my friend Jay is trying to tell me that having a blown head gasket is the same as having a blown head, is this true?
NO… The head gasket and the head are two different things. The terminology here is a “Blown” head gasket or as far as the head is concerned, a “Cracked” head. In other words, heads crack and head gaskets blow.
transman
thank you because my friend has been in this business for almost 30 years and hes trying to tell me that basically that i have a cracked head but that isnt true because i would have seen it leaking from the head but i hadnt. but this much i can say is thatwhen i told him that i had a blown head gasket he tried to tell me that my head was bad (i had a cracked head) then he tried to tell me that i was making no sence and that they are the same thing!
You could still have a cracked head; you need to take the head off and examine it in detail. You may have both a cracked head and a gasket leaking. Neither you nor your friend can tell exactly where the water comes from originally until the head comes off. So take it to a good mechanic and ignore your “friend”.
Dont jump on him too fast here. The head can still be cracked where it mates to the block. This happens all too often especially when an engine overheats. It doesnt have to be cracked on the outside where you can see it. What I was talking about in my first response was the terminology you or he is using. You can have a “Blown” head gasket or a cracked head or even both but you cant have a “Blown” head.
transman
Agree on the terminolgy, although watching Michael Jackson on TV makes you start believing in “blown heads”. The last cracked head I had to deal with was my dad’s straight 6 Chevy which had cracks around the valve seats. Leaks were not visible from the outside. As you say, overheating, which caused the cracks in my dad’s engine, may cause cracks in different areas.