Roger, if you reused your old heads then what you have is a hairline
crack at the head nut.  This is a common failure with the OE VW heads as
they have a thin spot right there and can crack upon retorqueing.  That
is why I very, very rarely ever use them.  I always use the AMC heads
which are brand new, but also they are beefed up in this area to avoid
this problem.  Most of my customers come here from at least 2 to 3 hours
away.  I don't want them to have any problems because unlike a local
shop, I just don't have the "luxury" of taking chances and having people
come back.  So I decided a long time ago that if a customer comes in
with heads that have any cracks between the valves, and we are doing a
head gasket replacement, I will always recommend new AMC heads.  I have
never had one single problem with them over the past 12 years of doing
head replacements.  Many happy Vanagons out there still purring down the
road.

Just my opinion.

Ken Wilford
John 3:16
www.vanagain.com

Roger VanTill wrote:
> I rebuilt my 2.1 this spring. Was very careful, read everything I could,
> watched Ben's videos, etc. Got the motor and new tranny installed. Filled
> the system with coolant this afternoon. It's sitting there, not started yet,
> unpressurized. I've got a coolant leak coming from one of the upper center
> head bolts on the driver side. Tears are still falling as I write this.
>
> Yes I sanded the bolts flat and cleaned up the mating surface on the head. I
> used the yellow goop that came with the gasket set.
>
> Should I just drain it, remove the leaking cap nut and reseal it? Do I trust
> the other 15?
>
> Looking for advice and a pat on the back to tell me it'll be alright.
>
>