Ok so i blew both my headgaskets, im putting new ones back on, the same ones as before, felpros. I dont like the way the gasket goes around the water jacket, look at the size of the hole in the gasket compared to the size in the head... that CANT be good for water flow. Im just wondering if there is a reason why its like this, or can i drill the hole bigger to allow more water to flow. I could really use the extra water flow to keep my heads cool. This could have been one of the reasons why my gaskets went in the first place.

 

The stock head gasket passage isn't any larger. I wouldn't start changing stuff around to be honest... no reason your heads should be getting any hotter than a stock setup..

Stock GM gasket below...

 

Yea, i know it shouldnt get hotter, which i dont think it was really to be honest. Just why are the water ports so big and the gasket so damn small? There has to be a reason why....

 

wow, never paid attention to that. When I get my cometics I will have to check that out. To be honest, I will definately make my holes bigger! Why have a high volume electric pump, if you can't get that flowing fast? That seems like a big restriction to me! But, I don't know for sure if its ok to do that! Sorry...

 

I'm just kind of guessing here from my Thermodynamics class. If the water flow too fast it might not have enough time to actually cool the heads. The water might be colder but then the head might bet warmer. It takes time to transmit heat from the heads into the water. Instead of getting more flow try getting more volume of water into the heads. That would help the water "resist" the heat better since there is more mass to warm up, but it still would need time. You could probably try increasing the size little by little. There might be some benefits of more flow if stock the water staying to long in the head but there will be a point where the flow is to fast to effectively cool the heads.

Just applying what i learned last semester! If you try it let us know.

 

Well my car runs pretty damn cool, about 170 all the time, and probably 190 in traffic. It will probably show cooler on the gauge if i bore the hole, since the sensor is in the head. I just want to know from anyone that knows for a fact why those holes are so small. I do run an electric water pump also, just in case anyone is wondering.

 

I think TransAm2k4 is on the right track. This is the same logic behind why a lot of people say that not running a thermostat isn't a good idea.

There was a discussion a while ago in one of my threads about modifying the coolant crossover tube that spilled over into more flow in the tube=more consistant cooling in the heads. Someone made that comment (sorry don't remember who) that knew what they were talking about. I would modify that coolant crossover tube (stupid design anyway) to get a little more flow rather than drilling out the headgasket passages. If you're dead set on drilling though, don't open it up too much.

 

True, it takes time to transmit the heat to the water, but as long as you maintain the same contact area with the same volume of water the speed shouldn't affect it. The conduction should be the same. The speed would affect the convective heat transfer, but typically that goes up with speed.

It might be a little difficult to increase the size a little at a time since you'd have to remove the heads each time. Sounds like it would be an interesting experiment though. Not sure what you would check for either. Head temperature? Coolant temperature at some point?

 

I just got off the phone with CSR performance. You should NOT drill out the hole, cuz the water does need to sit in there for a little bit. Its the same reason he told me not to get the Meziere HD pump. He wasn't pushing his product, he just said if I decided on the meziere to go with the standard one, as if you pump the water too fast, it won't have a chance to catch the heat of the motor, and wont have enough time to loose the heat through the radiator. Again, he wasn't bashing meziere, just stated the facts. He was really knowledable, and I suppose you have to be to sell electric water pumps. LOL. So don't do it!

 

^k holes are staying the same

 

Have you read the brochure that comes with the gaskets? It has little to do with letting the water 'sit in there for a little bit'. I would not accept what CSR told you. What do you think a race mechanical pump pumps compared to the OEM pump? Electric? How well do you think a race engine for road racing cool with an electric?

 

I agree, I noticed the same uneven openings and enlarged the gasket. It is true that too much water flow is counter productive. Leave the gasket alone and look for other ways to reduce operating temps such as a radiator for example.

 

Exactly. And has everything to do with not letting the water bypass the rear cylinders completely.