So my car has some issues that may or may not be related. I burn oil, have lower compression in number 1 cylinder, and now it looks like I am burning coolant as the reservoir has went down for the first time since I installed forged rods and pistons. Needless to say I am to the point where I don't think I should drive it until I've taken the head off and fixed whatever is going on.

I've been suspecting coolant was somehow getting burnt because I could catch a whiff of it every now and then and my exhaust seems to be steamier than normal. It's cold out so you can already see the vapor condense but it appears thicker than it should be.

Given all this information I am thinking my head gasket isn't sealing properly. If it were a cracked sleeve wouldn't the coolant burning be much more excessive?

When I built the engine I used a stock L61 head gasket. Does anyone know if I can and if I should be using an LSJ head gasket? I have ARP head studs.

 

its been a while since i dealt with it, but i believe the only different between the 2 gaskets is the thickness. they are the same design gasket.