More 440 source woes
Posted: Sun Sep 22, 2019 7:29 pm
Having yet again moved halfway around the world (this time to Canada), work has finally resumed on my mk2 Interceptor, 125-5420.
When I bought the car (from California), it was immediately shipped out to where I then lived (Dubai) and dismantled, without even being driven, for rebuild. I bought quite a number of engine rebuild parts (primarily from 440 source) and had them shipped with the car. Over the intervening years, several serious medical issues (wife, not myself), along with family crises, have prevented much in the way of progress but this summer, I finally managed to get back to it.
First up was the long awaited engine rebuild. I had dismantled, cleaned and painted the engine immediately after removal, following which, it sat covered up (to prevent sand entering) until I had to reattach the heads to lift it into the car for transport. First job was to clean again,following which the rebuild commenced with a new cam and timing gear, followed by the 440 source heads / valve gear / water pump housing, pulleys, etc.
First issue was the water pump housing - not restricted flow - I never even got that far - the housing a) had the holes for the water neck drilled too far apart for the new billet water neck's holes to align and b) was so much taller than the previous one that it was impossible to refit the AC compressor above it. I therefore removed it, cleaned up and repainted the original one and refitted that. The AC now fits again but it appears that there is precious little clearance between the back of the PS pump and the LHS valve cover.
Today, after much attention with wire brushes, sandpaper and paint, I finall got around to refitting the valve covers, only to discover that not only do the internal baffles foul the valvetrain but the bolt holes do not appear to align with the ones in the heads! I can get no more than 3 aligned at any one time, without enlarging the holes in the covers. I have not yet done that but wanted to ask if anyone else that has used the 440 source stealth heads has come across this issue and if so, how you resolved it?
When I bought the car (from California), it was immediately shipped out to where I then lived (Dubai) and dismantled, without even being driven, for rebuild. I bought quite a number of engine rebuild parts (primarily from 440 source) and had them shipped with the car. Over the intervening years, several serious medical issues (wife, not myself), along with family crises, have prevented much in the way of progress but this summer, I finally managed to get back to it.
First up was the long awaited engine rebuild. I had dismantled, cleaned and painted the engine immediately after removal, following which, it sat covered up (to prevent sand entering) until I had to reattach the heads to lift it into the car for transport. First job was to clean again,following which the rebuild commenced with a new cam and timing gear, followed by the 440 source heads / valve gear / water pump housing, pulleys, etc.
First issue was the water pump housing - not restricted flow - I never even got that far - the housing a) had the holes for the water neck drilled too far apart for the new billet water neck's holes to align and b) was so much taller than the previous one that it was impossible to refit the AC compressor above it. I therefore removed it, cleaned up and repainted the original one and refitted that. The AC now fits again but it appears that there is precious little clearance between the back of the PS pump and the LHS valve cover.
Today, after much attention with wire brushes, sandpaper and paint, I finall got around to refitting the valve covers, only to discover that not only do the internal baffles foul the valvetrain but the bolt holes do not appear to align with the ones in the heads! I can get no more than 3 aligned at any one time, without enlarging the holes in the covers. I have not yet done that but wanted to ask if anyone else that has used the 440 source stealth heads has come across this issue and if so, how you resolved it?