‘09 JKU 3.8 Head Gasket Probs

The other day I drove into work and as i was getting out I took a look back at my Jeep and saw a small puddle underneath. Well I looked but I was unable to see where it was coming from. Fast forward to my day off, so I took my passenger wheel off and the fender well insert. And after turning on the Jeep and looking for fluid leaks I found the place. It’s leaking from the head gasket, directly under the passenger manifold.

Called a mechanic friend over to take a look and he’s thinking I need to go ahead and pull the engine to do it all. Figured if I’m gonna do that I might as well do a full refresh of everything.

Clean the intake manifolds, spark plugs, egr, water temp sensor, thermostat, oil pan gasket, etc. Also looks like I’m gonna clean and the engine bay and paint several areas that need it.

Are there any suggestions from anybody which could make this a little easier on me? Any write ups already out there? I’ve done a search and didn’t come up with anything on here.

Here is a short video I made.
https://youtu.be/oZ-v9xlKwHI


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That sucks. How many miles on the jeep? You can get an engine rebuild gasket kit that should have everything you need. If you're going to have the whole engine apart, a new set of rod bearings wouldn't be a bad idea. Another thing is to have the heads checked for warpage and cracks. Truthfully, head gasket leaks on this engine aren't really common. Good luck.

You don’t need to pull the engine to replace a head gasket. You can get a top end gasket kit that has everything from the heads up. Like WJCO mentioned, make sure you check the flatness of the head, defects on the mounting surface and cracks. I had to replace one on my 2003 Liberty a few years ago. Once I got the head removed, I found a defect or gouge in the mounting surface that ran from the cooling jacket to the combustion chamber. It was probably there from day one and took 10 years plus 130k miles to fail. I re-milled the head at work and put it back together.

WJCO said:

That sucks. How many miles on the jeep? You can get an engine rebuild gasket kit that should have everything you need. If you're going to have the whole engine apart, a new set of rod bearings wouldn't be a bad idea. Another thing is to have the heads checked for warpage and cracks. Truthfully, head gasket leaks on this engine aren't really common. Good luck.

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Yeah definitely checking for warpage and cracks. And the Jeep has 99k on it.


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sipafz said:

You don’t need to pull the engine to replace a head gasket. You can get a top end gasket kit that has everything from the heads up. Like WJCO mentioned, make sure you check the flatness of the head, defects on the mounting surface and cracks. I had to replace one on my 2003 Liberty a few years ago. Once I got the head removed, I found a defect or gouge in the mounting surface that ran from the cooling jacket to the combustion chamber. It was probably there from day one and took 10 years plus 130k miles to fail. I re-milled the head at work and put it back together.

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I know I don’t have to pull the engine, but I’m gonna do a full refresh (not rebuild) so it would be easier and faster to do it that way. Plus I don’t want to fight everything being in the way.


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timberwoof said:

I know I don’t have to pull the engine, but I’m gonna do a full refresh (not rebuild) so it would be easier and faster to do it that way. Plus I don’t want to fight everything being in the way.

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Easier and faster to pull the engine? If you say so. I mentioned the alternative because your original post made it sound like you weren’t sure and looking for advice. Sounds like you’re all set. Good Luck!