Head gasket fix

Parts Required

Head gasket job

Note on the Partsouq links: Partsouq has no separate product page — the linked page is their buy page (price, stock count and Add button all render right there). Every other link below goes to a direct product page with a cart button, confirmed shipping to Australia.

Inspect first — replace only if needed

These come off (or get exposed) during the job anyway, so inspect them while everything's apart and only buy if they fail inspection:

Clutch

Cooling system

Mounts

Gold titanium bolt kits (Dress Up Bolts)

Full gold coverage of engine + engine bay takes a combination of kits — the Stage 2 engine bay kit you found only covers chassis-side hardware (headlights, fenders, strut towers, radiator mounts, fuse box, battery tie-down), nothing bolted to the engine itself. Note: dressupbolts.com now redirects to fastturnfittings.com — same catalogue and prices; Lowered Lifestyle charges USD and ships to AU.

Combo total ≈ US$785 ≈ A$1,190 + shipping (over A$1,000 landed attracts GST + duty at the border — splitting into two orders avoids it). Twenty20 Racing is the AU stockist (their DUB range) but doesn't list the GC8 Stage 2 — ring them, they may special-order and save you the import hassle. These kits are dress hardware only — they never replace torque-critical fasteners (head studs, mount through-bolts, manifold studs, suspension). Anything rusty outside kit coverage gets zinc M6/M8 flange bolts from a hardware supplier.

Fluids

The gearbox stays in the car and keeps its oil — pulling the engine and doing the clutch doesn't touch it.

Machine shop and paint (Brisbane)

---

Steps in Order

Phase 0 — Before touching a spanner

1. Order everything with lead times now: one JDM order (Partsouq/Amayama — head gaskets, seals, oil filter, heater hoses), clutch kit, ARP studs, gold bolt kits (email re: EJ205 engine kit fitment first). Email GC8 DOC about the washer bottle restock.
2. Book the machine shop — EJ205 heads, MLS-spec surface finish, slot ~1–2 weeks out.
3. Sort the engine bay paint plan — either book a painter or buy the DIY materials (primer, colour, engine enamel) so they're on hand when the bay is empty.
4. Photograph the engine bay from every angle; label every connector and hose with masking tape as you go.
5. Get consumables and gear: zip-lock bags + marker, penetrating oil (soak exhaust and mount bolts days ahead), engine crane hire, engine stand, drain pans, brake cleaner, lint-free rags.

Phase 1 — Strip down and engine out

1. Disconnect and remove the battery. Drain engine oil and coolant (radiator drain + block plugs).
2. Remove the bonnet (two people), the intercooler and intake piping (set aside for reinstall), and the boost controller with all its plumbing.
3. Remove the Bluetooth radiator.
4. Remove the radiator (keeping — set aside for pressure test and flush), both hoses, overflow tank and washer bottle.
5. Disconnect: engine harness plugs at the bulkhead, fuel lines (depressurise first), heater hoses, throttle cable, clutch linkage, earth straps. Swing the power steering pump and A/C compressor aside with lines connected — saves a regas.
6. Unbolt the exhaust at the up-pipe/downpipe, engine mounts, and bellhousing. Support the gearbox, crane the engine out.
7. On the stand: remove turbo, manifolds, timing covers, timing belt, cam pulleys, then the heads. Bag and label every bolt by subsystem. Inspect the belt, idlers, tensioner and water pump now (see inspection table) — this is the moment to decide if any get replaced.
8. Deliver to the machine shop: both heads, the flywheel, and have them check the block deck for flatness and pitting. Drop the radiator at a radiator shop for a pressure test and flush at the same time.

Phase 2 — While the machine shop has the heads

1. Clean the block deck: razor and solvent only, no power discs. Clean corrosion off the block, alternator, starter and brackets — wire wheel, then rust converter where needed.
2. Reseal the oil pump (o-ring + Three Bond on the front case). Fit the new rear main seal, cam seals and front crank seal.
3. Trace the coolant leak now the system is apart — radiator pressure test, look over the heater pipes and core plugs, check the water pump weep hole. Whatever's leaking either gets fixed here or is already on the parts list.
4. Degrease and strip the engine bay, treat any rust, replace rusty captive hardware, then paint it — mask thoroughly, prime any bare metal, and lay the colour before anything goes back in.
5. Paint engine components while they're off: rocker covers, brackets, timing covers.
6. Fit the gold titanium hardware through everything as it reassembles from here on — engine kit pieces as the engine goes back together, bay kit pieces as the bay repopulates.

Phase 3 — Head gaskets and engine reassembly

1. Heads back: confirm the surface finish is MLS-spec. Final-clean the block deck — spotless and dry.
2. Fit the head gaskets dry (bare metal-to-metal, no sealant or spray copper — see note below) and install the heads on the ARP studs — ARP lube and ARP's torque figures, not the factory procedure.
3. Rebuild the front of the engine: refit the water pump and thermostat (or new ones if they failed inspection), timing belt back on with all timing marks aligned — triple-check, the EJ20 is an interference engine.
4. Refit rocker covers, intake manifold, exhaust manifolds, up-pipe and turbo, all with new gaskets. New spark plugs, gap-checked.
5. Fit the machined flywheel (thread-locker on the bolts), clutch kit with the alignment tool, new spigot and throwout bearings, greased fork pivot — new fork if the old one is worn.

Fitting head gaskets "dry": MLS (multi-layer steel) gaskets are engineered to seal on their own — the layers have a thin factory-applied coating that does the sealing against the machined surfaces. You install them exactly as they come out of the box onto perfectly clean, dry, oil-free surfaces: no RTV, no gasket goo, no copper spray. Adding sealant actually stops them sealing properly and is one of the common ways these jobs fail. The seal quality comes entirely from surface cleanliness, the machine shop's surface finish, and correct torque.

Phase 4 — Engine in and plumbing

1. Fit the new Group N engine mounts to the engine, crane it in, mate to the gearbox, fit the new gearbox mount.
2. Reconnect everything against the photos and labels: fuel, new heater hoses, earth straps, power steering, A/C, throttle, clutch.
3. Refit the pressure-tested radiator with the new silicone hoses, new overflow tank and new washer bottle.
4. Refit the original intercooler and intake piping. With the boost controller gone, plumb the boost line back to factory: turbo nipple → factory boost control solenoid → wastegate actuator, so the stock ECU controls boost like it left the factory.
5. Fill: engine oil + new filter, and coolant — fill slowly with the heater on full to burp.

Phase 5 — First start and run-in

1. First start on the stock ECU: crank with plugs out to build oil pressure first, then start. Watch for leaks and oil pressure.
2. Burp the cooling system fully — nose up on ramps, heater on, squeeze hoses; GC8s airlock easily.
3. Block-test the coolant for combustion gas to confirm the head gasket job sealed.
4. Gentle heat cycles only, re-check coolant level over several runs, refit the timing covers. After a few heat cycles, re-check exhaust manifold and turbo fasteners (ARP studs don't need a re-torque).
5. Wheel alignment (new mounts shift the drivetrain slightly), final fluid-level checks, road test.

---

Budget Summary

---

To Confirm Before Ordering

Deferred to a later stage: Haltech Elite 1500 kit + 3-port solenoid (Goleby's, $3,084), Process West top mount intercooler PWTMIC02B ($1,470).