How to Replace a B18 Head

B18 head gaskets are found in several Acura models, including the Integra. Signs that your head gasket may need replacing include chronic overheating, which will show up on your temperature gauge, and white smoke from your tailpipe. While you will want to check the terms of your warranty to see if doing this repair yourself will void any coverage, it is possible to change the head gasket yourself if you are comfortable with a ratchet set.

Instructions

1

Move your first piston to the top, right in the middle. Move your cams to the "up" position. Then, unhook the battery's negative cable and disconnect the ground wire running to the head.

2

Drain the engine oil and coolant. Remove the air intake. If your Integra has a cable transmission, unhook the clutch cable. Also disconnect the cable to the throttle.

3

Loosen the power steering pump's tensioner with a 10 mm socket and slide off the power steering belt. Then, take the 12mm socket and take off the bolts that keep the pump in place. Set the pump out of the way.

4

Unhook your vacuum lines. Be careful -- it can be difficult to remember exactly how they were connected, so use a Sharpie to make any necessary markings. Then, unhook all the connectors between the engine and wiring. Depending on the make and model, this may involve undoing a series of clips or loosening 10 mm nuts, and there may even be some in the fuse box.

5

Take out the distributor and the spark plug wires. In most Integra models, this will just involve taking out three bolts. Then, take out the hoses running between the head and the block.

6

Raise the jack under the car and stabilize it with jack stands. Take off the wheel and fender on the driver's side. Then, take out the bracket you'll find on the rear of the engine that holds the block and intake together. Use the ratchet to give you enough slack in the alternator to take the belt off. Use the impact gun to loosen the crankshaft pulley, and then take it out. If you don't have an impact gun, you can put a socket on it and hit the socket with a hammer.

7

Take off the valve cover with your 10 mm socket and then take off the timing cover and timing belt. Loosen the camshaft-bearing bolts symmetrically, moving from side to side, a quarter-turn at a time until all are ready to come off by hand.

8

Lay your flattened cardboard box on the ground and put the bearings on it. Make sure you line them up in the sequence you take them out. Pull the cams and the rocker arms out and put them on the box as well.

9

Break the head bolts with the breaker bar. Start with the lower right hand corner, then move to the upper left hand corner. Go to the other far corners and work your way toward the middle. Then, unhook all wires and hoses from the head and pull it out.

10

Take out the intake manifold. Have your head pressure tested by a certified mechanic to see if there are cracks contributing to the leaks. If there are, it's time to get a new B18 head. If not, just replace the gasket.

11

Bolt the intake manifold into place and then put the head gasket on the block. Insert and hand tighten all of the head bolts and then tighten them with your torque wrench, in the reverse order in which you removed them. Make sure to cover each part with motor oil as you put it back in place. Put the rocker arms, camshafts and bearing caps back. At this point, you should replace the timing belt and water pumps with new parts. Once you've put everything back in, put in a new oil filter and refill coolant and oil levels.