Christine1970

I have a WJ with 257xxx miles. Yes, I took good care of my Jeep.( 4 wheeling, mudding, climbing, she's done it all, lol) Now that my lovely, non mechanically inclined daughter drove it while overheating. She, I believe, blew a head gasket. Already changed out radiator, fan, and thermostat first, praying it was a simple fix. NOT! Now that I know it's either a head gasket, or possibly a cracked block. My question is; if it is the head gasket, should I change out the original 0331 head with TUPY or CLEARWATER to give my WJ more life? Don't want nightmares in the future. Thank you and have a jeeping day!

dave1123

It makes good sense to replace it with a different head. Either a 0331 "TUPY" or a "Clearwater". I don't know what a new TUPY head costs, but 3 years ago I bought a new Clearwater head, complete with valves and springs for $455 including shipping both ways, as in core return. Another option is spend $50 on a junkyard TUPY and around $200 to recondition it. I had 253K miles on my 2000 WJ before I pulled the 4.0L because of a cracked piston skirt. Now it's getting a fresh shortblock with my reconditioned Clearwater head.

The Clearwater head is actually an Odessa head from Clearwater FL. It's a new heavy casting with more metal in it.

Be aware that with new valves that seal tight, it may start using some oil due to the worn rings. I'd put an oil separator on the Crankcase vent system. I did and it was catching lots of oil.