Virgin Head Gasket?

[TeaBagger2006]

You're only a few steps short of pulling the heads if you replace the factory head bolts with ARP's studs..... I say wait till they blow then do the studs. I have an LBZ with 230k stock head bolts. Max effort tuning for 200k.....but then again LBZ are far more superior

 

[chandler583]

^^^

I would wait, you have tear an awful lot off just to put studs on, and at that point, you're more than half way to replacing head gaskets.

 

[NC-smokinlmm]

I agree. Leave it be untill there is a reason to go into it...

 

[Wake]

Thanks for the info guys

 

[othrgrl]

Hmm, do you believe that is the only cause? I bought my truck with 47k and never had the coolant low before my hg issue at 99k.

I personally do believe that is the case 99.9% of the time. Did you do anything that would have required draining the coolant? A coolant change, water pump, anything in the valley like a regulator or CP3, anything on the driver's side of the engine, pull the turbo, etc. It's not always driving it with a leak to get it that low on coolant, it is often that the system is not bled properly when it goes back together and gets refilled. Not saying that there is absolutely no way to blow a head gasket without air in the system, just saying what we see here on a weekly basis, if not more.

And I agree, take care of your coolant system but "if it ain't broke don't fix it". I think it is a foolish waste of time to install studs without doing new gaskets.

 

[Dirtymaxx03]

My father ol 05 LLY has 32X,XXX miles on it not a single issue. He's replaced a water pump and thats it.

 

[Wake]

I personally do believe that is the case 99.9% of the time. Did you do anything that would have required draining the coolant? A coolant change, water pump, anything in the valley like a regulator or CP3, anything on the driver's side of the engine, pull the turbo, etc. It's not always driving it with a leak to get it that low on coolant, it is often that the system is not bled properly when it goes back together and gets refilled. Not saying that there is absolutely no way to blow a head gasket without air in the system, just saying what we see here on a weekly basis, if not more.

And I agree, take care of your coolant system but "if it ain't broke don't fix it". I think it is a foolish waste of time to install studs without doing new gaskets.

Ya it didn't seem right to me either, that's why I called arp and they confirmed it. I feel that I am lucky a younger guy that lives on my street changed out my water pump, he needed work and when I saw a leak I asked him if he could do it. That was 10,000 miles ago or so

 

[Wake]

My father ol 05 LLY has 32X,XXX miles on it not a single issue. He's replaced a water pump and thats it.

Wow that's a lot of miles... I hope to do the same. I like hearing the other side of the story, a lot of the things I read made the lly out to seem like the 6.0PS

 

[WVRigrat05]

Its all on the tuning, maintaince, and how you drive. I think elevation has a play in it too.

 

[Awenta]

I'd take any duramax over any psd. Comparing the lly to a 6.0 is blasphemous

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

 

[othrgrl]

Its all on the tuning, maintaince, and how you drive. I think elevation has a play in it too.

I would like to know how the tuning or driving style will blow headgaskets? I mean if you go WOT the minute you fire it up on a 10* morning, I don't think it's a great idea. But like I said with 366/480 compounds we have bent and broken a rod and windowed the block without blowing a stock gasket on an LLY - not really sure how tuning could be worse than that to where it would blow a head gasket without hurting anything else in the motor.

 

[WVRigrat05]

I would like to know how the tuning or driving style will blow headgaskets? I mean if you go WOT the minute you fire it up on a 10* morning, I don't think it's a great idea. But like I said with 366/480 compounds we have bent and broken a rod and windowed the block without blowing a stock gasket on an LLY - not really sure how tuning could be worse than that to where it would blow a head gasket without hurting anything else in the motor.

Well I blew mine with a bully dog power pup pulling a 26' camper up a 8% grade 90 mph in 90* weather, and the coolant flew down the side long before the gauge showed hot. Maybe the bully dog didn't do it, maybe it did, but driving habits for sure. And I held mine wfo in the winter at times when I first started it to warm it up just because I'm childish like that, never blew up, cylinder walls were a bit worn at 190k but not terrible.

 

[Max Attitude]

I personally do believe that is the case 99.9% of the time. Did you do anything that would have required draining the coolant? A coolant change, water pump, anything in the valley like a regulator or CP3, anything on the driver's side of the engine, pull the turbo, etc. It's not always driving it with a leak to get it that low on coolant, it is often that the system is not bled properly when it goes back together and gets refilled. Not saying that there is absolutely no way to blow a head gasket without air in the system, just saying what we see here on a weekly basis, if not more.

And I agree, take care of your coolant system but "if it ain't broke don't fix it". I think it is a foolish waste of time to install studs without doing new gaskets.

I have not done any repairs to the engine other than an intercooler boot. The dealer did the head gaskets and nothing since then.