Those terms both mean the same thing, either should suffice.

Actually, that's a loaded question in my opinion, removing the head in or out. Really depends on the equipment you have at your disposal. Twenty six years worth of corrosion etc. on the head studs can make removing that head a challenge. Personally, if I was doing it at home I'd leave it in the car and remove the head with an engine hoist. I long ago made some fixtures to screw into the front and rear spark plug holes to provide lift points. The head can then be lifted straight up off the block and studs without damage. Be wary that you may sacrifice a motor mount in the process as some force may be required to get it separated.

Others will chime in......

Submitted by wljenkins@usa.net on Tue, 03/06/2012 - 01:17

You'll also need a special tool for adjusting the timing chain. I made one myself out of a piece of steel and a piece of water pipe. If you have a machine shop, you could probably fashion one yourself. If I get a chance, I'll snap a photo of the one I made and post it here. It's "crude" but it does the job.

Submitted by wljenkins@usa.net on Tue, 03/06/2012 - 01:12

Here's the manual you need:

http://www.haynes.com/products/productID/215

It's worth every cent you pay for it.

I also wouldn't try to do the machine shop work yourself because these heads need to be done by a shop that has experience with them because you really need to know what you're doing. I had an inexperienced shop screw up my head and had to have it redone by someone who knew what he was doing unlike the first guy. You'll definitely need to have it planed because if you have water in a cylinder, I can guarantee you that it is warped.

Submitted by wljenkins@usa.net on Tue, 03/06/2012 - 01:05

A Haynes manual will tell you everything you need to remove and replace the head. I will tell you though that even after you remove the 12 cylinder head nuts from the studs, the head will be very difficult to remove because the long studs that screw into the block stay in the block when you remove the head. Many times, the studs get gummed up with oil and antifreeze making removal of the head quite a chore. Sometimes I tighten two nuts together on the studs and remove them from the block when the head is still on the block in order to ease removing the head. The studs on the very front and very rear are short and the eight in the middle are much longer, passing through water jackets and this is where they become gummed up with antifreeze residue. In more severe cases, the studs will start to deteriorate near where they thread into the block, I actually had one break off once but was able to remove the broken piece from the block.

Submitted by SE98-32482CJ on Tue, 02/28/2012 - 16:43

Brandon if it is a CD you want I suggest you get the factory CD which one of our sponsors (Coventry West) provides from the JHT. If you want a factory hard copy book I suggest you get it right here in the shoppe. I saw a quote the other day that seemed apt for where you are. "Spending a couple of hours researching something in a book can easily be done away with by two or three days work in the shop.: You will need a manual if for no other reason than torque sequence and figures as well as cam timing etc. The head is the most complex part of the XK engine.