Sometimes a Sprinter reaches the point where a patch won't do — the engine needs real surgery. In this video, a new head gasket, a new head, and a batch of other parts go into a van to give it a new lease on life.
This is a shorter guide: the original video is the source of record here, so for the full walkthrough, watch the reel linked below. What follows is the shape of the job as shown in the video.
When a Van Needs This Level of Work
A head gasket and head replacement is one of the biggest jobs you can do on a Sprinter engine — the kind of work you take on when the goal is to keep the van on the road for the long haul, not just get it through another month. That's the situation in this video: a van getting the full treatment so it can earn its keep again.
What Goes Into the Job
Per the video, the build includes:
- A new head gasket — the seal between the cylinder head and the engine block.
- A new cylinder head — the head itself goes in fresh, rather than just re-sealing the old one.
- Other supporting parts — the "goodies" that go in alongside the head and gasket while the engine is apart.
Pro Tip: Replace the Supporting Parts While You're In There
Any job this deep into the engine is the time to replace the related wear items — gaskets, seals, and hardware that are only accessible with the head off. In the video, that's the "other goodies" going in alongside the head and gasket. Reusing old consumables on a job like this is how you end up tearing the engine apart twice.
Parts You'll Need
All available at MillionMileSprinter.com:
- Head gasket — the new seal at the heart of the job
- Cylinder head — replaced, not re-used
- Supporting gaskets, seals, and hardware — the related parts that go in while everything is apart
Watch the Video
This guide pairs with the video showing the head, head gasket, and other parts going into the van: Watch on Instagram
Have a Sprinter issue you're stuck on? Browse our full parts catalog at MillionMileSprinter.com — we stock parts for all years of Sprinter vans.