me and a bit worried that you might not be able to do the job on your own, it is do-able.