Thread: Head gasket help

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Make yourself a checklist next time. I don't mean for that to sound smart-@@@.......and thank you very much for your service Ed.

I learned my lesson using a checklist several years ago. I had bought a new Mitsubishi pickup, the first year that they were marketed as a Mitsubishi, 1983. I used it in my courier service and ran the living poop out of it. Well, with 160,000 on the clock, she was gettin' tired, so I decided to freshen her up a little. I pulled the carb off and took it down to the Mitsubishi dealer to have a bench rebuild done on it. They said $230 and I just about flipped. I decided after thinking it over that I would just do an engine swap, so I located a Ford granada with a 302 and C4 and hooked up and dragged it home, where I relieved the car of its motor and trans. I tore all of it down and rebuilt with some warmed over hot rod parts (Isky 270 solid flat tappet cam, 0.030" hyper pistons, aluminum Streetmaster intake and 600 CFM Edelbrock). I made the motor mounts and transmission mount, dual exhaust system and P.S. pump mount to use the Mitsubishi pump on the Ford motor. I got the whole mess rebuilt, mated the motor to the trans, slipped her in, hooked up all the fuel and wiring and exhaust, driveshaft and hopped into the driver's seat to fire her off and break in the cam. I looked over at my toolbox and there on the shelf was the driveshaft that connects the torque converter to the transmission pump.

The trans wouldn't come out alone, so I had to pull the whole mess out again. But, I got it done and drove the little truck several more years. I finally gave it to my son and a drunk T-boned it, making a total of it.