Putting the head of the engine back together....

[Stefan]

Hi
Work is finished with the head and i just checked the valve clearences on the workbench, needs alot of adjustment.. (new valves).
Before i'm putting the head back on the engine i will also change the front crankshaft seal.
- Any advise and hints, it's the first time im working on a Lotus engine.
One advise i got was to put the manifold on the head before mounting it on the engine.
I took off the manifold before i took of the head when i stripped the engine, that was complicated.

Cheers
Stefan

[robertverhey]

Assuming you already have the bonnet off, this is not too complicated, but if your timing belt has seen better days it's a good opportunity to replace that too. The tensioner and belt need to come off plus a few other bits and bobs to enable you to remove all the front cover bolts and take the cover off. You'll need a new gasket. I rigged up a puller from a steering wheel puller to get the front toothed wheel off the crankshaft. I sent my front cover away to be blasted and have the new seal fitted, didn't cost much more and gave peace of mind about how far to push it in. Obviously it all needs to be timed when it's back together, so set it at TDC and mark everything before dismantling and then once the blt's off turn the crankshaft through 90 degrees (remembering which direction) so all the pistons are well away from the valves while the belt's off. The service manual actually covers this job quite well.

After all that it turned out the oil pump shaft seal was a much bigger source of leaks, so you might want to deal with that at the same time.

Hope this helps

Robert

[CapnBob]

Hi Stephan,
As Robert V suggests, do the cam belt and tensioner while you're at it: cheap insurance I think.
A high temp Viton seal is available in a size to suit the front cover; much recommened.
Always easier to put the exhaust manifold on out of the car. Inlet is easy at anytime. A little lube on the manifold heater hose real;y helps.
Hope it all works out well.
Robert