I have removed the heads on my engine so many times that removing the engine
was unfesable.  I have pulled the pistons/liners and replaced them with the
engine still in the van.  It is a litle more difficult, but still possible.
If I remember correctly, the Bently Bible states that head removle is still
possible with the engine in the vehicle.  If you want some more info, let me
know.  btw, I can now remove/reinstall the starter without any light, though
I don't recommend it.

Pete
peterz@gte.net
83.5 Vanagon

-----Original Message-----
From: Joe L. <jliasse@EMAIL.MSN.COM>
To: vanagon@VANAGON.COM <vanagon@VANAGON.COM>
Date: Tuesday, November 03, 1998 3:17 PM
Subject: Re: Head advice

>      I printed out your post and stapled it into my Bentley against the
>time when my left head fails sometime in the next 20k miles or so (if
>predictions are accurate). It certainly seems more doable than other
>techniques I have seen. Should I screw up and pull the cylinders out past
>the rings you will have saved the neighbrhood an exibition of how loudly
and
>long an old sailor can cuss.
>
>      I mentioned pulling the engine in my post because the HAYNES manual
>(not me) says the heads should not be changed without pullling the engine.
>Haynes, having said that, continues with teardown instructions under the
>assumption that the engine is sitting on the bench and not in the van. In
>their instructions they state "If the head sticks to the liners, the head
>and liners may be withdrawn as an assembly.".  This is stated so casually
>that the mechanically challenged (like me) might assume that the cylinders
>may be just as easily slipped back on (certianly NOT the case). I would
>probably have made this assumption myself had I not been reading the
>postings on this list for several months prior to the failure of my head
>gasket.  Not knowing which manual he was reading or what else he may have
>known about the job I mentioned it "just in case".
>
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Johan Nyberg <johan.nyberg@ABC.SE>
>To: vanagon@VANAGON.COM <vanagon@VANAGON.COM>
>Date: Monday, November 02, 1998 3:56 PM
>Subject: Re: Head advice
>
>
>I just read Joe L.'s post about what is possible and what isn't with the
>engine in place. I have to disagree with you, Joe, because I have pulled
the
>right-hand  head with the cylinders and even managed to get it back on.
>Though I had strange pains, esp. in the calves, afterwards:-)
>
>It's not fun, but it's very educational in the area of patience and hope.
>
>I did it like this:
>
>Getting the head off is no problem, though it's wise to catch the pistons
>when they come out and swing downwards. I think I stuffed some rags below
>them.
>The really hard part is to get the pistons off the connecting rods. I
>removed the oil filler tube, the dipstick tube and the coolant tube, used a
>pair of long, slim, surgical locking pliers (I don't know their name in
>english) to remove the clips securing the piston-bolts and with the curved
>end of a motorcycle spoke pulled the bolts through the  coolant port. There
>is a VW tool for this, VW 3091, I suppose it's very expensive. What took me
>an hour or two to realize, was that it's important to support the piston in
>the right position when pulling, otherwise the bolt jams. Finding the right
>position is a matter of trial and error, if one doesn't have the VW 3090
>special tool. There is a possibility that the bolt-hole is deformed,
leaving
>a ridge blocking the passage. This ridge has to be shaved off. The VW 3195
>is available for this, I used a tool made for finishing the cutting edges
of
>a special cabintry scraper. I don't know the english word for this one
>either. First I thought this was the case and did some shaving, but later -
>much later - I realized the bolt was jamming because I was bending the
>connecting rod sideways.
>
>Before removing the pistons, I tried to put the cylinder sleeves back with
>the pistons still on the connecting rods. It didn't work at all. I didn't
>have a ring-compressor, I didn't know of any that would fit in that very
>small place. I broke a ring in the process. Now I've seen one that might do
>the job, just a narrow, curved steel band with ends bent outwards. It has
to
>be the right size to work.
>
>Putting the pistons back with the sleeves on the bench and with the aid of
a
>ring-compressor was very straight forward.
>
>The proper way to remove cylinders and pistons is to pull each
>cylinder-sleeve - starting with the rearmost - until the bolt-hole and bolt
>is visible through the coolant port, pull the plug and remove the sleeve
>with the piston still in it, but this doesn't work if the sleeves are
frozen
>in the head. At least I don't think so.
>
>Anyway, this - in the opposite order - is how I got them in place.
>
>Putting it together again was childs-play compared to taking it apart, and
>an advantage in pulling the cylinder-sleeves is that one is then able to
>replace the inner gasket between sleeve and crank-house.
>The only thing I did wrong was not checking carefully enough that the
>pushrods were propoerly in place when I put the rocker-arms back. This gave
>me a terrible fright when I started up the engine and it sounded like it
was
>coming apart. However, no permanent harm was done.
>
>Good luck, and let us try not to let pride make fools of us, tackling jobs
>that we don't manage. Despair is not a nice state to live in, though
victory
>is sweet when it comes unexpected.
>
>
>
>I haven't done the left-hand head, yet. Then one has to remove the
>water-pump to pull the piston bolts.
>
>
>  ************************************************************
>    Johan Nyberg, Sweden N 59o E 17o 25"
>    '86 Caravelle C
>  ************************************************************