Possible head gasket leak

[carrie_girl_wonder]

I've had an oil leak for ages now and whn I got in MOT'd I pointed it out and they said they wouldn't find one,but months down the line its clear even to me that theres a leak SO I took it to my friend that got down and dirty and had a look once i'd washed the engine down and he reckons its the head gasket, now all I know about head gaskets is that its a very bad thing and expensive? Not meaniing to be a typical girl here but i'm all good with moding bits n bobs and brakes but anything under the bonnet other than topping fluids up is an utter nightmare for me.
Can anyone offer me any advice on how to fix this possible leak,and roughly how much it should cost,so i'm not ripped off etc and explained simply lol I would really appreaciate the help
cheers guys! :)

[just vaux trev]

what engine??
sri??

[carrie_girl_wonder]

1.6 8v cav engine

[brainsnova]

if your sure its the head gasket get a second opinion then get your mate to do it. It not too difficult :thumb:

[Benn]

If you dont have oil/water mixing or it pressureizing up i'd ingore it..

[carrie_girl_wonder]

I would but I don't know him that well so i'd feel a bit cheeky asking. If it was leaking would it effect the general perfomance of the car?like make it slower?

[Benn]

No, not anless its pissing out..
Mines seaping in the corner, hasnt got any worse or better. Ingornace is bliss.

[meritlover]

miss wonder,
an oil leak is an unusual symptom of a head gasket failure. it normally manifests itself as white smoke from the exhaust/using water or over heating. however its not completely unheard off.
most common causes of oil leaks on Novas is the rocker gasket (which is a 5 min fix and involves removing about 8x6mm bolts and replacing the cork gasket.

however, a head gasket is slightly more involved and should take even a bad mechanic no more than 2 hours to do, new bolts are about £10 and a gasket is about £8. consider whether its worth changing the timing belt as well if its due.

a headgasket leaking oil would be unlikely to cause a loss of power, however, it is impossible to say without learning more about your internal workings/and or faults and symptoms.

[Lee]

Id go with ML and say its your rocker cover gasket as well. Its a very easy fix, but id get a second opinion before you start buying bits to do it. As you say you dont know this guy very well, he might not know what he's doing, and might have just wanted to give you an answer so as not to look like a tit lol

[AlexW]

Just an idea, but could you get a pic of where the leak is coming from?

[carrie_girl_wonder]

thanks guys:) , but its not the rocker,had that done not too long ago, even though my mate used instant gasket stuff but im pretty sure if i remember right that the mechanic people did it properly.There was another gasket beginning with C that had a tiny leak, just gay everytime i park up i leave a blob of oil,its not 'gushing' out though :thumb:

So if I do get it fixed it shouldn't cost to much really ,great i'm not so worried!

OOO also can you get 50mm lowering springs or do you have to get the adjusable ones?

[carrie_girl_wonder]

it's hard to see its at the bottom at the front of all the gasket stuff, so yeah i cant fit a maera in there :P

[Jack]

OOO also can you get 50mm lowering springs or do you have to get the adjusable ones?
You can get fixed rate 50mm springs.

lmfao Alex's polo uses more oil than it does petrol. She didn't have any problems until it ran out completely and the engine nearly seized :roll:

[carrie_girl_wonder]

I got told by an ex that I couldnt pffft

[Jack]

FAIL. I had some on my old hatch. lol

Technically all car springs are fixed height, its just that ride height adjustable coilovers can compress the spring to lower it down further. Theoretically those springs are fixed, its just the damper compressing it more.

[Lee]

Technically all car springs are fixed height, its just that ride height adjustable coilovers can compress the spring to lower it down further. Theoretically those springs are fixed, its just the damper compressing it more.

You fail at knowing how coilovers work lol

[Jack]

Meh, thats how the cheapo ones I've seen work :p

[Lee]

Id like to have a look at these and laugh heartily at them lol

[Adam]

AVO sell 50mil springs

[carrie_girl_wonder]

sweet! Thanks guys,just one more thing,how much should a reasonable pair of 50mm springs cost me?:)

[craig green]

Springs are usually around the £100 mark, avoid cheap rubbish unless you want the car to handle like a pogo stick.

As for the oil leak, I've seen many an 8v leak from under the HG. Usually in the fr r/hand corner. It should pose any problems unless you encounter oil/water mixing, fluctuating temperatures, loss of coolant or poor starting.

Try removing the spark plugs, 1 by 1 of a morning before starting it up & examine the plug tips for moisture, a sign the HG is weeping coolant into the combustion chambers.

[carrie_girl_wonder]

http://www.europerformance.co.uk/pages/products/category_results.mhtml?category=avosprings&car=vauxhallnova&manufacturer=avo&sub_category=1


these springs seem ok?what do you think?