that is probably a little bit over my head (haha get it )

what material is it? I might need to outsource that.... so a compression test will tell me?

 

Oh it is definitely something you would send to an automotive machine shop to have done.

 

alloro, how much would it cost to do that? I know each shp charges what they want, but do you know of a baseline?

Also, should I just do 1 head, or both? the codes I am getting are P0304 and P0300

worst case scenario, car-part. com has used heads for $150 (not sure if that is one side or a pair)

 

There is no given price, it will vary depending on how many they have to fix. I usually just get a cylinder head off eBay. They come all repaired along with a brand new valve job, ready to bolt on.

 

Agreed.

I would get both heads as if one, at 200k+ miles has failed, the other isn't very far behind

 

P0304 bothers me when the weather is damp and I don't drive it everyday...
I reset and don't see the code again for months as long as it is warm or I drive it everyday
get a cheap scan tool from Harbor Freight when they go on sale
I have two from them and keep the cheaper one in the van to reset the code

I have 193K on my 5.2L

 

My 5.9 had a lot of carbon build up and every now and then it would get a little spark knock which threw off my timing and continued to take out timing until multiple misfires happened. The fix was running some sea foam through the intake and burning all the carbon off the valves and my misfires went away.

 

I would be able to determine if there is a crack with a compression test? If there is, I will pull the head and inspect it, but I don't want to take apart a running car without knowing what I do next is going to fix it or not

 

adjacent cylinders under pressure will leak and have lower compression with a crack then cylinders without a crack...

the compression test also tells you if your piston rings or valves are leaking

in order to test good all cylinders should be within 10%

take the measurements, write them down indicating the cylinder and post the numbers...

don't remove anything until you do this simple test...
pull the plug from the coil as you don't want the engine to start
pull a plug, screw in the gauge, then crank the engine a few seconds while someone looks at the compression gauge... note the top number you achieve, then also note how fast you lose 1/2 of that pressure in seconds... replace the plug and repeat on the next cylinder

 

would this be a simple test?




also, I have been told I should do a leak down test?