Thanks for watching this video - I really hope you enjoyed it. If you could please hit the LIKE button this helps UA-cam tell other people they might enjoy this video too. If you haven’t already subscribed please consider it too you don’t miss out on any other videos coming to the channel soon. Comment below to tell me what you think - I aim to reply to all comments
The more I watch this series, the more I realize this isn't about resurrecting a Rover 75. It's about the relationship between you and your dad. And that's why I keep coming back for more.
Jon from memory there is a kit with a modified,gasket different head bolts and a new type of lower ladder it was developed by Ford,as when they took control of Land Rover the warenty claims on the K series in the Freelander was costing them an absolute shed load of money not to mention the grief,I did replace a number of these ,and have never had one fail afterwards.
When I started as a mechanic in the 60s head gaskets were often copper, in some cases even solid thick copper but more often a copper 'sandwich', with a filling of what was probably asbestos in those days, between two layers of thin copper. There was nothing ferrous to rust away. I once even re-used a solid thick copper one plus blue Hylomar on a 1950s Aston Martin DB2/4 when I couldn't get a new one, no problems. The materials these days are often cheap and nasty, but admittedly heads were often cast iron in those days which helped. The last K-Series I did had a gasket with beads of red mastic already on it, but that was quite a few years ago. If there's the correct amount of antifreeze/corrosion inhibitor in the cooling system it shouldn't happen anyway.
Hi Jon well done to you and your dad and I was agreeing with you about the MLS gasket failing and hopefully there is no damage to the head or block as a result but looks like it’s had a poor repair before Looking forward to seeing the progress and it’s great how you and your dad are tackling this job learning and problem solving together it’s great all the best Daniel
At age 70 I can honestly say I have never seen a head gasket like that ! That you drove for any distance at all was a miracle. I might want to check the bottom end by whipping the sump off as well ? Well done both of you.
This is a classic example of why the MLS bin-job gasket is no better probably worse a solution than the Upgraded Elastomer gasket thstbis now widely available. The liners need to be equal otherwise the MLS gasket will fail and this is a good example of that. Im glad your dad straight away said we needed the gasket with the 'seal' on. Voice of experience. Hopefully over time the amount of K-Series engines with the MLS will diminish. Only a rebuild almost brand new block will accept an MLS. The chinese proved it on the Kavanchi but on the old K-Series thr original gasket design was the fault but now the best solution.
I'm in my fifties and I've learnt quite a bit off your dad over the past Rover 75 videos. I wonder what he'd think of 2.5 V6 engine, anymore reliable. Keep this great series going for as long as you can Jon
I’ve had KV6s for the last 15yrs and although they still can go wrong as with all neglected engines, they’re more robust. You can never be sure how it’s been cared for, or not.
This is a great series 👍🏻. I have a 2004 1.4 Rover 25 and it had a serious coolant leak. I knew it would more than likely be a head gasket, but there was no mayo and no sign of oil in the coolant. As the car doesn’t owe me any money and is pretty worthless I tried out some engine sealant. 5 years on and no more coolant leaks and the engine is running really well. However, I would like to do this job myself at some point so this is a great insight as to what’s involved 👍🏻
Certainly mild here near Bracknell , Literally mini Hurricane outside 50mph winds lol , Anyway i hope your Dad is doing better now and good to see progress being made on the 75 repair. 😀
I think your dad has hit the nail on the head with the comment * its rotted away * purley from the video, i can see lots of corrosion down the outside of the cylinder liners + also on the base of the head. You did also have a partially blocked heater matrix, and other coolant / heater issues ( obviously this engine has already had head / head gasket repairs in the past ( could this be someone just using just water and not anti-freeze to get by for a while or something along thoose lines ? This may also be the reason for the questionable liner dropping ( poor coolant issues leading to multiple issues later perhaps ? ) I would recommend a complete coolant flush ( using a detergent of your choice ) with multiple coolant changes ( using washing powder ( provding my wife doesnt see me using using its lol ) Hope all goes well 👍
alloy block, alloy head, right through clamp bolts, the engine was designed to use a MLS gasket, BMW ordered rover to the use the non MLS gasket on-launch knowing full well it would seal the fate of the K series and the brand.... you could almost say BMW purposely destroyed the brand . I have spend many of years researching this, Rover management explicitly designed this motor to use the MLS BMW management over ruled them. fit the MLS gasket and use the same bolts it will never go again
Except…The K Series was in the Rover 200 (R8) in 1.4 & 1.6 in 16v form from 1989 & in the Metro in 1.1 8v, 1.4 8v & 1.4 16v from 1990. British Aerospace owned Rover until the end of January 1994. Also the 1.8 was in the MGF, the Elise and the Freelander well before the 75
its possible a poor mechanic did the first HG job causing the liner to shift or the liner could be damaged from previous cooking, looking at the condition of the gasket i would bet its a sub standard part, if the engine has cooked the alloy will warp and move liner, i would put mls in and monitor (unless the liner is way out)
did many k series head gaskets in many engine sizes sometimes repeating the job on the same cars more than once? at one point my boss said if anyone wants a k series head gasket job just say we are too busy!! glad that part of my life is over hated the bloody things, good luck to you and your dad😉
I fitted one like that it was a ebay cheapy but never again, failed exactly the same way ,the better ones are the stainless multilayered n series, but like your dad went back to the standard and not had any problems up to 40k ,great video as usual 👍thank you .
DO NOT use the elastomer gasket it is the reason head gaskets fail in the first place the elastomer fails hence why siac do not use them when ricardo uprated the k series for the newer model MG’s use a dial gauge an mls gasket and some liner shims the only way to get a reliable K series
Interesting - the gasket didn't fail in the usual way. Normally, the hot gases in the cylinder burn through the seal to the coolant, resulting in gases getting out and pressurising the cooling system, with a fountain of coolant erupting out of the header cap. This would explain why your cylinders were pressure testing absolutely fine. A hydrocarbon test wouldn't have spotted it either. If it had leaked into the cylinder, one of those heads and piston crowns would have been nice and shiny, as it had been steam cleaned. My working theory is that the head or block hadn't been cleaned properly by the previous repairer, leaving a bit of dirt in, so providing a weak point for the water to slowly escape, causing rust which expands and makes it worse, letting air in. I guess all that crud in the coolant passageways had also blocked the heater matrix. Maybe scale from tapwater they used to repeatedly refill the system.
I thought the same looks like silicone that rubber that your pulling off. multi layer gaskets don't have silicone beading has somebody put sealant on before the gasket
That's a bit of a harsh generalisation. No car brand is problem free. Most Rover detractors jump on the bandwagon without any of their own experience and those that do have some experience exaggerate. Not saying that Rovers are anywhere near perfect but they have made some great models.
Thanks for watching this video - I really hope you enjoyed it. If you could please hit the LIKE button this helps UA-cam tell other people they might enjoy this video too.
If you haven’t already subscribed please consider it too you don’t miss out on any other videos coming to the channel soon.
Comment below to tell me what you think - I aim to reply to all comments
The more I watch this series, the more I realize this isn't about resurrecting a Rover 75. It's about the relationship between you and your dad. And that's why I keep coming back for more.
That's very humbling and kind. Thank you for watching ☺️
Yes, car videos aren't about cars, they are really about people. The good ones anyway.
Who needs an Haynes manual when you have a dad like him hes very knowledgeable ❤
He certainly is 😁
Jon from memory there is a kit with a modified,gasket different head bolts and a new type of lower ladder it was developed by Ford,as when they took control of Land Rover the warenty claims on the K series in the Freelander was costing them an absolute shed load of money not to mention the grief,I did replace a number of these ,and have never had one fail afterwards.
Yes. I believe this is called a N series upgrade. Not something we will be doing at this stage 😀
When I started as a mechanic in the 60s head gaskets were often copper, in some cases even solid thick copper but more often a copper 'sandwich', with a filling of what was probably asbestos in those days, between two layers of thin copper. There was nothing ferrous to rust away. I once even re-used a solid thick copper one plus blue Hylomar on a 1950s Aston Martin DB2/4 when I couldn't get a new one, no problems. The materials these days are often cheap and nasty, but admittedly heads were often cast iron in those days which helped. The last K-Series I did had a gasket with beads of red mastic already on it, but that was quite a few years ago. If there's the correct amount of antifreeze/corrosion inhibitor in the cooling system it shouldn't happen anyway.
That's what we think. We have a theory that tap water has been used for quite a while in the system as opposed to correct coolant
Great video and teamwork - really enjoying watching these videos, thanks. I also love the head gasket inspector at the end 😍😍
Thanks for watching - means a lot to us! The HG Inspector is the boss!
Hi Jon well done to you and your dad and I was agreeing with you about the MLS gasket failing and hopefully there is no damage to the head or block as a result but looks like it’s had a poor repair before
Looking forward to seeing the progress and it’s great how you and your dad are tackling this job learning and problem solving together it’s great all the best Daniel
Thanks for watching Daniel. We really appreciate the comments and little ROVER 75 community we seem to have found!
At age 70 I can honestly say I have never seen a head gasket like that ! That you drove for any distance at all was a miracle. I might want to check the bottom end by whipping the sump off as well ? Well done both of you.
Could be a job for the future
This is a classic example of why the MLS bin-job gasket is no better probably worse a solution than the Upgraded Elastomer gasket thstbis now widely available. The liners need to be equal otherwise the MLS gasket will fail and this is a good example of that. Im glad your dad straight away said we needed the gasket with the 'seal' on. Voice of experience. Hopefully over time the amount of K-Series engines with the MLS will diminish. Only a rebuild almost brand new block will accept an MLS. The chinese proved it on the Kavanchi but on the old K-Series thr original gasket design was the fault but now the best solution.
Elastomer gasket incoming
I love your dad! What a legend! 😊👍☕️
Absolutely - he's the star of the show here not me!
I'm in my fifties and I've learnt quite a bit off your dad over the past Rover 75 videos. I wonder what he'd think of 2.5 V6 engine, anymore reliable. Keep this great series going for as long as you can Jon
I’ve had KV6s for the last 15yrs and although they still can go wrong as with all neglected engines, they’re more robust.
You can never be sure how it’s been cared for, or not.
Good advice
I'm glad there didn't seem to be any permanent damage. The worst part is out of the way. Looking forward to seeing the next video.
Yes thankfully I don't think there has been any damage that we can't repair 😁
This is a great series 👍🏻. I have a 2004 1.4 Rover 25 and it had a serious coolant leak. I knew it would more than likely be a head gasket, but there was no mayo and no sign of oil in the coolant. As the car doesn’t owe me any money and is pretty worthless I tried out some engine sealant. 5 years on and no more coolant leaks and the engine is running really well. However, I would like to do this job myself at some point so this is a great insight as to what’s involved 👍🏻
Glad it helped
Certainly mild here near Bracknell , Literally mini Hurricane outside 50mph winds lol , Anyway i hope your Dad is doing better now and good to see progress being made on the 75 repair. 😀
Blimey! Don't get blown away. Were getting there
@@JonCoupland cheers 🥂 Jon 😃👍 🌈 hope you and your dad have a good weekend when it's here 😁👍
Good video.Ive watched this done on my Rover 45 1.8 very complex but ok now( cross my fingers)
Thank you - fingers crossed :)
I think your dad has hit the nail on the head with the comment * its rotted away * purley from the video, i can see lots of corrosion down the outside of the cylinder liners + also on the base of the head.
You did also have a partially blocked heater matrix, and other coolant / heater issues ( obviously this engine has already had head / head gasket repairs in the past ( could this be someone just using just water and not anti-freeze to get by for a while or something along thoose lines ?
This may also be the reason for the questionable liner dropping ( poor coolant issues leading to multiple issues later perhaps ? )
I would recommend a complete coolant flush ( using a detergent of your choice ) with multiple coolant changes ( using washing powder ( provding my wife doesnt see me using using its lol )
Hope all goes well
👍
Good tips 👍
I'm so happy you have got to the bottom of it, so to speak ... You two are great together 🙏
Thanks for the kind words ☺️ appreciate you watching
alloy block, alloy head, right through clamp bolts, the engine was designed to use a MLS gasket, BMW ordered rover to the use the non MLS gasket on-launch knowing full well it would seal the fate of the K series and the brand.... you could almost say BMW purposely destroyed the brand . I have spend many of years researching this, Rover management explicitly designed this motor to use the MLS BMW management over ruled them. fit the MLS gasket and use the same bolts it will never go again
What if the liners have sunk? Would be mental to fit MLS again if this is what has caused the rot wouldn't it?
Except…The K Series was in the Rover 200 (R8) in 1.4 & 1.6 in 16v form from 1989 & in the Metro in 1.1 8v, 1.4 8v & 1.4 16v from 1990.
British Aerospace owned Rover until the end of January 1994.
Also the 1.8 was in the MGF, the Elise and the Freelander well before the 75
its possible a poor mechanic did the first HG job causing the liner to shift or the liner could be damaged from previous cooking, looking at the condition of the gasket i would bet its a sub standard part, if the engine has cooked the alloy will warp and move liner, i would put mls in and monitor (unless the liner is way out)
@@MartinE63
we did not have this issue on early K series, lr and lotus quickly moved to mls.
did many k series head gaskets in many engine sizes sometimes repeating the job on the same cars more than once? at one point my boss said if anyone wants a k series head gasket job just say we are too busy!! glad that part of my life is over hated the bloody things, good luck to you and your dad😉
Mine went twice 😂
I can imagine 😂
Common fault is liners stretch, 3 have stretched more than the low one. Better quality liners are available.
Yes that certainly is a common fault
New children's show, Counting with Jon 😂
😂😂
I fitted one like that it was a ebay cheapy but never again, failed exactly the same way ,the better ones are the stainless multilayered n series, but like your dad went back to the standard and not had any problems up to 40k ,great video as usual 👍thank you .
Good tip! Thanks for watching 😀
Check that the liners sit proud of the deck face by a couple of thou this is essential with an MLS gasket to get a good seal
We're not using an MLS owing to one sitting flush. Elastomer for us 👍
DO NOT use the elastomer gasket it is the reason head gaskets fail in the first place the elastomer fails hence why siac do not use them when ricardo uprated the k series for the newer model MG’s use a dial gauge an mls gasket and some liner shims the only way to get a reliable K series
Its an ebay cheap gasket seen loads of them do the same on K series. BW750 Elastomer Gasket needed
Yep 👍 it's on order 😁
Another good video 😊 would Be interesting to know if the liner had sunk before the MLS head gasket was fitted.
Great point!
These Bolts cann't be used a second time,they have to be NEW every time!!!
Interesting. Not what Dad was taught by Rover ( as per his chat) but don't worry as we will be replacing them 😁
Interesting - the gasket didn't fail in the usual way. Normally, the hot gases in the cylinder burn through the seal to the coolant, resulting in gases getting out and pressurising the cooling system, with a fountain of coolant erupting out of the header cap. This would explain why your cylinders were pressure testing absolutely fine. A hydrocarbon test wouldn't have spotted it either. If it had leaked into the cylinder, one of those heads and piston crowns would have been nice and shiny, as it had been steam cleaned.
My working theory is that the head or block hadn't been cleaned properly by the previous repairer, leaving a bit of dirt in, so providing a weak point for the water to slowly escape, causing rust which expands and makes it worse, letting air in. I guess all that crud in the coolant passageways had also blocked the heater matrix. Maybe scale from tapwater they used to repeatedly refill the system.
Good theory 😃
Yes but did have new engine Bolts (the long ones that are torquet to different tightning moments)
Yes 👍
Probably been more water than antifreeze in it over here theres more antifreeze used because of the rust Problem helps to stop rust
I think you might be right
great progress
Many thanks
Crikey that's bad not seen a lot of gaskets but that's by far the worst I've seen 😣
I'm genuinely surprised how minimal the leak was in comparison
Cwn see youre dad is used to the k series he is in there like a rabbit down a hole
Aye he's done a few in his lifetime 😁
Hi Jon, when your dad loosened the head bolts, I didn't think they looked to be very tight, what's your dad think?
I'll ask him. I'd say if they were loose he would have probably said at the time BUT I'll ask him :)
I thought the same looks like silicone that rubber that your pulling off. multi layer gaskets don't have silicone beading has somebody put sealant on before the gasket
Them head bolts dont seem very tight
Someone else said the same! I would have thought dad may have mentioned it if they were loose but I'll ask him 😂
Can it be a composite gasket?
How do you mean :)
@@JonCoupland google composite gasket, I can’t send a link
I must agree the car is pants but I really enjoy you and your dad you don’t need a manky old rover for the Magic of you both
That's a bit of a harsh generalisation. No car brand is problem free. Most Rover detractors jump on the bandwagon without any of their own experience and those that do have some experience exaggerate. Not saying that Rovers are anywhere near perfect but they have made some great models.
@@razgriz380 the rovers were bad news simple quality shit
@@garymorris801 I think you will find that's an opinion not a fact.
I dont give a toss what you think
@@garymorris801 likewise as you have a severe attitude problem along with a contemptuous amount of arrogance. Not a good mix.
@ 23:06 does your dad mean Plastigauge?
We got to the bottom of it. It was Elastomer 😂😀