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Why is there a block passage and gasket passage and no corresponding passage in the head? It's like the steam holes in an sbc 400ci head...


Yep - it may even contribute to blown head gaskets - but maybe not. Maybe it's designed to better transfer heat evenly over the length of the head.

Larry, here's a picture of the passenger side deck of an '89 3.0L with an OE gasket in place. Note the same holes are in the gasket as are in the deck:

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Here's a picture of some '89 3.0L heads and you'll see there's no corresponding hole in the head:

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What threw me off was the amount of etching - I've never seen it that bad on a 3.0L head. Here's a picture of my 3.0L heads after milling only a couple of thousandths:

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I checked a set of '91 heads I recently pulled for future use and found they're etched even worse than yours in that area, so don't worry about it - you're good to go. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/kewl.gif" alt="" />

Frank

'89 [color:"white"]G-Raider[color:"white"] [color:"black"]Supercharged 3.0L, MegaSquirt 2, lockup A/T, 2.5" exhaust, 172k, Cibie H4s/Oscar SCs, Hella Micro DE fogs, Cobra CB, Superwinch hubs, LSD rear/Aussie Locker front, Bilsteins, Lifeline AGM, Rust-Oleum